Protocol 0 some basil clones for her, those clone up easy and grow them in your tent. Some shared interest might break the ice. Careful…she might take it over 
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OHH man ! Yes Basil, the herb, as I type this I am looking at 7 basil plants and also a tub of Arugula. All are sitting right in front of me in the living room. She started them from seed same time as I started my tomatos, like march. Oddly, both her basil and my tomatoes where the best either of us has ever grown. And Im certain my tomateos had mites. Never did anything about them since Ive always thought that outdoors mother nature takes care of these things, and my plants were kicking ass. Because of the intense winds we got this summer, I got the feeling that most pest were getting blown off the plants regularly. I tried to help them by giving them fresh water mists once or twice daily, as well which I really think made a big difference. It was so hot, dry and windy here this summer. It just seemed like stuff wanted more water than normal. I had also read that mites hate high humidity. One grower said he only notices mites if he is underwatering. Regardless, I waited until I had harvested the last fruit and cut down my tomatoes before starting up my current grow.
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I think that @JoeCrowe’s idea, putting new basil plants (and arugula, too, I guess) into the tent with your weed plants is the best idea so far. Seriously. It’d get her kind of involved in the grow and it’d also keep outside plants from coming inside.
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The key is to start IPM right away and keep it up. It’s the same with all the basic maintenance tasks of growing. Preventative maintenance. Just do the work (it ain’t much) and you’ll have a lot less issues than if you procrastinate and then try to solve problems when they arise. Don’t slack. 
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I will say, too, that it’s obvious that your girlfriend likes growing things, @mtntrogger. Maybe you can slowly work on her, making it clear how growing weed and growing basil and arugula isn’t any different. Delicate issue, for sure, but still… I really think that joecrowe’s suggestion is the best idea. Put her plants in your tent. Maybe even put them in the same soil, with the same nutrient regimen (if you’re doing something like a regimen; can’t remember if you are or not). Once she sees her plants explode, maybe she’ll be more receptive to the idea of growing your own weed. Or, shit, man, I dunno. Seems to me, though, that as long as those outdoor plants are being brought inside, the pest issue isn’t really ever gonna go away.
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I’m growing peppers, tomatoes and basil inside for that very reason. It’s good for us and she enjoys the fresh produce.
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I’m like a spy in the human mind. Always…digging…and searching…there are answers in there somewhere… ooo I love a good mystery! You have to find the common goal to try and achieve a good working relationship. hah hah wait I just said that on a grow forum?
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I appreciate you gentleman ! Thank you for all the great input. Still havent decided weather or not I will try the whole co growing thing. It actually may work. She loves growing things, and she smokes quite a bit as well. I tried to justify restarting based on how much I spend every week at the shop. We were together for 9 years before we got married. So shes enjoyed a shitload of weed that Ive grown. She has seen the demand for what Ive produced in the past. I had semi legendary status at one point for sure. People would regularly offer to pre pay for my nugs ! I need to get back to that point. However, that might be a bit longer as my next post will explain.
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Wait, your girlfriend smokes quite a bit of weed, but has a problem with you growing it??? Ummm… Okay. I dunno what to say about that. I figured she didn’t smoke at all. What would she prefer, that you guys go buy shitty-ass dispensary weed or something?
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UPDATE : So … I stayed up til after 3 am a few nights ago researching these demons once again. I had posted something about it here before I did so. Anyway, after hours more of research I came the realization that @JoeCrowe was really onto something here. I found several research articles and studies done by institutes and universities that all talked about how these mites are temperature sensitive and cant tolerate high heat. Furthermore several studies showed that dunking the plants in hot water was very effective at killing these fuckers entirely. So after more reading, and not getting home in time to spray anything (I have been getting home about 20 minutes after the lights go out). I decided to give this a try, day before yesterday. I started by removing all the plants from the tent in their trays. I brought them into a separate bathroom and ran hot tap water into a clean 5 gallon bucket. I used my laser pointer thermometer on it, said it was around 98 out of the faucet. So I boiled a pot of water, added it in and stirred before rechecking with the gun. It was at 114 after this. This was the temperature which I read was the maximum amount the plant could stand without damage. So I put the 5 gallon container lids over the pot tops and flipped the plant over into the water for 20 minutes. I did this for all 5 plants. Since they are in stretch mode stage of flip, several of the tops had t bent to fit in. Regardless the plants all looked pretty decent after they were removed from the bucket. I did them one at a time and readjusted the water temp each time. While I was waiting for them in the dunk I cleaned the tent thoroughly with a mix of bleach(straight) and the strong iso/water mix. Thinking about getting a steam gun so I can sterilize often without sprays. I also cleaned each of the trays and wiped with bleach, before putting the plants back in. Here is what they looked like before this treatment.
This one is my favorite SSDD pheno (#4) the shortest, but I love the structure, and she just looks a bit different than the others. More healthy also.
