Ignorance is bliss

Ok so I don't really believe this, but... I always try not to interfere with mother nature. Change one thing, and the balance is off. I definitely don't want the job of pest control.
Unfortunately I have a need to know. I'm always looking stuff up, learning everything and anything pertaining to the garden. So now when I see stink bugs I think oh no now all the squash and melons are going to die. Or I see the white butterfly where I used to see them and think oh look at the pretty butterfly, now I see them and think evil demon egg layers!
Now this year might be a little worse, why I don't know, my bird population is more than ever. That being said I'm sure I have had these pests and more in the past, but I didn't know it. I saw the holes in the leaves, but it didn't really seem to hurt the plants, or reduce product that I know of, so it was easy to leave it alone. Now I know and it's a lot harder.
I definitely won't use chemicals. I probably won't use organic bug killers (I don't know if it's called a pesticide if it's organic) I have been hand picking the stink bugs, and tried to use the hand held bug zapper we use in the house for mosquitoes, but that was an epic fail! Those babies are tough. First they are fast, then I had to zap it 3,or 4 times just to knock it down then one of the ones I stepped on flew away after a moment. So if you're team cabbage butterfly, don't feel to bad, out of about 8 or 10 I killed 1.
I have noticed less lizards and toads this year. I usually put out saucers of water for the beneficials.  I haven't this year because last year it was rodents plaguing my garden, and  I  worried the water made my garden the perfect home for them. It's always something isn't it? Maybe I should put some water stations out, and see what happens.
So there you have it. I'm driving myself crazy trying to take my own advice, which I share with fellow gardeners all the time and keep my nose out of it.
The most ridiculous part is besides one tomato (pretty sure it's not a pest killing it) all my plants are doing great. There's a hole here and there, and a few bad leaves, which I removed, but for the most part everything looks great and is producing very well. Yet still I've been stressing about it. This is why I say ignorance is bliss.

Jen Fulkerson wrote:..... It's always something isn't it?  

Ha!....I end weekly phone calls with my age 90s+ mother with this phrase and then we have a good laugh before hanging up... :-)

But just to add to your curiosity, is the bird population high this year?  We have English sparrows in droves...have really taken over every nesting nook and cranny they can find on the property.  And....they've been putting holes in the Swiss chard like crazy.  Interestingly, they target the red-veined chard more than the Fordhook green variety, but it's clear it's the birds and not some insect.  Who knew that birds were more than seed lovers and needed to rush the salad bar every so often!  Also to note, after many decades now, I've noted the "year" makes as much difference if not more than the "location" or many of the treatments.  Knocking on wood as I type this, but our potato vines this year are green, luxuriant, and beginning to flower....and NO Colorado potato beetle!  If you knew how bad we've been battling this little bugger in recent years, you would know how wonderfully unsettling this is.  Great, because of how we are hoping for a good yield, but unnerved because we don't know what the Universe has in store for us.  Our fatalism has us waiting for the other very large shoe to drop.... ;-)

Side note.....toads coming out our ears this year!   And after expertly rabbit-proofing the garden with chicken wire, found two painted turtles over two different nights in there laying eggs.

Mother Nature just having a good laugh....

Yes John we have more birds than normal, and we always have a good amount. I don't know all the names. I know Blue Jays, Dove, Robin, hummingbird, & Mocking bird . A bunch of little birds that may be Sparrow, but I'm not sure about that one. There's others I haven't a clue what they are.
We normally have lots of little blue belly lizards. They are everywhere in my garden. I've seen a few this year, but not even close to what we normally have. The same with toads. I saw a quite large one the other day, but usually in the summer I have to be careful when I walk at night not to step on them, because they are everywhere.
Good luck with your potatoes. I hope that other shoe doesn't drop.

I wonder about the idea of just having one water station instead of multiples?  Maybe that would help the beneficials and not attract too many problem children?

Something interesting I was thinking about. I read that a hugelkultur is a great habit for toads, lizards and other like critters. Last year I gave up and removed my hugelkultur. Maybe this is the reason we have a smaller population this year. I will never really know, but it makes sense to me.