Spider Mites - can I eliminate w/o pesticides?

[Alexandra]

Wow! Spider mites work fast! My tomatoes look awful! Does anyone have a non-pesticide answer to spider mites? I read that I could use predatory mites but my tomatoes might not last long enough to order such an animal.

Thanks for any thoughts on this!!

Alexandra

[hillfarm]

Try a dusting of food grade Diatomaceous Earth (available at feed and health food stores) or a dusting of hard wood ashes, if you have some available that you know are from decent wood that has not been treated. It will wash off with the rain, but can be cheaply reapplied. They have a puffer thing as an applicator, but one of those cheapie plastic ketsup/mustard bottle sets from Walmart work nearly as well. Or in an emergency you can use a flour sifter or strainer but those make it hard to reach the undersides of the plants.

 

Just be sure to wash your produce well to get the grit off, or you will polish your fillings with it by accident:D. I know that these products are not toxic to people or animals, nor will they harm the environment with any residues. The wood ash, if used in heavy concentration, will make the soil more alkaline. Don't breathe the stuff into your lungs. Although not poison, the mechanical effect of having that fine grit in there is not good for living beings!

 

This is good against snails and slugs and jointed bugs like spiders and mites.

[Amy in TX]

Sprayed all over the plant. You can buy it at nurseries. I'm not sure if it's better than the d. earth or the woodash suggested above, though. Something to try.