Be careful of these solutions around children, as they should not be ingested. Don’t store them in soft drink bottles and make sure you keep them out of reach of children.
Black Spot
Add 3 teasp bicarb soda to 1 litre water and then a few drops of either dishwashing liquid or fish emulsion.
Fungicide
Mix 1 teasp bicarb soda into 1 litre water, then add 1 litre skim milk and one pinch of condees crystals. Shake thoroughly.
Scale and Mealy Bugs
Mix 4 tablespoons dishwashing liquid into 1 cup vegetable oil – stir together. Mix with 20 parts of water and spray affected plants.
Aphids, Caterpillars and other Insects
2 tablespoons soap flakes dissolved in 1 litre warm water; then spray.
Caterpillers and Grasshoppers deterrent
1 cup molasses in 1 litre water; then spray over new foliage
Nematodes
Also, use 1⁄2 litre molasses to 2 litres water; spread over 11⁄2 square metres of affected area.
Weeds in general – will kill all plants
1 cup salt dissolved in 1 litre vinegar. Brush all weeds you wish to kill.
To attract Lacewings which eat aphids etc.
1 teaspoon vegemite dissolved in water; spray over plants
Pruning roses
Spray with lime sulphur to clean up any fungal spores.
It is good practice with any homemade remedy to first spray a test patch on the target crop and wait 24 hours before checking the sprayed foliage for damage, before proceeding.
Colin Campbell
St Lukes Community Garden 