Arrrgh. Aphids!

Pesky garden critters have made their presence known. My darling sprouts had only been growing for about a week when I noticed the tell-tale signs of unwanted critters. Some of the sprouts had been bitten quite badly. Then I saw the culprit--Aphids! Is there any garden pest that is more reviled than aphids? Plants that were previously perfect have now had their life-blood sucked from them causing the mutilated sprouts you see here. Organic insect warfare has begun!

Jason researched various methods to rid our new garden of the pests. One of the more commonly mentioned remedies was a mixture of warm water and dish liquid soap. This mixture is said to remove the aphids' waxy coating which causes dehydration. The dehydration eventually kills the aphids. As we had the ingredients on hand, we decided this would be our first strike against the insect enemy. After a couple of days we did notice decreased numbers, but not enough for a decided victory.

A co-worker suggested using a sprinkle of self rising flour on each plant. The flour is eaten by the aphids as they munch the leaves. The flour should then expand within the aphid for our own IED (improvised explosive device). Since the flour shouldn't bother the plants too much, this method has been our second strike. Again their numbers decreased, but a few aphids held on. They must have tiny gas masks or something!

Yesterday I noticed the enemy's numbers increasing again. Time to launch another strike! We will use a combination of the two methods to hopefully double-whammy the critters. The garden is growing well and we can't have this deterred by pesky insects. If anyone knows a great organic remedy for aphids, please leave a comment. We welcome any suggestions as it appears our battle will continue!