At the end of May, our strawberries were attempting to produce some sweet little berries. Our tomatoes had just started popping out and out sugar snap peas were beginning to look hopeful.
During June things continued to develop. We tasted some sweet strawberries. Our tomatoes were starting to ripen. We got to taste our first sugar snap peas. They took a long time to develop and we were to excited to taste our first sweet and juicy crop. Then we went to India. Two weeks later we returned and were stunned at how sick we were! We spent an entire week merging from the couch to the bed (and the bathroom!). We were equally stunned at our garden.The tomatoes were out of control. Many had turned red. Our strawberries seemed to have slowed up but were still producing. The snow peas were popping out all over the place.
Things were looked very promising, right up until last weekend. I noticed that the leaves towards the bottom of my snow peas were dying. In fact, many of them were practically dead. Some were yellowing and dropping while many others were totally brown and had shrivelled up.
On closer inspection I discovered tiny, moving red spots on the underside of the leaves. I'm talking like HEAPS of moving red spots. Obviously, I freaked out. I ran straight to Google and was informed that my gorgeous garden had been infected by red spider mites. Being 5:30pm, every garden supply centre was closed and all I could concentrate on was that screaming voice in my head shouting, "DO SOMETHING BEFORE IT ALL DIES!!!" So naturally I ran straight for my mum's meagre supply of out of date insecticides and sprayed my plants with all of them.
During the week I was too busy to really give much thought to my garden, apart from worrying about the continuing deathly state of the snow peas glimpsed from my kitchen window. I tried to avoid going near them in the hope that it would all sort itself out.
Of course, things like this don't ever really sort themselves out. In fact they get worse.Who'd a thunk it! Insects breed! Worse than rabbits....seriously. When I got back down there today things were bad. The mites had spread from the snow peas to everything else. Except the tomatoes (Miracle! My only success story - more on that later).
I conceded. Something had to be done. Something real. I went back to Google and very methodically looked through a few of my favourite gardening forums and blogs. Sustainable Gardening Australia told me exactly what I was dealing with. Apparently, among other things, these little red guys suck the chlorophyl out of the leaves. From what I can recall from Grade 11 Biology, chlorophyl is fairly important in photosynthesis, so obviously this situation equates to death. So I figured I had a few options.
1. Head out to Bunnings and get a pile of chemicals
2. Try Derris Dust that was recommended to me by a Green Thumb Friend but is also a fairly potent
3. Try something chemical free
At this point, it is important to understand that I am the kind of person who wishes I lived a chemical free life. But I don't. However, a contributing factor to beginning a vegetable garden was the fact that so much fruit and veg from grocery stores seems to be coated in a thick layer of chemicals. So I decided, for now, I would take the chemical free option and mixed up a combo of potato flour, buttermilk and water as recommended by Container Gardening For You.
I sprayed this all over my plants which left them covered in a chalky flour residue that is supposed to suffocate the mites. I can wash it all off in 24 hours and then I guess I will figure out my next step.
Of course my complications haven't ended there. Whilst spraying my potato flour concoction around the garden I discovered some other little pests lurking, sucking and destroying - snails. Yep. As if the little life sucking red buggers weren't enough already, my strawberries and oregano were also being violated by heathens of nature (actually I think snails I totes cute and instead of smashing them I very carefully transported them outside the yard in the hope that they find someone else's garden). Finally I ended the day finding a blackish-green caterpillar living in my marigolds. This I did smoosh into a blackish-green smudge.
Needless to say I'm so disappointed..........with myself. Yes, we were away. Yes, we were sick. But seriously, I'm sure something could have been done to avoid all of this earlier on in the piece. I feel like this is some sort of twisted version of Aesop's Fable - after all the time and money we have invested into this garden we finally got it all up and running and then we turned into the blasted lazy grasshopper......who is probably also feasting on my poor crop. This has been a pretty valuable gardening learning experience. I hope the chemical free option works out and fingers crossed I will be able to grow my snow peas to success next time.
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