Oh ya, and this on my pineapple sage...

Is that normal? What is it?

Your lights aren't close enough to the plants to be helpful. Without sufficient light, plants cannot develop properly and will be disease and insect susceptible. Fluorescent lights can be less than 12 inches away from the plants! They don't have to be that close, but very close. Most people who use artificial lighting in their homes for plants use fluorescents because they remain cool (good for plants), and because they come in such a wide range of wave lengths known to be fairly close to what plants need. But they have to be CLOSE to the plant.

Ladybugs won't survive inside the home. They are meant to be released into the outdoor environment where they are free to escape to the next neighborhood, rather than tend to aphids in your yard. That's just what they do.

Spearmint does not repel aphids.

You are missing out on the most efficient method of getting rid of these pests. Rinsing with plain water and using your fingers to squish them. Take the darned plants to the sink!

Powdery mildew is one of the few fungal diseases that is NOT spread or caused by standing moisture on the leaves. As a matter of fact, spraying the foliage with plain water can successfully rinse off these spores, as long as they haven't infected the tissues. See an early problem with powdery mildew? Take it to the sink and spray with water.

I'm sure that you are aware of many products that are hazardous to one group of organism. Have you ever had to take an anti-biotic? It won't work on fungal or viral disorders, only bacterial infections. There are insecticides, fungicides, rodenticides, miticides, herbicides, etc., etc., that are more or less specific as to the type of life form they can kill or harm. Some are
'broad spectrum', others are species specific.

I can't help you at all with questions about the fungicidal product you purchased without knowing the active ingredients. Some of the so called organic products contain copper, which can cause damage to a long list of plants, for example. Others may contain Neem oil or simply a vegetable oil. Neem is known to prevent AND cure powdery mildew.

Does your apartment have a balcony? It is very true that your herbs will grow much better outdoors. I grew mint outdoors in Phoenix in shade easily and rosemary grows so well in the sun that they use it all over in landscaping.

Even only summering in a window box or on a balcony can make a huge difference in herb survival and thriving. Is this possible for you?

FataMorgana

Ok, we are going to lower the plant light. We don't have a balcony and we were hoping the plant light with the light that the plants get during the day might be more than enough light for all the partial shade plants we picked up.

The spray does have copper octonoate (copper soap) at 0.08%, so we'll go find something containing Neem and no copper if it's not too late. So Neem will work if the leaves are infected? Because it's looking pretty pathetic with all of its under foliage dying off and all the leaves look like they've absorbed the mildew. It can no longer be washed off. And my spearmint plant pot is still growing the mildew on the side even after I've sprayed the pot on numerous occasions with the mildew killer I do have.

Also, my pineapple sage is getting much worse.

And my lemon verbana...

That's mildew on the outside of the terra cotta pot? Looks more like minerals collecting on the pots as they often do. I live in an area of very hard water (sulphur, iron, and many more minerals) and white mineral deposits always can be seen on the outside of terra cotta pots, in saucers under the plants, and more in my house. Not pretty, but not harmful.

Look up "lime deposits" or "hard water" to learn more.

FataMorgana

Daisy D, where are you?

Herbs are not meant to be indoor plants. Even at a sunny window sill.
They want fresh air, breeze direct sun, rain, shine.
Most of them like their feet dry, alkaline soil, very little fertilizing.

P.S. By "herbs" I am referring to the common conventions, as often mentioned in statement like "herbs and spices"

Yes, but we can't have them outside because we have no outdoors room, so I'm going to have to see if I can make the plants I have thrive indoors. That's why I need your guys' help! ^_^

I have rocks at the bottom of the pots so that they drain and the water doesn't just sit in the pot. I won't fertilize them with miracle grow once a month if you think that'll hurt more than it helps. We do turn the air down to 73 or so at night. Could it be getting too cold? Since the leaves on my pineapple sage are all turning dark on the side towards the window I wondered if they could be getting too warm, but it hasn't even really hit 90 here yet.

If anyone has any ideas on the pineapple sage or lemon verbena leaves, let me know. Thanks!

After a trip down to the nursery that I got the plants from, I found a very helpful cashier that thought I might be over watering the plants. I asked him if the issue with the verbena and pineapple sage might be caused by any pests. Watering is one of the few things I was pretty sure I wasn't doing wrong. He told me about spider mites. When I came home I took a paper plate and shook my plants over it. Turns out the spearmint, sage, and verbena all have the two spotted spider mites. My chocolate sage has red spider mites. I sprayed all the plants with the Neem spray I bought at the store. Today I wiped the bottom of all my plant leaves with a damp paper towel. The lemon verbena was the only one I was able to just take to the sink and rinse off. The spearmint pot is a bit big to be trying to fit into my sink. I hope it gets better from here. I'm just worried that the two spotted mites will be resistant to the spray I have. I've read that they become resistant to a lot of pesticides, or miticides... Did I make that word up?

Spider mites are often caused by warm, dry conditions. A good rinsing will help get rid of most of them. You can help keep them away with a humidifier (in heated or air-conditioned spaces) or by keeping a window open. You can also set the pots above trays of water, add gravel to your saucers so that they can hold a little water away from your plants, or put a baking dish of water on the radiator.

Produce a mild breeze with a fan; good air circulation will also help with things like powdery mildew.

It's important not to overwater; herbs are especially sensitive to this. Let the top inch of soil dry out before watering thoroughly. Make sure all of your pots drain properly (water runs out the bottom when you water them) and never let the plants have "wet feet", in other words don't ever let the pots sit in even a small amount of water.

A spray consisting of a teaspoon of baking soda to a quart of water, with a drop or two of dish soap, will help kill powdery mildew. Apply every week or two until the problem goes away. Meanwhile, promptly remove and throw away any branches that become mildewed.

Even though I don't have any outdoor growing space in my city apartment, I've been able to rig up a sunny outdoor window box that can grow herbs pretty well. Is this a possibility for you?

Neem is "organic" but I wouldn't want to eat it, partly because it smells like a cross between garlic and peanut butter and tastes terrible. Some of those other sprays, even if they're "environmentally friendly," sound even worse. If you can't grow herbs indoors without sprays, I'd suggest getting rid of them. You'll get cleaner, healthier produce at the farmer's market, and there are plenty of houseplants that are more tolerant of the indoor environment.

"We do turn the air down to 73 or so at night". Sorry batmanpez but if that's 73f it's the equivalent of a hot summers day for spearmint. No way is it too cold more likely the opposite. Spearmint is a plant native to cool, moist areas. You need to imagine a damp English garden and try to reproduce that in your kitchen. As much light as you can give it but cool conditions. I would also trim it back to encourage more shoots. Your spearmint's leggy growth is etiolation, ie an attempt to grow towards a light source which causes long skinny pale growth. The problemsyou are having, even the bugs, are all related to the cultural conditions of the plants and until you can get those sorted out sprays are of limited use. You are treating the symptoms but not the causes. It's like giving aspirin in an attempt to treat malnutrition.

And I agree about the 'mildew' on the terracotta pot. It's mineral salts which frequently appear on new clay pots and bricks.

So, light, coolth, ventilation, more light and a haircut. Good luck.