Tomato, greenfly

[Bill HH]

I have three hanging baskets in the green house with tumbler tomatoes in them, one I have just noticed is covered in green fly. What's the best thing do? I sprayed most off with water today but I am sure they will be back.

[roitelet]

Soft soap in a spray bottle and blast them every time you pass, keeps them at bay. Or pray that the hover flies will move in and eat them all.

[Bill HH]

When you say soft soap do you mean washing up liquid? I used that on my runner beans last year to kill black fly but it killed the beans too (probably quite a strong solution)

[Greenleaves]

I have always used unscented bar soap, grate some of the bar, add to boiling water in a atomiser, shake till disolved then top up with cold water. Once cooled your ready to go.

Never had any complaints about taste either

[kathyd]

I use just a small squirt of bio washing up liquid, not too strong - and avoid spraying in direct sunlight of course, or the leaves will fry anyway. I suspect it's going to be a bad year for greenfly this year - I just weeded out all the chickweed around my onions, and the earth underneath was heaving! They were even crawling on the onions themselves, which I've not seen before. And they're on the shallots in the polytunnel! I seem to have a lot of ants too. I was wondering what the 'plague' would be this year, maybe we're just starting to find out!

[roitelet]

No, soft soap is soft soap, not washing up liquid. Not sure where you can get it in the UK, 'abroad' it's Savon Noir and is available in all the garden shops. If you do have to use washing up liquid only a few drops to the litre or you will damage the plants.

[Bren In Pots]

I use Encover wash liquid just a drop in a squirt bottle seems to work well.

[Bill HH]

Do they still make Lux flakes? I remember my mom used them all the time. I find it unbelievabe that something gardeners need so much should be almost unavailable considering all the junk that is available that we don't need.. I asked my garden centre for Neem oil last year and they had never heard of it.

[roitelet]

Wash your hands with a bar of Fairy Soap, if you can still get it and save the water.

[Martin H]

I haven't used it for this, but shaving soap (the plain, unscented kind) looks like the right sort of thing.

[Greenleaves]

Bill

One very important thing I forgot to add, if you use the grated soap method dont store it in the fridge ! It tates awful in asandwich