"Bob Hobden" wrote in
:



"Escargo" wrote ...
The little buggers are holding back our brassicas.
If I tap or rattle our Brussels sprouts, swede, winter cabbage in
fact any brassica, a cloud of whitefly emerge from them.

The only thing good to come of this is that hoverfly are thriving.

They have all been sprayed with a solution of liquid soap and water
all over including where they hide underneath the leaves.

The swede is espescially looking poorly.

Can anyone help? even advice to avoid them next year will be welcome.

We get them every year but not as bad as you describe, the plants
don't seem to suffer at all. The only time we had a serious problem
was due to a neighbouring allotment gardener not bothering to take up
his old unused brassicas and letting the whitefly overwinter on his
plants, then just after we planted our next season crop he pulled up
his old plants and clouds of them made their way to our plants.
He was one of those gardeners that used a weeks spring holiday to get
his plot up straight and planted then never did another thing all
year, no weeding, no watering, no feeding, not anything except
cropping (not much of that either!).


A neighbour from hell!

It was suggested to vacuum the clouds of whitefly with a portable vac.
cleaner and it seems to be working for us.

Sandra and Micky