Aphids on basil (treatments that are cat safe please!) Seeking advice for aphid infestation on basil plant. I repotted a bunch of store bought basil plants mid-May, and they’ve been growing pretty well. I went on holiday for a week and when I came back a couple of days ago, my best plant was absolutely covered in aphids!! The rest had a fair amount on them too, as they were being stored near each other, but I’m most upset about my big girl because she was growing so well/bushy :( Anyway, I took all of the plants into my bathroom and showered them down for a while until I couldnt see any more aphids, then I sprayed them with a mix of water and dish soap (1tsp soap and \~750ml water), left it for an hour or so and then re-showered them to wash off the soap mixture. I wouldn’t have left them for that long but I forgot so I hope it won’t damage the plants ?! I left them in the bathroom for about 24 hours but I do need to shower so I’ve had to remove them, they are now in front of the window in my bedroom so they can soak up some sun (unfortunately my bathroom gets virtually no sunlight). I have a fan pointed towards the window, and a buuuuunch of those sticky bug catchers (yellow shapes in pictures). I’m thinking of spraying them down each day, I have a phobia of bugs which I am working through but I just cannot touch them (for squishing/manual removal? I’ve seen people suggest this but I fear I would just be sick if I tried it), and I was also thinking of repeating the bathroom showering process every few days, until the aphids have fully gone - but I’m worried about eggs in the soil not getting washed away and instead being pushed further in?? Is that a concern I should be having? I’ve also seen online that people suggest neem oil but I have cats so not sure how safe this is? I’ve also seen people suggesting to scatter used and dried coffee grounds over the top of the soil to smother and repel aphids? AGAIN not sure how much to trust this - I only drink instant coffee so I would have to ask my local cafe if they could give me their used coffee grounds? I’ve also seen people suggest lavender oil which I do already have but I am very reluctant to use since it’s cat-toxic!! My cats are pretty chill and have never tried to eat the basil before but I don’t want to introduce anything that is toxic just in case they do have a little nibble! Does anyone have any advice on how I should change my approach to get rid of the aphids as well as what I can do to prevent this happening in the future? Originally by u/abslmao2 on Reddit: https://tinyurl.com/ypdgjoye