Thrippin Hell and other pests

[Marb67]

Well, I just give up. I really can't battle with such a high % of pests that deplete my already low stock of food grown in our very small garden. It's just ridiculous....thrips absolutely everywhere, in the boarders right now (despite it being colder) , in the greenhouse and even finding them in the house. If that isn't enough I get flea beetle, whitefly, greenfly, just about every type of leaf miner going, pests that cause silver leaf in all my mints and other similar species, vine weevil. Now I have treated the garden with neem oil twice this year which should have eradicated all these things but it hasn't. I don't use (and wont) pesticides. I just don't see the pointing fighting a losing battle that is very very depressing, especially when you have limited space and sunlight (non in Winter) as it is.

The worst by far are the thrips. Absolute g*ts

[peanut]

I know what you mean Marb, this year was mad for blackfly, whitefly and thrips. I don't use pesticides either. All I do is try to encourage more wildlife and predatory insects into my garden through planting, feeding and creating habitats for them, but I think this year was a bit of an uphill battle with the long extra hot summer.
Roll on next year and we can begin the battle all over again!

[Marb67]

Sorry, Its not always good for me to post here when going through one of my black depressions. Everything seems 10 times worse than it is. Thanks for the encouragement anyway.

[Nicos]

Post away marb…..we’re happy to try and support you when you feel like that.

As peanut says….it’s been a dreadful year in the garden for most of us. But we live in hope, as ever, that next year will be much better in the garden. I could weep at some of my failures but, heck….my life doesn’t depend on the food I produce thank goodness .

[Marb67]

Well, after a few days of a hard freeze, getting as low as -12 in Cheshire the thrips are still in my garden today. I absolutely cannot believe it as this should have killed them off.

[Penellype]

I can sympathize, Marb - I planted twice my usual number of calabrese plants this year as I sowed too many using up some old seed. I got almost nothing to eat because the plants were attacked by whitefly to the point where the undersides of the leaves were encrusted with them, and then by mealy cabbage aphids. The result was the leaves curled up and went black with sooty mould, and the few flower spikes that formed had aphids in among the flower buds, which were impossible to remove. I ended up eating the stems and throwing most of the flower heads away. I sprayed the plants every few days with SMC oil (similar to Neem) and while it clearly killed the adult whitefly and the aphids, they were back very quickly.

[Marb67]

What I don't understand is why the thrips have
survived the cold.

[peanut]

It's the same here for me Marbs, pesky things are still everywhere.
I'm now giving up my battle with thrips, I clearly can't win, I'm going to just ignore them.
Onward and upward we go!

[Marb67]

Even in the greenhouse plants have withered in the cold and yet thrips, whitefly abound. I just give up as this goes against biology.

[Marb67]

I really am fed up to the back teeth of the same problems in this small walled garden year in year out. Thrips (turning just about every leaf distorted and stunted) aphids, slugs, snails, caterpillars, grubs in fruits, sawfly, lilly beetle, and X£*&^&%$ leaf miner in many types of plant and veg. I use neem oil, garlic, essential oils etc in water mixed with seaweed extract and still they come!

[Nicos]

I’m just wondering marb if it might be a good idea to have a minimalist garden next year- breaking the cycle of the bugs? Just growing what grows well for you?

[Marb67]

Unbelievable amount of thrips everywhere. Not helped by this horrible warm windy, wet weather. I just can't beat them despite trying with garlic, essential oil and neem oil spray. The gits just seem to multiply to astonishing levels.

[Marb67]

Every clump of plants I disturb in the garden presently, loads of thrips spring out. I'm never going to get rid of them. Tried neem oil which has done nothing so I may as well just give up and resign myself to the fact that they have beaten me.

[mothhawk]

Yesterday I disturbed clouds of whitefly in the garden. The pests are out but the predators are all behind times.