We all love flowers, vegetables, and other types of plant life, but we're not the only ones who do. Our beautiful, flourishing gardens are also loved by insects. And while many insects are helpful, or at least neutral, some — like aphids — can be quite destructive.
Luckily, there's no need to resort to pesticides and chemicals to get rid of aphids, as one avid gardener recently showed us on TikTok.
The scoop
Gardening influencer Mignonette Bailey (@mignonettespeaks) shared this aphid solution after finding the little green guys swarming all over her thyme plants.
The solution is one teaspoon of castile soap, 1/2 teaspoon of peppermint oil, and 1/2 quart of water. Mix those together in a spray bottle and hose down the aphid-infested plant. Bailey adds that you can also use neem oil for even more aphid-repelling power.
@mignonettespeaks Organic insect control for garden pests 🤗 #gardentok #creator #fyp #gardening ♬ There Ain't No Bugs on Me - Bill Clifton & The Hamilton County Bluegrass Band
How it's helping
Pesticides are a $45 billion industry, and they do what they say they'll do: kill bugs. However, there are many negative side effects of using toxic chemicals to control the insect population in your garden.
For one, pesticides don't just kill the insects you want gone. They kill any insect that comes anywhere near your plants, including crucial pollinators.
They also don't just go away — after they're done protecting your plants, they can end up in the nearest body of water, poisoning the surrounding ecosystem.
Plus, if you're growing vegetables (or, as with Bailey's aphid problem, herbs), you probably don't want to be spraying too much poison on something you're going to eat.
That's why organic, non-toxic solutions to pest problems, like the one Bailey uses, are the way to go. Other non-toxic solutions to aphid infestations include companion planting — where you entice the aphids away from the plants they are destroying by planting a different plant that they like even more — and ladybugs, which eat the aphids.
What everyone's saying
Bailey's commenters tried it out themselves and confirmed that her aphid repellent did the trick, even with some substitutions.
"I didn't have neem oil and used neem tea instead. Totally worked!" wrote one commenter.
"Thank you!" wrote another, who followed it up with a great pun. "We're a few weeks out and thyme will tell if we get aphids again this year."
Join our free newsletter for easy tips to save more, waste less, and help yourself while helping the planet.
Cool Picks
