Marcus Chen
Areas of Expertise: Pest Identification | Integrated Pest Management
Find the Bug First
That has been my rule since 2015, and it is what led me to become a certified Integrated Pest Management specialist.
Most of my work involves identifying garden pests accurately and choosing the least disruptive way to manage them.
I teach pest control workshops, write for gardening publications, and help home gardeners identify what’s damaging their plants before choosing a treatment. Every article I share here follows that same approach.
How I Work
Most of my methods are simple. Hand-picking, insecticidal soap, and a few rows of dill and yarrow to bring in ladybugs handle most of what I see.
Over the years, I have dropped what did not hold up, like dish soap sprays and store-bought ladybugs.
Everything I share here has earned its place the same way, and that is the standard I hold every Marcus Chen article to.
When dealing with plants, it’s easy to overlook small pests, but their presence can have a significant impact on plant health. One such pest that
Bat Bugs vs. Bed Bugs: Which One Is Biting You (and Ruining Your Sleep)? If you’ve found a suspicious little “apple seed with legs” in
What Bit You? A Real Life, No Panic Way to Identify Bug Bites (Fast) If you’ve ever stood in your bathroom at 2 a.m., squinting
Small flies buzzing near your fruit bowl or houseplants are easy to dismiss as one generic pest – until treatment fails and they keep coming
Some plants, they guard. I didn’t believe it at first either. But once I noticed fewer bites and buzzing after planting a few herbs near
You know that sinking feeling when you spot those tiny, clingy intruders clustering on your favorite fiddle leaf fig? Aphids have an uncanny ability to
You notice your pet scratching more than usual. Then you see it, a tiny flea hopping on the carpet. That’s when it hits you: they’re
Nobody wants to share their cozy sanctuary with eight-legged roommates, yet spiders have a knack for finding their way inside. They’re drawn to warmth during
I still remember the first time I heard scratching inside my wall late at night. At first, I brushed it off. Then the sounds kept
Finding fleas in your home can turn your peaceful sanctuary into an itchy nightmare. These tiny invaders don’t just hitch rides on pets; they multiply
Sometimes you spot them on your plants; tiny bugs huddle on stems or hide under leaves. They look harmless, but they’re not. I used to
I still remember the moment a tiny speck moved on a leaf and I realized it wasn’t dust at all. I leaned in, hoping I
