First of all, forget Safers - ordinary household liquid detergents are just
as effective and far less expensive.
When I used the Enstar II-neem combo, I put soap in to emulsify the neem
oil, so got that benefit for the Enstar as well.
--
Ray Barkalow - First Rays Orchids -
www.firstrays.com
Plants, Supplies, Books, Artwork, and Lots of Free Info!
.. . . . . . . . . . .
"Jerry Hoffmeister" wrote in message
news:TorSa.90617$GL4.25965@rwcrnsc53...
Have you tried Enstar mixed with Safer Soap or Physan? Seems like it
would
be beneficial to include some sort of spreader / sticker.
"Ray" wrote in message
...
You might want to consider Enstar II, as it's an insect growth regulator
rather than killer. No maturation = no more bugs. No impact on other
critters or the environment.
I have used it mixed with neem oil with great success.
--
Ray Barkalow - First Rays Orchids - www.firstrays.com
Plants, Supplies, Books, Artwork, and Lots of Free Info!
. . . . . . . . . . .
"V_coerulea" wrote in message
.. .
I recently had an outbreak of cattleya scale which can devestate
seedlings
in a heatbeat and bring the big ones down without much trouble (and
not
just
cattleyas). There were also a few mealies around. I hit everything
with
Orthene twice, 6 days apart, first time as a spray and drench, 2nd
time
just
spray. I followed up with Enstar II twice at control doses and again
with
a
preventative dose. I haven't seen any signs of infestation in 3
weeks -X
(fingers crossed). You can imagine how long this took for several
thousand
plants. But at that point, what was the alternative? I know from now
on
that
all new plants, especially trades, get treated and isolated for
several
weeks before joining the collection. This had been my general policy
prior
to the infestation. I got lax. My fault. A reminder every-so-often is
necessary for some of us to get back on track. I had a bunch of
trouble
a
number of years ago with scale and mealies prior to "ant-proofing" the
greenhouse. Sealed and screened pretty tightly, the greenhouse gets
some
spray around doors but usually that's about it. As for the anoles, I
know
I
lose some when I have to spray. But judging by the number of little
ones
around a lot of eggs are in protected sand somewhere that keep popping
out.
They're pretty good survivors. Best of luck. Hope this helps some.
Gary
"Diana Kulaga" wrote in message
hlink.net...
Hi, Gang,
Thus far, I've never had what I would call a *serious* pest problem.
That
seems to have changed. I've been spotting mealies around the Phals
and
on
some other plants. I pulled an ailing Phal out of its pot and found
the
roots infested with the things. Since, I've been repotting Phals
like
crazy. And finding scale. Normally, I use straight alcohol, or,
for
scale,
alcohol/soap/oil. Both are effective.
Now, however, I'm afraid I need to do something more, before the
whole
collection has problems (found more scale today, on a couple of
Angraecums).
Today I picked up Malathion at HD, and on my way to the register
found
a
product called Organocide, which advertises itself as a
pesticide/fungicide,
and which is comprised of 5% sesame oil, 92% edible fish oil, and 3%
lecithin. I bought both products.
It's not that I'm completely averse to using chemicals (the
Malathion),
but
like anyone else I'd rather avoid it if possible. Also, swarms of
geckos
reside in the lanai where most of the plants are, and I don't want
to
injure
the beneficial little guys if I can help it.
So my question has to do with the effectiveness of the Organocide,
and
also
if I use Malathion can I water it through the medium? I need to do
something very soon; case by case isn't cutting it.
Anyone? Ah, I guess I'm just looking for a little reinforcement.
Come
Monday morning I'll probably bomb the place with Malathion.
Diana