Garden catalogs and magazines imply that you can just stick a plant in the ground and sit back and enjoy it. On the contrary, if the weather doesn't cause problems, disease or bugs can.

There are dozens of types of bugs out there just waiting to infest that beautiful flower you planted. Many bugs infest specific types of plants while others feed on many types plants.

Three insects, in particular, that infest many plants are aphids, thrips and mites.

Aphids (also called plant lice) are ¼-inch, soft-bodied insects that infest most garden plants. Some aphids spend their entire life on one type of plant, while others infest different plant species.

Aphids have a complicated life history because they produce an additional form besides male and female aphids.

Aphids that hatch from over-wintering eggs are wingless females, called stem mothers. They give live birth without fertilization by a male. Many generations of only females are produced throughout the summer. Some of these develop wings and fly to less populated plants or to another species of plant. In the fall, female aphids give birth to males and females and produce the fertilized eggs that survive the winter.

Aphids damage plants by sucking the sap from the leaves, which can cause distortion and stunting. The plant is often covered with honeydew because the aphids suck more sugar from the plant than they can digest. To control aphids on food crops, spray with insecticidal soap or Malathion. Control on ornamentals with Isotox or Orthene.

Thrips are less than 1/16-inch, winged insects. Adults are tan to black with two pairs of feather-like wings. Immature insects are wingless and lighter in color.

Thrips are serious pests of hundreds of garden plants. Thrips feed by scraping or rasping the plant tissue and then sucking the released plant sap. Blossoms, fruit, foliage and shoots become flecked, streaked and distorted.

Females lay fertilized and unfertilized eggs in plant tissue. The unfertilized eggs develop only into males. Thrips complete a life cycle in two to three weeks, so populations can rapidly build up to tremendous numbers.

Thrips spread tomato-spotted wilt disease and often discolor flowers, especially roses.

Control thrips on food crops with Seven or Malathion and use Isotox or Orthene on ornamentals.

Mites are one bug gardeners seldom see except for the damage they do to plants. They are extremely small and difficult to see with the unaided eye. If damage to a plant occurs and mites are suspected, hold a sheet of white paper under a branch and shake the plant. If tiny grains of dirt are moving on the paper you have mites.

Mites are not insects but belong to the same class that includes spiders and ticks. They have four pairs of legs instead of three. Mites have a pair of needle-like stylets that pierce plant tissue. The sap and cell contents are sucked out resulting in leaf stippling.

Mites have many generations each year, completing a life cycle in seven to 10 days. Heavy rains usually limit mite populations by washing them off the plant.

Damage from mites can be reduced by a strong spray or water to knock them off both indoor and outdoor plants. Chemical control for ornamentals is Isotox. Control mites on fruit and vegetables with insecticidal soap or Malathion.