Theres nothing more satisfying than checking on the progress of your garden. Plenty of sunshine, warm temperatures, and regular watering produces lots of growth and sure gets you excited about gardening. Blossoms turn into tiny fruits that will eventually become peppers and tomatoes, to be served up all summer long in fresh salads and various recipes when ripe.
Preventative measures such as planting marigolds amongst your vegetable plants can help repel aphids. Washing them off your plants with a strong stream of water from the hose can be helpful as well. But when you discover a full on aphid invasion occurring on your precious plants it’s time to take swift action to rid your garden of this plight before they cause permanent damage to your plants and put an end to all your hard work in the garden. Theres nothing more disheartening than watching your lush plants wither away and die under a massive aphid assault.
🚫 STOP 🚫
You don’t have to resort to using toxic chemicals to rid your garden of these pesky invaders. What’s the point of planting an organic garden only to resort to toxic chemicals to rid your plants of pests. Nor do you have to stand by helplessly watching your plants get devoured by these pests.
Try this natural non-toxic solution instead. It’s extremely effective and a much better alternative to toxic chemical treatments. Not only is it better for the environment but it’s better for you as well.
This all natural spray uses ingredients you already have at home; no trip to your local nursery to purchase expensive supplies needed. This treatment costs just pennies per bottle and makes enough solution to treat numerous plants in your garden.
Natural Pest Control Spray:
- Spray bottle
- 1 tablespoon dish soap
- 1 quart water
Fill a spray bottle with water. Add the dish soap to the water in the bottle. Attach the nozzle and gently shake the bottle to combine the dish soap with the water.
Helpful Hint: Put water in the bottle first and then add the dish soap. If you add the dish soap first and then add the water to the bottle, the soap will foam up and make it more difficult to fill the bottle and combine the soap and water.
Once you have made your aphid solution, be sure to clearly label the bottle for future reference.
Spray the solution generously onto infected plants. Saturate all the leaves, both the top side and underside of each leaf on the plant. The spray will kill the aphids on contact.
This spray is very effective at killing aphids and also other soft bodied insects such as spider mites, russet mites, and thrips. It can be completely natural if using a chemical free soap. No pesticides or other chemicals are necessary.
As I sprayed and started to pull the leaves apart to get to the inner parts of the cabbage heads I quickly realized that I am dealing with a serious infestation. I will have to see if I can salvage this one head of cabbage. It’s best to address an aphid infestation before it gets this bad. Be sure to keep a watchful eye on your garden and treat for aphids at the first sign of them.
After spraying throughly I could see that it killed the aphids on contact and I hosed off the offending critters the next morning. Hopefully I caught this infestation in the nick of time and I won’t have to sacrifice this head of cabbage. Keeping my fingers crossed.
Be sure to check your plants regularly and if you notice aphids reappearing after a couple weeks, treat the plants one more time, saturating the leaves with the spray. The spray kills aphids on contact but it doesn’t kill any eggs that aphids may have laid. If there are any eggs they will hatch in about 1 to 2 weeks, so a second treatment might be necessary to finally rid your plants of these pesky critters.
Good to know: this solution can safely be used on house plants as well.
Even though I planted marigolds in my planting bed, Aphids discovered and infested one of my beautiful cabbage plants. Hosing them off was a temporary solution but it didn’t get rid of them permanently, so I sprayed the plant with this natural solution. It needed a second treatment a couple weeks later to permanently get rid of the aphids.
This treatment was very effective at ridding my plants of aphids. I gave them a second dose about a week later and that took care of those pesky critters for good! Let me know if you give this treatment a try and if you have the same excellent results. I would love to get your feedback!
Did You Try This In Your Garden?
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Romans 8:28
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Dish soap and water works great! I had to use it this spring on my cucumbers and squash. The aphids were terrible!!