So a couple of years ago I got a bad batch of soil and it was loaded with spider mites. This was an infestation of epic proportions, I unleashed a horde of ladybugs that accomplished absolutely nothing....had to harvest
early, what a calamity.
So I cleaned everything out, all equipment, everything. Got the shop vac and sucked up any loose material, soil spills, dust etc. Bought a cheap garden sprayer and I bleached the room, ceiling, walls and floor. Wiped equipment down with bleach solution. Ran a couple of box fans to speed up the drying, took about two hours. Wow the chlorine smell was strong. THEN, I made up a solution of:
1/2 oz. of tea tree oil
1/2 oz. of peppermint oil
15 drops of dish detergent (Dawn)
1gallon tap water
I sprayed everything, saturating the floor and getting all cracks and crevices. This took another 2 hours to dry.
This worked extremely well, I haven't had any issues since.
I switched to coco not long afterwards haven't looked back.
I would probably still be doing organic except where I live sourcing good soil is problematic, everything is clay here. Commercial nursery soils are always loaded with pathogens and bugs.
I had bought some Flying Skull for my infestation but the above method worked so good that I still have the expired bottle of Flying Skull....
early, what a calamity.
So I cleaned everything out, all equipment, everything. Got the shop vac and sucked up any loose material, soil spills, dust etc. Bought a cheap garden sprayer and I bleached the room, ceiling, walls and floor. Wiped equipment down with bleach solution. Ran a couple of box fans to speed up the drying, took about two hours. Wow the chlorine smell was strong. THEN, I made up a solution of:
1/2 oz. of tea tree oil
1/2 oz. of peppermint oil
15 drops of dish detergent (Dawn)
1gallon tap water
I sprayed everything, saturating the floor and getting all cracks and crevices. This took another 2 hours to dry.
This worked extremely well, I haven't had any issues since.
I switched to coco not long afterwards haven't looked back.
I would probably still be doing organic except where I live sourcing good soil is problematic, everything is clay here. Commercial nursery soils are always loaded with pathogens and bugs.
I had bought some Flying Skull for my infestation but the above method worked so good that I still have the expired bottle of Flying Skull....
