Whitefly LOVES my mint, can anyone help?

[CluelessJayBoi]

Hi all you amazing gardeners (see what I did there, sweeten you all up),

New here, and new to gardening, never really stayed in one place long enough and never really had an interest... As such, although I do love a nice garden!!! I am however a cook so, with the intention of learning more and while clearing out the 'jungle' I started a herb garden!!

It consists of mint, parsley, oregano, rosemary, tyme and curry all planted in individual mini barrels with no bottoms (to look pretty, give a little height, and keep things like the mint contained) and all was well!

However, it seems my mint and my tyme are now infested with white fly, and I would obviously like rid, so I'm wondering if anyone has any ideas?

Things I've tried so far, pointing at them and saying "you there, leave this place" telling my cats to "get them" followed by a blank gaze from all three and lastly spraying then with a distilled vinegar solution. While the first two had no effect at all I think I've had some, all be it limited effect with the last one, from what I have observed the while fly tend to be fairly unnoticeable until you touch the plant, then you get a snow storm... While I was spraying with vinegar and water I was getting hundreds leaving the plants, and going bonkers, when I re-visited the plants about an hour later there are white fly flying all over the place but not on the plants, a behaviour I've not seen before so they clearly are not liking the vinegar... Am I on the right track here, or is the vinegar going to do the plants more harm.

The main reason I reached for the vinegar was due to some success I've had with greenfly on my many house plants, plus they seem to love a good spray with vinegar!!

Also, is there perhaps any companion plants I can use to draw in ladybirds, I hear they are a natural predator to white and green fly!!

Very much trying to not get put off of gardening here, please help!!

P.s. any remedies to stop my cats fur balling would help greatly to!

Thanks in advance,
Jay.

[Moopmoop]

Got this off wiki. It won't help with the cat tho.

For example, nasturtiums are thought to provide a defense to gooseberries or tomatoes. They provide root chemicals that deter whiteflies.[10]

Zinnias, conversely, attract predators that consume whiteflies, including hummingbirds and predatory wasps and flies. Other plants with a similar function include the hummingbird bush, pineapple sage, and bee balm. Each of these plants also conceals the scent of nearby plants, making their detection by some pest insects more difficult, as do most other mints.

[Moopmoop]

PS I have a ferret and he gets malt paste cos they get furballs too.

[CluelessJayBoi]

Thanks for the info moopmoop, I seem to have got rid of the stinkers, regular hose spraying, and the vinegar (although some "burning" was noticed on some leaves) seems to have done the trick, and I am off to the garden center at lunch time to see if I can't find me some zinnias (or seeds), get some ladybugs flitting around me herbs!!

[dim]

provado always works

[Alison]

provado always works

Although it is harmful to wildlife including bees