This one is all 3 SSDD, With the #4 on the left
And heres a couple of closer shots of the foliage and the last one is just them peekin out from in my tent as I was preparing to perform the first dunk.
So after doing this I was feeling pretty good about things I figured that if I had just killed all or close to all of them on the plants and in my tent, than all I had to do was keep up a strict ipm regiment and I should be able to keep things in check. I was excited to use this technique on my clones, once they root. Havent lost one yet, but also havent seen any roots yet.
I came home that night and started posting on here, when my wife suddenly just got aggressive “what are you doing on there ? Who or what are you corresponding about !?” “I want to know because you spend hours every morning and night on there” - So that sort of kept me from staying as up to date as I would like. But then…
I showered up yesterday before work and went in to see how they looked, unfortunately it appears as if Ive killed all 5 that I had in flower with the hot water dunk. I can only presume that the 114 was too hot for the plants. They were big enough that I dont think the lights would fry them the way they look burnt. Havent tossed them yet but probably will tomorrow. Bummer. But at least I can look forward to these clones, hopefully hit them with a solid routine as soon as they are rooted. And of course there are still the 3 in flower at the “other” tent. I checked them out today. I am pretty sure they also have the broads, but they dont seem too effected. Possibly because of the temps in that sub basement. It has been topping out at about 65, and is in the mid 50’s with lights out. I believe that will down the reproductive cycle or something. I will post pics of the clones and the dead later or tomorrow. Thanks again for everything my friends !
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I assume its one of those, “I think hunting is unethical but I eat meat” sort of deals where not much thought or reasoning is used to develop their moral position. I can’t believe how many people do it and are resolved to never explore a perspective or mindset driven by deductive reasoning.
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I think she is more bothered by it because of our living situation. We rent, so she is always worried that if the landlord finds out he will kick us out. And weve also had someone complain that they think there is a massive “growing operation” going on here, because of the one single plant that I had on the back porch. So I gave it my my upstairs neighbor, because no one seems to care if his whole deck is covered with plants, which it is. Weve always gotten more flac from the homeowners and management company, most likely because we are renters. Also our landlord (owner) is a major douche, everyone hates him. Just a genuine bad person. Even left us with a shattered living room window for four years now. Wont replace it cause he says " It doesnt insulate anyway"
Sorry to go off topic a bit here and there. Like I said I will get a couple more pics up soon. Best regards y’all !
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That really makes sense and I feel bad jumping to conclusions! I sometimes forget about the logistical complications that prohibition has caused, and the odor. Its both a shame and blessing that this plant is so odorous.
I hope y’all get the growing freedom you both deserve!
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For sure man. Even though its legal here, AND I have my med card, the leases in Colorado usually have clauses regarding growing. At least since rec passed. Ours definitely does
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woah, I just use ice cold water from the tap to drown the buggers, I never run the hot water. It’s probably a couple degrees Celsius nice and cold.
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Dude… Your thread is stressing me out. I dunno how you’re dealing with all this bullshit, but kudos to you. Holy fuck… If I had all that going on, I’d just be like,”Later!” and bolt.
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Hahaha ! Yeah man. Lots of stressful crap to deal with in life, but I always like to say dont sweat the petty, pet the sweaty. A life that has been full of struggle since the beginning has molded me into someone that is positive, to a fault, especially if you asked my wife. Thanks to you guys for helping keep me sane. Some great people around this site
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Plants look pretty great. If you got issues with mites there are overnight cures. DM me if you’re having problems.
Love the Bodhi gear, always.
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Thanks Vernal. Not sure if you noticed , but I actually killed all of the plants in my tent a couple of days ago. I read the entire mite thread that you posted a bunch in. Lots of arguing between some of the other members and you. I actually agreed with points from multiple people all arguing in that thread. I appreciate the offer man. Thanks again. Formulating a strategy on how to proceed from this point forward. Making a shopping list now for the grow store. Wettable sulphur, Diatomaceous Earth, Conserve, Ic3, og Biowar, oils, etc. Might be expensive up front, but I am going to be prepared and proactive going forward.
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It’s really not that complex, man. You don’t have to go overboard, and I honestly think you’re wasting calories and money if you do go overboard.
Just start out doing a really good general IPM regimen from when they hit their 4th node and don’t slack on it. That tiny bit of preventative maintenance will keep you in the clear in almost all cases.
You’re basically starting from scratch here since you did zero IPM before and you didn’t even get a proper diagnosis on your plants. Russets require microscopy to be sure, so anything short of that is guesswork. I’d suggest you use a few selective tools at your disposal rather than throwing the kitchen sink at a problem you aren’t even sure of the cause.
Oh, and P.S. I wouldn’t trust anything from the grow store. Not info, not products, and not the people. But that’s just been because of bad experience after bad experience I and others have had…as they say, a fool and his money are soon parted.
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