Are We Spraying Away the Balance?

For nearly 20 years, I have worked as a gardener on Martha’s Vineyard. During that time, I have watched one change accelerate more than any other: the routine spraying of entire properties for ticks and mosquitoes.

When I first began gardening, spraying a landscape for ticks wasn’t even part of the conversation. Ironically, I contracted Lyme disease more than once in those early years. Like many Islanders, I accepted that living and working in nature meant taking precautions — checking for ticks, dressing appropriately and being aware of the risks.

Today, entire properties are commonly sprayed several times each season. Whether the products contain synthetic insecticides or plant-based ingredients such as cedar oil or lemongrass oil, the intention is the same: eliminate ticks and mosquitoes.

I understand why.

The rise in tick-borne illnesses, including Lyme disease and alpha-gal syndrome, has frightened many of us. People want to protect themselves and their families. But I believe we have become so focused on eliminating ticks that we have stopped asking a larger question.

As a gardener, my work is to observe. I notice when gardens are full of native bees, butterflies, spiders, beetles, damselflies, birds and the countless small creatures that make a healthy landscape function. I also notice when they are missing.

On properties that are routinely sprayed, I consistently observe far fewer insects. An occasional bee or damselfly may still appear, but the abundance, diversity and constant movement that characterize a healthy landscape are often diminished. That should give us pause.

Nature does not solve problems through elimination. It solves them through relationships.

The insects and other small creatures we often overlook are not simply background scenery. They pollinate our flowers, build healthy soils, feed birds and form a complex web of predators and prey. When we repeatedly remove large portions of that web, should we be surprised if the system becomes less balanced?

I cannot say with certainty that widespread residential spraying is contributing to our growing tick problem. But after years of observing landscapes across Martha’s Vineyard, I believe it is a question worth asking.

Our landscapes are not isolated pieces of property. Together they form one living system. If we care about the future of this Island, we should be thinking beyond the boundaries of our own yards. Every decision we make on our property affects something beyond it.

This is not a call to ignore the very real dangers of tick-borne disease. It is a call to widen the conversation. Can we find ways to protect ourselves while also protecting the living systems that sustain us? Can we be more thoughtful about when, where and how we spray? Can we leave more room for nature’s own checks and balances?

For readers interested in learning more about how residential insecticides — both synthetic and many plant-based products — can affect beneficial insects, I encourage exploring the educational resources provided by the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.

These questions are not comfortable. I have hesitated to raise them because I understand the fear that drives many people’s decisions. But after two decades of watching the Island change, I believe remaining silent would be the greater mistake.

The health of our community matters. So does the health of the living world around us. I believe they are inseparable.

Cathy Verost owns Wild Harmony Gardens. She lives in West Tisbury.

This article appears in July 17, 2026.