I was given a bottle of Cygon because a friend heard me complaining about
how thrips ruin my light-colored blooms.

I went to the Cornell site to read about it, so I am well aware of its
toxicity, etc. Here is the site for anyone interested:

http://pmep.cce.cornell.edu/profiles/insect-mite/ddt-
famphur/dimethoate/insect-prof-dimethoate.html

Two questions:

1. Is anyone here using this for thrips, spider mites, or anything else?
Here is what the site says it kills: "Aphids, mites, codling moths,
grasshoppers, plum curculio, pear psylla, scale, leafhoppers, thrips,
loopers,Drosophila, lygus bugs, leafminers, flies, olive flies, whiteflies,
Hassids, houseflies and many others (8a) Effective against many insect
larvae. Moves throughout the plant rapidly. Relatively slow acting
against houseflies but with up to 8 weeks residual control. Used to
control fly maggots in manure piles." Sounds pretty good to me.

2. If I use it, how do I incorporate it into my spray program, which is
simply Orthenex every ten days. Should I use just fungicide, perhaps
Funginex or Immunox or the Daconil-based Fertilome fungicide? Can these
things be mixed, or must I spray them separately?

My current, simple routine leaves me with marginal blackspot, loads of
thrips, a few aphids, and just a few Japanese Beetles. Should I leave well
enough alone, or try the Cygon? I use a respirator, gloves, eye
protectors, and protective clothing when I spray, and no pets are allowed
in my fenced yard so that is not a concern. Thanks.