Pests
I was enjoying the advantages of growing capsicum in the sunroom for several weeks before I was reminded of the downside of indoor gardening.
Yes, my capsicum are loving the warmer environment and the protection from the wind. Unfortunitely the sunroom also provides a safe haven for any pests that happen to find their way in. I'm pretty sure the aphids found their way in via the open window - there's a rose just outside that was getting overrun with the things. Once an aphid population gets established on an indoor plant it's particulary hard to get rid of. They too are sheltered from wind and rain, and they are unlikely to be found by any predators.
And then there is the lack of biodiversity. Outdoors, there are plenty of other plants for a pest insect to eat. In my sunroom, there were only the two capsicum, and a catnip plant hung high off the ground. They had nothing to eat and call home other than my poor capsicum.
I enjoy just about every aspect of veggie gardening, but one thing I never find fun is fighting off pests. I use only organic means of pest eradication, which is limiting. I'm also always short on time, and timing can be critical. It was a week from when I first spotted an aphid on my capsicum to when I had time to dig out the white oil to spray them. By then they were well established. Yes, I see the capsicum all the time as they are in my house and I was squishing the aphids by hand when I had a moment but that is not nearly enough.
So, what can one do without using pesticide?
1) Organic sprays
There are sprays. I already mentioned white oil. It is a combination of water, dish soap, and cooking oil. I already had some made up, so I started with that. But then I remembered that one must be careful using it on a sunny day as the added heat conduction from the oil can fry your plant. I next looked into something I'd read about using garlic. I did my research and made up a garlic spray - water steeped in crushed garlic, plus dish soap. I started applying this twice a day. As I spend a lot of time near these plants in the sunroom, I kept a spray bottle nearby to make it easy.
Well, I might have won the battle with the aphids, but by the time I had eradicated them, the capsicum were not looking happy. Too much dish soap on their leaves is not great for them, it turns out. Their were brown spots all over a lot of the leaves. I sprayed them well with just water to wash off the soap but the damage was done. They are still producing beautiful capsicum - three on one plant and four on the other - so all I can do now is take good care of them and hope the recover.
Take a look at this beautiful capsicum, with some unhappy looking leaves behind it:
2) Remove the source
At the same time, I sprayed the heck out of the aphid-covered rose just outside the window. I also gave it an out of season pruning - as the aphids mostly live on the new growth of roses. This a very badly placed rose growing in a tiny sliver of soil between the house and the concrete path. I had cut it back very hard in the Winter and consdiered removing it altogether. Of course it turned out to be a sweet old fashioned variety that I am finding quite charming:
3) Increase Biodiversity
I researched aphid-repelling plants I could place in pot next to the capsicum. One was catnip which I already had on hand. I stuck the pot of catnip next to the capsicum. I pruned it (which it needed anyway) and put the prunings at the base of the capsicum plants. A major repellant was allums - onions, garlic, etc. I had some extra onion seedlings with no place to go so I stuck them into a pot and set that next to the others. I planted them more crowded in than I would if I was growing primarily for food - but these are mainly there to provide protection. I also got that basil potted up and next to the others. Aphids gladly eat up basil, too, but they add to the biodiversity. More targets mean a more spread-out attack if the aphids return. This makes them easier to get rid of.
This beautiful basil:
A little biodiversity in my sunroom garden:
The sunroom is usually where I do my writing, by the way, looking out the window at sky, trees, and a tiny glimpse of hills as I gather my thoughts:
Yes, my capsicum are loving the warmer environment and the protection from the wind. Unfortunitely the sunroom also provides a safe haven for any pests that happen to find their way in. I'm pretty sure the aphids found their way in via the open window - there's a rose just outside that was getting overrun with the things. Once an aphid population gets established on an indoor plant it's particulary hard to get rid of. They too are sheltered from wind and rain, and they are unlikely to be found by any predators.
And then there is the lack of biodiversity. Outdoors, there are plenty of other plants for a pest insect to eat. In my sunroom, there were only the two capsicum, and a catnip plant hung high off the ground. They had nothing to eat and call home other than my poor capsicum.
I enjoy just about every aspect of veggie gardening, but one thing I never find fun is fighting off pests. I use only organic means of pest eradication, which is limiting. I'm also always short on time, and timing can be critical. It was a week from when I first spotted an aphid on my capsicum to when I had time to dig out the white oil to spray them. By then they were well established. Yes, I see the capsicum all the time as they are in my house and I was squishing the aphids by hand when I had a moment but that is not nearly enough.
So, what can one do without using pesticide?
1) Organic sprays
There are sprays. I already mentioned white oil. It is a combination of water, dish soap, and cooking oil. I already had some made up, so I started with that. But then I remembered that one must be careful using it on a sunny day as the added heat conduction from the oil can fry your plant. I next looked into something I'd read about using garlic. I did my research and made up a garlic spray - water steeped in crushed garlic, plus dish soap. I started applying this twice a day. As I spend a lot of time near these plants in the sunroom, I kept a spray bottle nearby to make it easy.
Well, I might have won the battle with the aphids, but by the time I had eradicated them, the capsicum were not looking happy. Too much dish soap on their leaves is not great for them, it turns out. Their were brown spots all over a lot of the leaves. I sprayed them well with just water to wash off the soap but the damage was done. They are still producing beautiful capsicum - three on one plant and four on the other - so all I can do now is take good care of them and hope the recover.
Take a look at this beautiful capsicum, with some unhappy looking leaves behind it:
2) Remove the source
At the same time, I sprayed the heck out of the aphid-covered rose just outside the window. I also gave it an out of season pruning - as the aphids mostly live on the new growth of roses. This a very badly placed rose growing in a tiny sliver of soil between the house and the concrete path. I had cut it back very hard in the Winter and consdiered removing it altogether. Of course it turned out to be a sweet old fashioned variety that I am finding quite charming:
3) Increase Biodiversity
I researched aphid-repelling plants I could place in pot next to the capsicum. One was catnip which I already had on hand. I stuck the pot of catnip next to the capsicum. I pruned it (which it needed anyway) and put the prunings at the base of the capsicum plants. A major repellant was allums - onions, garlic, etc. I had some extra onion seedlings with no place to go so I stuck them into a pot and set that next to the others. I planted them more crowded in than I would if I was growing primarily for food - but these are mainly there to provide protection. I also got that basil potted up and next to the others. Aphids gladly eat up basil, too, but they add to the biodiversity. More targets mean a more spread-out attack if the aphids return. This makes them easier to get rid of.
This beautiful basil:
A little biodiversity in my sunroom garden:
The sunroom is usually where I do my writing, by the way, looking out the window at sky, trees, and a tiny glimpse of hills as I gather my thoughts:
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