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pests Dawn Dishsoap and Aphids...Do you rinse?
- Thread starter Roguejim
- Start date
I've only used it outside so I never rinse.
Screw soaps.
Get wasps,Lacewings or Ladybugs.
Sprays don't kill eggs.
Too much work spraying plants.
Let the critters take over.
Start with Lacewing Larva.
Wasps cost a lot.
I don't know your winter or if the wasps hibernate.
I have introduced them to my plants years ago and they are still around.
Haven't seen an Aphid in years.
A few mummies though.
Get wasps,Lacewings or Ladybugs.
Sprays don't kill eggs.
Too much work spraying plants.
Let the critters take over.
Start with Lacewing Larva.
Wasps cost a lot.
I don't know your winter or if the wasps hibernate.
I have introduced them to my plants years ago and they are still around.
Haven't seen an Aphid in years.
A few mummies though.
smokemaster said:
Oh I agree with this 100%. I've switched to biologicals. Have ladybugs going to work on my ows in the basement right now. I've got two mantis egg cases in the fridge that I found a couple of weeks ago waiting for plant out. I'm growing a bunch of plants that attract good bugs around my peppers this year. Spraying and mixing does take too damn much work and many times you have to constantly re spray/re apply. If you miss a scheduled spray then eggs could hatch and boom you've got another outbreak. I've got way too many plants this year to have to worry with spraying.
The only thing soaps and home remidies ever did for me was wreak havoc on my plants. The repeated application seemed to suffocate them, but somehow not the aphids. Ladybugs were awesome. Can't speak to other beneficial bugs because I've never had them. I also used some Sevin pesticide on some OW. Took care of the aphids in 2 applications. My preference would be to ladybugs though.
Neil
Neil
Mantis sucked for me.
They spend too much time attacking each other over territory and eat the large stuff on my plants - lacewing larva,ladybug larva etc.ALONG with/mostly each other.
If you ever saw them hatch,they stay around together ONLY until their skin hardens up,then they eat anything they can-mostly younger mantis.
Aphids were only on the menu after they ate everything else,including each other.
Only Aphids when babies I think.
They eat big stuff first,don't mess with the small stuff (aphids).
Mantis just don't do the job.
To me a bunch of good guys is better than Mantis.
I like Mantis a lot.
Gotta admit they are cool looking predators.
But NOT n my garden,destroying my Aphid wasp,Syrphid fly,Lady Bug and Lacewing population.
PS. I gotta admit it's really cool seeing a gazillion babies hatch.
Then seeing them hop all over the place.
BUT they are territorial and the gazillion that hatched equals 10 adults that hate each other.
End up with 3 males and 1 female in the long run.
AND no less nasties in your garden in general.
They spend too much time attacking each other over territory and eat the large stuff on my plants - lacewing larva,ladybug larva etc.ALONG with/mostly each other.
If you ever saw them hatch,they stay around together ONLY until their skin hardens up,then they eat anything they can-mostly younger mantis.
Aphids were only on the menu after they ate everything else,including each other.
Only Aphids when babies I think.
They eat big stuff first,don't mess with the small stuff (aphids).
Mantis just don't do the job.
To me a bunch of good guys is better than Mantis.
I like Mantis a lot.
Gotta admit they are cool looking predators.
But NOT n my garden,destroying my Aphid wasp,Syrphid fly,Lady Bug and Lacewing population.
PS. I gotta admit it's really cool seeing a gazillion babies hatch.
Then seeing them hop all over the place.
BUT they are territorial and the gazillion that hatched equals 10 adults that hate each other.
End up with 3 males and 1 female in the long run.
AND no less nasties in your garden in general.
Yeah mantis only eat the aphids while babies. Once they're bigger they can't grab the aphids and are useless against them. They do a helluva great job on hornworms though. Out of the 200 that can hatch I think they say only maybe 10 survive. They will eat each other. I've found a mantis here and there in the garden and always enjoy watching them. This year I was reading how the Mcdermott's had found a bunch of egg cases around their property so I wanted to see if I could. Was amazed at how many I found. Most were old and dried up from previous years hatches but I did find two that were good and unhatched. I'll hatch one in the raised beds and the other in the back garden.
Marigolds, dill. lavender, cilantro, fennel, basil, butterfly weed. There's a ton of things. If you do a search for "plants that attract beneficial insects" you will find some good lists to pick from. If you plant carrots and then let them flower the flowers are supposed to be good for attracting them. I'm growing marigolds and some of the herbs around my beds and garden. The great thing about having these plants is you can get beneficial colonies to establish on your property and won't have to buy insects so often.
Roguejim said:
Marigolds, dill. lavender, cilantro, fennel, basil, butterfly weed. There's a ton of things. If you do a search for "plants that attract beneficial insects" you will find some good lists to pick from. If you plant carrots and then let them flower the flowers are supposed to be good for attracting them. I'm growing marigolds and some of the herbs around my beds and garden. The great thing about having these plants is you can get beneficial colonies to establish on your property and won't have to buy insects so often.
Scorched said:
I've had good luck following the "Field of Dreams" mantra. If you plant them, they will come. My raised beds are swarming with beneficials and I'n never purchased any.
smokemaster said:
Do you grow any plants that provide habitat for your predator insects?
My concern is that while I'm waiting for the beneficial insects to take up residence in my garden and start devouring the aphids, the aphids will be multiplying. How long does a guy wait for these beneficials to show up before resorting to spraying? i was just told that some of these plants that provide the habitat can be quite invasive once established. I'm undecided as to what to do.Hybrid Mode 01 said:
Roguejim said:
I had aphids all last winter. I was constantly spraying, squishing etc. up until the day I planted out. I know for a fact there were aphids on the plants when they went in. But I planted marigolds among the raised beds (like four or five per 4'x8' bed), and I never saw one aphid the rest of the season.
French marigolds are a great choice for attracting beneficial insects. They keep flowering all season long, their individual blooms last a long time, dense foliage provides refuge for insects and spiders, they're tough plants that get really big with little maintenance. As far as getting established goes, the plants themselves establish (after transplant) very easily. But I've never had an issue with their growth getting out of control, they don't tolerate freezing (won't overwinter), and I've never seen volunteers. They're not invasive at all where I live.
Something that might help is making sure your starts have several flowers apiece when you plant out. I imagine insects are pretty hungry this time of year. A little advertising might attract some hungry workers.
They also suppress root-knot nematodes (and some other bad nematodes) in the soil. They have a chemical in their roots that kills the little buggers when they try to feed
Also, marigolds are pretty, are not invasive, are easy to grow from seed, and can self-seed so you can minimize your purchase cost.