Paul J. Dudley wrote:

On Tue, 22 Jul 2008 12:22:28 -0500, Jangchub
wrote:

On Mon, 21 Jul 2008 20:55:20 -0400, "Paul J.
Dudley" wrote:

On Mon, 21 Jul 2008 16:28:56 -0500, Jangchub
wrote:

On Mon, 21 Jul 2008 15:18:03 -0400, "Paul J.
Dudley" wrote:

Last month ( mid June ) I had applied Seven
dust to my grapevine
due to Japanese Beatle infestation. I applied
by hand ( gloved ). I grabbed a handfull at a
time and just tossed it across the whole of
the foliage and grape clusters. Here it is
mid July and I still see some rather rich
deposits of the dust sitting on the clusters.
As these grapes ( type unknown ) are reaching
ripeness they will no doubt be harvested
within the next 2 weeks to make wine. Will
the residual Seven dust pose any health
threats at this point ? I've tried rinsing
with a garden hose but to no avail. It is
rather "caked" in some areas. There might
have been some moisture on the grapes when I
slung the seven dust causing it to do so.

TIA

Paul

I wouldn't eat them.

I hadn't planned on eating them. I wish to
make wine of them. I might
try washing the binches with mild soapy water
and see how they look. Hopefully I can get it
(Sevin) gone... But if'n that don't do it, I
will trash the grapes and not take a chance.

= Paul =

Okay Paul, if it can systemically enter your
skin and cause harmful reactions, don't you
know it will also be systemic on the cell walls
of grapes?

Yes. But I was hoping that a 6 week duration
might be long enough for
the dust to break down in toxicity. My neighbor
puts the stuff on all her greens ( collard,
cabbage, turnip etc ). She pounces it on with
an old nylon stocking. In fact, she does the
same with her corn (at the silk end of the ear
just as soon as soon as silk appears).

I know one thing. I'll never use Sevin on my
grapes again.

Don't ever say never. A lot if not most of the
vineyards around here (Northern Virginia /
Central Maryland Area - including other areas in
the Mid Atlantic) use Sevin on their vineyards.

Most commercial growers apply with an air blast
sprayer so it goes EVERYWHERE. The concentration
you used sounds excessive. I still recommend you
contact the manufacturer and see what they say.
I would still say you can use it (the sevin you
mix with water) and spray the top of your canopy
with a back pack sprayer.

What kind of grapes are you growing and where do
you live? The earliest any grapes are ready for
harvest around here are some of the whites and
some of them are ready around the 2nd week in
September. The reds usually are harvested around
the end of September with Merlot being the first.
The Cabernet Sauvignon hang until mid to late
October. I am saying all this because you may
have a variety than can hang longer and thus let
nature wash off some of the residue.




I used to
use a Pyrethrin based pesticide ( Tiger Brand )
but haven't seen it at the store this year. It
breaks down rather quickly and most veggies can
be ingested within a week after it's use. The
Sevin was given to me and I tried it. I made a
mistake. All I want to know now is ( and I
thought that was clear ) has enough time passed
to degrade the dust enough or would it still be
hazardous ( ... and would washing them be of
any use ) .

In two weeks I will pick said grapes. I will
attempt to wash the bunches
by hand. Depending of that outcome, I will
either prepare them for wine or if washing
doesn't seem to remove the residue I will trash
those bunches that won't wash clean.

= Paul =

There is one other option. You can go ahead and
harvest, crush and make your wine and send it out
to a lab and have them analyze it for you. They
may even be able to tell you in advance what they
would recommend without even testing it and
charging you. Virginia Tech has a enology
program and a lab. You may want to give them a
call and state your problem.

http://www.fst.vt.edu/extension/enology/index.html