Homemade Greenfly Spray

This summer I am growing a few different varieties of chillies on my home office window sill.  They are coming along nicely considering it was very late when I planted the seeds.

However, about 75% of them are infested with greenfly (little green aphids), so I went looking online for an effective organic / natural home-made green aphid killer !  I found a couple of easy options which I will share with you here.

You'll need a spray bottle to disperse the aphid death spray.  Those 1 litre (half a pint in the USA approx) hand held spray bottles are great.  You could always recycle one you have previously used for those household cleaning sprays, making sure that you clean it thoroughly inside or you could have a problem !

I will add my results to this post when I have made and tried each method.  It should be interesting !  I would also love to hear from you if you have tried either of them, or if you have any other great natural aphid killing methods.

Remember, that you should always spray your plants in the evening, preferably after sunset or on very dull days, or in the shade.  This is because wet leaves will burn in the sunlight.

1.  Tomato Leaf Aphid Spray

To me, this is the perfect Greenfly Killer.

The advantage of the tomato leaf spray is that it does not kill the beneficial insects that also inhabit your garden, just the aphids.

Tomatoes, as well as potatoes and all other members of the Nightshade family of plants (Solanaceae), contain alkaloids in their leaves, which are toxic to aphids (and to humans also if ingested in sufficiently large amounts, so just in case, please keep this spray away from children and label the bottle clearly).

The alkaloid in green tomatoes, tomato leaves and their stalks is called tomatine, and is the plants natural defence system against invaders that want to eat it or harm it.

Ingredients
1-2 cups of green tomato leaves

2 cups of water

Something to strain it through

Method

Chop the tomato leaves into small pieces, then put them with the 2 cups of water into a container.  Leave to soak overnight.

Next day, strain the leaves out of the liquid using the muslin cloth, squeezing all the liquid out.  You can put the soggy leaves on your compost heap.

Add 2 more cups of water to the resulting liquid, then put it into your spray bottle, ready to use.

23rd August 2015 Test Results

I made up the spray as per the recipe above, and used it on my 4, very affected, chilli plants which had been indoors.
The greenfly struggled and many died.  I wiped of the leaves gently with my fingers, removing the eggs (hundreds of them) as I did this.
There were no greenfly for a few days, but then a few reappeared and I have had to spray again and check for eggs again.  There were a few new eggs already !
So, it seems that the spray 'checks' them for a while, but doesn't kill em 100%.  You may need to reapply it every few days or so to really prevent the aphids getting ahold.

2.  Green Aphid Smoothie

This one is a bit yukky for anyone who is squeamish.

Pick as many of the greenly off the plants as you can, squash them to kill them, and drop them into a cup of water.  Just do one type of aphid at a time, as this method will only deter the same species as you made the smoothie from.

Put the cup of water and dead greenflies into a blender and zap it into a smooth watery liquid.  Pour this liquid into your spray bottle for use on the plants you wish to deter greenflies from living on.

Note:  If you make this smoothie with greenfly, then it will only deter greenfly.. If you have a whitefly problem also, you need to make a separate smoothie containing whiteflies to deter them.

This won't harm your blender in any way, but it may not be the method for you if you are vegetarian !  Unless you have a special blender just for garden use.

Are You Sushi For Mosquitoes ? Plantain Is The Answer

Plantain - Plantago major

Recently I was doing some research online regarding insect bites and nettle stings, and natural ways to relieve or stop the itching and pain associated with them.  I seem to be one of those unfortunate people who are eaten alive every time I venture outside in the summer months, especially after 5pm.

Post 5 o'clock is dinner time for the midges here in South Galway, and then you have those special Irish mosquitoes who are always ravenous when it's BBQ o'clock.  They must lurk at the bottom of our field in the lush swamp, protected by the EC SAC laws - European Special Area of Conservation, ready to swarm up the garden as the clock strikes 5 and we are looking forward to eating a romantic dinner for two outside - lucky mosquitoes !

If you are anything like me, then you are tasty food for all biting insects.  My skin obviously has that certain taste and smell that they are looking for.  I am sushi for mosquitoes...

So, what can you do when you find yourself sprouting red swollen lumps in places which no well brought up young lady likes to mention, which itch uncontrollably, look unladylike ugly, and are painful as well.  Some insect bites contain poison which travels well beyond the site of the original bite, making things far worse.  I end up wanting to rip my arm off, or foot, or somewhere unmentionable...  Now you need look no further !

