I need help[

Hy everybody.I live in Phoenix, AZ and I always loved Brugmansias. I had a huge one for years. It bloomed with hundreds of flowers, untill it got spider mites. I was not able to get rid of them and  it really weakened it.The winter of 2006 ,  the Big Freeze-BF as we call it, killed it even though it was in a huge pot on my patio.I have 8 of them right now and I am watching them like a hawk. What do I need to do to prevent the outbreak and if it happens how do I get rid of them? I actually have spider mites on one of my beautiful passion vines and I am scared that it will spread to other plants.I know that they like hot and dry so I have a misting system installed and I spray the other ones that are not in the area of the misters several time a day.Thanks in advanceRodica

They say the best defense is to catch em before they get started.
Routine spraying of Neem oil or check the forums here for "the recipe"
You must be preventative and eliminate the environments before they even start. Neem works as well for mildews I am told.
I am just a person who"gardens by ear" untrained or educated,but I do know that each persons garden is there own,and they must find the right balance of suggested pest controls and find the mixture that works best for them.
Good luck!
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/423312/
http://www.gardensalive.com/category.asp?c=13
A.

This message was edited Jul 21, 2008 8:10 AM

Thanks Annie.

I know is better to prevent than cure but sometimes is hard to do that due to the specific conditions where you live.
Where I live, is very hot and dry and even though I do not have them in my yard there is a chance that I might get them from my neighbors. We had so many windy days this year and with the wind come lots of unwanted and unwelcome creatures.
I will try some of the remedies from the attach thread.

Rodica

Can you rig up some sort of shelter? even a wall of shade cloth will help ...or plant in the shelter of trees or the house.

Have you tried spraying with a systemic like Ortho systemic. I know it is very hot where you are this time of the year, but if it was me, I would spray at night then following it up about 4 nights later with another spraying,.If that helps, I would continue doing this every two weeks throughout summer. Where I live we have had a lot of hot weather this summer too and I get a spider mite outbreak every time we have a real hot spell, but using this system, I have them well under control now. Or if you happen to have Forbid, I would spay and then spray again in 4 nights.

I wouldn't spray with NEEM during the summer months in your climate. The Neem will make your leaves burn bad in the intense sun and heat. Neem is okay when the temps are below 80 degrees there. When I lived in AZ, I did better with products like Avid, Forbid or the ortho systemic. You are right the mites can be carried on the wind. Everytime it got windy or dusty, here came the mites lol.
Spray in the evening with Avid or ortho etc. so it can dry. You can also strip off some of the old leaves off the bottom so it is easier just to spray the top leaves. I also kept the brugs in afternoon shade there and planting in the ground is better than pots if at all possible.
Lenette