By choosing plants carefully, gardeners can avoid some of the common pest problems. For example, a person wishing to plant hollies for landscaping could choose Chinese hollies instead of Japanese hollies, which are much more susceptible to southern red mites. If boxelder trees are desired, plant male trees rather than females to avoid problems with boxelder bugs, which feed on the seeds of boxelder trees and frequently enter dwellings to overwinter. Rotation Planting two similar crops in successive years tends to increase pest problems. Many vegetables are closely related and have the same pests.
Some insects hibernate or lay eggs in or on the host plant.
Do not grow the same kind of vegetable in the same place each year. Use related crops in a site only once every 3 or 4 years. Another type of crop rotation is to not follow root crops behind other root crops. Crop rotation is most effective on insects that develop on a limited number of plants. Insects that become severe on cabbage will probably also infect nearby mustard, broccoli, and collards.