The White Flies Are Gone

The coneflower in the foreground with the flower is one I just planted. The one in the background is one that I planted directly in the garden when it was shipped.

I used the Dr. Brommer’s Soap on my coneflowers for a couple of weeks to get rid of the white flies.

You remember, I ordered some plants by mail. I planted them, and they were mowed down by snails. So, I decided to plant the remaining plantlets in larger pots so they could grow to a respectable size before they had to brave the snails. Then they developed a thriving white-fly population.

I used my own method of white fly abatement. Well the soap seemed to cut back the population a bit. But in the end the white flies were still there. At this point every logical voice in my head (Good God I sound like Sybil) was screaming just throw the stupid plants away. And then the flies started to spread to some seedlings I had in pots next to them. Did I throw the plants away? Noooo. I decided to move them to my plant hospital that is located on the side of my garage. I watered them and kept them alive. Two days ago I realized there were no more flies. They were gone.

Plant hospital

Did the soap kill them? My theory is the soap cut way back on the population. I think that when I moved them to the “hospital” the natural predators took care of the rest.

The lesson I learned is careful what catalogue company you order from. I probably should have boxed up the whole lot, sent them back and gotten my money back. At the time, returning them seemed like a huge hassle.


I just planted this one also. You can see some leave damage from the white flies.

But I bet if you calculated the amount of time and energy I spent saving the few remaining plants, sending them back would have been the way to go.
This is why I take in people’s sick plants, there unwanted plants and stray dogs. I would have stray cats also if my husband wasn’t allergic.

Another plant that had white flies. This one has a lot of damage.

I planted my plants yesterday. They had some snail damage this morning but it’s time for the coneflowers to fend for themselves. It’s time for me to let go.

I fear that if I keep interfering they won’t be able to exist in the wild and they’ll have to live in a zoo for the rest of their lives, never knowing what it’s like to be free.

Comments

[kate]

Your plant hospital obviously works well - it is amazing sometimes the amount of time we can put in nursing plants back to health. Worth it in the end ... a feeling of accomplishment that sending back the plants wouldn't have given you.

Can I send some of my plants to your hospital, please?

[chigiy]

Kate,
I am glad my plants made it through. I just hope they don't come up with some other illness and infect my whole garden.
You can send me your sick plants anytime.

[Joanne]

Hello,

On the off chance that you see this comment, I'm also trying to control the whiteflies on my currently indoor plants. I was wondering how often you sprayed your plants with the castile soap solution, and if you needed to rinse off the leaves? I'm so encouraged by your results without having to resort anything more severe.