Help with Garden

We built an awesome garden of fruits and herbs and are having major insect problems in it... the whole reason we did this was to avoid the pesticides etc of store bought fruit but the bugs are eating our plants up!! It is mainly these little bugs that look kind of like aphids only they are grey in color, almost look like tiny fleas...our exterminator (does not spray in garden) said that they are a common "agricultural pest"...also we have pincher bugs like crazy! We have already lined the perimeter with marigolds which seemed to do absolutely nothing. Any advice would be great!!!

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S.B. answers from Dallas on May 17, 2010

Is there a local organic gardening store in your area? We hit ours up for advice all the time. I know when we had regular aphids, they sent us home with lady bugs and our problem was solved in about a week. I have also heard that over fertilizing a garden can attract aphids.

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P.M. answers from Portland on May 17, 2010

SH has some good suggestions. You can also get NEEM OIL to spray on your plants. It's a completely safe extract from a tree in India. People there have used it for tooth-brushing and skin treatment for centuries. It kills insects' appetites, makes them unable to eat, and eventually they starve. The only drawback is some people don't like the smell (I don't notice it).

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A.L. answers from Las Vegas on May 17, 2010

Ive heard the peppermint soap works.. e.g. Dr Bronner's..... in that you mixit with a bit of water and then spray... the ingredients are natural... .of course, I am not about it's overall effectiveness and know that aphids can really do a number on plants.. but I can see how peppermint might clear em out somewhat...
best of luck

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K.W. answers from Boise on May 17, 2010

Mix dishsoap (the cheap kind in the yellow bottle) with some water and spray the plants. It will only be on the leaves and will wash off with watering and with rain. Marigolds are a great start! Save the seeds from the marigolds this fall and you'll have MORE than enough for next year!

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