Garden chemicals or pesticides, such as insecticides, fungicides and weedkillers, are perfectly safe, providing they are used in exactly the way described on the container or packaging.
For details of which pesticides are currently available and the problems they control visit the Crop Protection Association website.
In recent years, due to pesticide legislation, several garden chemicals have been removed from sale and can no longer be used in the garden, house or greenhouse.
Pesticide legislation
List of withdrawn pesticides from 2002
If you have any of these withdrawn chemicals, or excess undiluted chemicals you no longer want to use, they should be disposed off in the correct manner. Contact your local waste disposal authority if you are unsure of what to do.
Safely disposing of old chemicals
For further details on using and disposing of garden chemicals, visit the garden section of the Pesticides Safety Directorate's website.