Meyers Lemon was introduced to USA from Asia and later found to be a symptomless carrier of the citrus virus Tristeza. This does not affect Meyers Lemon in any way, but can allow the disease to be passed on by aphids to commercial citrus varieties which are affected. The virus can be eliminated by various laboratory procedures such as heat treatment and shoot-tip grafting. Clean Meyers Lemon was propagated on a large scale in, I think, the 1960's and all old line Meyers should have been replaced with the new 'Improved Meyers Lemon'. Certainly, no old Meyers should now be sold in the USA. There is no difference between 'old' and 'improved' Meyers (apart from the lack of Tristeza). They are the same variety.

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.

Just wash them off with a hose or spray bottle. If you can lift the pots hold the plants under the tap and rinse. No need for weird concoctions which are more likely to cause trouble than get rid of a few greenfly. If your lemon balm is dying it is very unlikely to be caused solely by aphids. They often go for weak plants and generally just cause leaf distortion. Could you post some pictures of your herbs? It's always difficult to imagine your growing conditions.

Ken, That might be the best gardening advice anyone has given me. And yeah, I'm having so much obsessive fun with all this that it's killing me. I have a tendency to take things to the extreme, and this garden is certainly a prime example (i.e., I was out in the garden with a headlamp until 3am). I'm going to work on. By the way, yesterday, after writing my initial post, I was afraid to use the solution I brewed (garlic, onion, cayenne, couple drops of soap), but I was afraid that in my eight hour absence, the small creatures would devour my crop. So I just used about a half teaspoon of dawn in a spray bottle and really soaked down the spots where the aphids and yellow cucumber beetles were colonizing. I bombed it good, and cringed while doing so. Anyway, I got home from work last night and the aphids and beetles had all but disappeared. Your comment about IPM is something I hadn't considered. It's time to do some serious research on this and proceed sustainably in that regard, too. I'm trying to do this right. So I welcome all advice. Thanks very much. Question: If I see aphids in my greens, even if I see only a few, do I not want to eradicate them immediately? I've been under the impression that they will multiply at an insane rate and cause great destruction. The internet can be a terrifying place to look for answers. It's like googling "why does my head hurt?" To which one would undoubtedly be diagnosed with brain cancer by some genius on some medical forum. In any event, your recommendation to chill the hell out is a good one. Cheers. P.S. If, when I get back from work, the evil-doers are back in droves, I'm going to try the home brew solution on one or two plants and see what happens. Do you think that's a bad idea?