Ouch. As someone who has battled Pacific mite for years, I know exactly what you're going through. There are so few viable solutions, unfortunately...

There are a few things you can try to keep the mite populations down: they really like hot, dry, dusty conditions and stressed plants, so the more you avoid those conditions the better.

- If you have a lot of dust around, consider wetting things down periodically in the late morning or early afternoon to keep it from flying around and coating the leaves. That will also help to increase the humidity and cool down the leaves.

- Mulch well to help retain moisture, which will reduce plant stress; it will also eliminate dust.

- Keep the plants well-fed, well-watered, and vigorous. I've found that mites are much less of a problem when the plants are growing well with lots of new foliage. Lots of water and food is probably my primary defense against mites now.

- My second line of defense is picking the right varieties. Certain plants tend to attract mites like magnets (marigolds come to mind). Certain varieties of tomato are more susceptible than others as well; I've given up on growing anything with wispy foliage because those get totally hammered as soon as the hot weather comes in. I miss out on some good pastes and hearts, but there it is. Potato leaf and rugose varieties have almost no trouble with mites unless the plants are really struggling.

- Predatory mites are sold for greenhouses; with that sort of pest population, you might benefit from them even out in the open. Check some organic supply catalogs.

- Be vigilant. All it takes is one plant getting overwhelmed by mites, then they have a foothold to take over the rest from. Yanking or severely pruning one plant is better than losing all of them, if you notice that one is faring badly. If there's a variety or species that seems to do much worse, look for a different one for next year. The mites are tough to kill, so we have to adapt and learn.

I wish you the best of luck.

--Alison

thanks alison looks like ive been following that list there pretty closely. one thing i notice each year its seems as if the plant food attracts these buggers but that might be my mind playing tricks on me. IÂve pulled out all my tomatoes plants minus 1 grape tomato. Also ive removed my black eye pea plants .The black eye pea plant seemed to be the worst infestation. for the minute I thing ive won this battle also weÂve had tons of rain an that also appears to be helping I think tomorrow Ill stat replanting for fall an Suggestions what tomatoes will do good in Houston an Mite resistant Thanks Again

I can't help you on good varieties for Houston; you might try asking on the regular Growing Tomatoes forum. As for mite resistance -- as I said, I find that foliage type makes a difference: best to worst is potato leaf or rugose > regular leaf > wispy or thin leaf. I usually do an internet search on various varieties to see what leaf type they are before I try growing them. Also look for vigorous plants and thick foliage, if anyone makes a comment to that effect.

Best of luck for your second round.

--Alison

I had that problem last year on my tomatoes. A local gardener suggested dusting the plants with Sulfer plant fungicide. It did work. The plants recovered. Good luck, they only infested my tomatoes.