You've found the famous Dave's Garden website! Join this friendly global community that shares tips and ideas for home and gardens, along with seeds and plants!
Check out the DG homepage for a brief overview of what you'll find in this gardening mega-site.
Login
If you don't have an account yet, visit the registration page to sign up.
Isn't all this a bit of overkill? Maybe I just haven't had a serious enough infestation of anything yet. I've only gotten serious about houseplants over the last five years or so, but I *did* have whiteflies pretty badly at one point, and I had a minor aphid infestation last spring, and the gnats get bothersome at times. But I survived all that, and all my plants did too. I just think that this article seems a bit overly obsessive. If a person is only going to minimize risk by doing all this washing and sterilizing and quarantining (not even cure or guarantee pest-free plants), then is all the work worth it? I guess I just don't believe in babying my plants. If they don't survive a whitefly infestation, then they weren't worth having. That which does not kill them makes them strong. I do a few things to minimize problems (such as keeping most of my houseplants on a cool sun porch during winter to keep the insect population down), but houseplants are enough work without having to sterilize my potting tools after touching each plant or keeping careful watch not to touch the tip of my watering can to any plant or pot. Of course, I don't have any touchy, sensitive plants like orchids. Maybe if I did, I'd be more paranoid about pests and diseases. I *do* have a lot of houseplants, however -- well over 50 different species, counting those that go outside for the summer.