I have been reading about Plantain.  No, not the banana like fruit that is great sliced and deep fried, but a very plain little plant that grows across Ireland, the UK, Europe and even in North America, Asia, Australia and well beyond.

The common broad leaved plantain is a perennial weed which thrives almost anywhere.  Just be sure, if you are gathering them for medicinal use, or for food, use a source away from weedkillers, pesticides, traffic and such. 

Why it is So Useful:
The chemicals in Plantain which make it so incredibly useful, are aucubin, an anti microbial, mucilage, which reduces pain etc, and allantoin, which stimulates cell growth and regeneration.

Medicinal Uses:
Diuretic
Astringent
Draws out stings and poison from bites - rub leaves onto and bind on skin
Skin healer - skin ulcers, inflammation, minor burns, sores and hot skin etc - bruise leaves and hold on skin
Leaves can stop minor bleeding when bruised and held on skin
Bruise leaves to form a poultice for above also...
Prevents infection in wounds also
Tea made from the leaves can ease diarrhoea and soothe internal surfaces

Food:
Full of vitamins A, C and K, as well as calcium - highly nutritious
The young leaves can be used raw in salads or sandwiches
Older leaves can be stewed or boiled well as a vegetable or in soups

Odd Info:
Pliny stated that it would cure the madness of dogs...

Organic Homemade Weedkiller

If, like me, you are beginning to panic at the sight of all those baby unwanted plants - aka weeds - sprouting in your garden and on your drive and patio, and you refuse to use highly toxic commercial herbicides, then here is an alternative solution.  The answer to all your prayers!

A natural, easy to make at home, safe to use, weedkiller.

Reasonably cheap to make, especially compared to commercial weedkillers.

And no need to worry about harming your pets!

Here are 2 recipes for your homemade weedkiller.  Mix No 1 is for where you want to kill current weeds, and also to keep the ground free from weeds for as long as you can.  Mix No 2 is for where you want to kill selected weeds, and want to plant in the soil immediately, and to leave surrounding plants safe and healthy.

Note:  If you want this to be 100% organic, you will need to use totally organic vinegar, salt and washing up liquid.

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MIX No 1  -  Total Weedkiller for Drives & Patios - (nothing will grow in soil for up to 2 years)

• White distilled vinegar   -  1 litre  (1.8 UK pints/2.1 US pints)
• Table salt  -  60 grams  (2.25 ounces)
• Washing up liquid  -  1 squirt
• Spray bottle
• Saucepan

Place the vinegar and salt into the saucepan and warm up.  Do not bring it to the boil as there is no need.  Just enough to dissolve the salt properly.

Add the washing up liquid and stir in well.

Allow to cool, then fill your spray bottle and go kill those pesky blighters !

Remember, if you are storing this mixture, to label your spray bottle clearly, or you are going to be rather upset at all your dead prize geraniums and be wondering why nothing will grow!

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MIX No 2  -  Weedkiller for Growing Plants Only - (doesn't affect soil, just the plants it touches)

• White distilled vinegar   -  1 litre  (1.8 UK pints/2.1 US pints)
• Washing up liquid  -  1 squirt
• Spray bottle

Mix the vinegar and washing up liquid together well.

Put into your spray bottle and if storing, label it clearly.

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• Both mixtures need to be used on a dry, sunny day.
• Both will kill almost all plants on contact (provided enough leaf coverage is obtained).
• Use MIX No 2 (the no salt one) where you want to kill plants in borders, or spot weeds in lawns (be careful as it will also kill the grass), where you still want to be able to grow things in the soil.
• MIX No 1 (with the salt in it) not only kills the plants that it contacts, but due to the salt content will also stop almost all plants growing in the soil for at least a year - so be careful to use the correct mixture in the appropriate place.  Inland plants won't grow in soil with a salt content!
• You can multiply up the mixtures for larger quantities for extensive area coverage and/or storage.  But remember to label it clearly!
• The washing up liquid helps the vinegar to adhere to the leaves, allowing it more time to work at killing the plant.
• It is the vinegar that does the weed-killing.
• It is the salt that stops anything growing in the soil.

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Now go save yourself some money !!!