On 5/5/2009 6:30 PM, Freckles wrote:
"David E. Ross" wrote in message
et...
On 5/4/2009 10:08 PM, Freckles wrote:
I would like to use a systemic pesticide on my roses.

I've heard systemic pesticides can be very dangerous.

I've tried several different sprays and am not satisfied with the
results.

Can anyone recommend a brand of systemic pesticide that is not so
dangerous
to humans and pets?

Thanks,

Freckles
I use Bayer's Rose & Flower Care, which combines fertilizer and
systemic insecticide in a dry granular form. Although I feed my roses
every month from March through October, I use this product only
every-other month to get excellent results. In the alternating months,
I feed my roses with ammonium sulfate.

You might instead consider using Bayer's 12 Month Tree & Shrub Insect
Control, which is a systemic applied as a soil drench. I used this very
successfully to control leaf miners on citrus. It is considered
non-toxic to vertebrates (humans, other mammals, birds, reptiles, fish,
etc) and is thus safe on edibles. It controls such rose pests as aphid
and white fly. I haven't tried this on my own roses. You might call
your local agricultural extension to ask about using it. I will be
calling my county's agricultural extension when I replace my peach tree
to determine if it will control flat-headed bark borers since Lindane is
no longer available. NOTE: 12 Month Tree & Shrub Insect Control can be
quite expensive; it cost over $20 to give one treatment each to a dwarf
lemon and a dwarf orange.


--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean
Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean
influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19)
Gardening diary at http://www.rossde.com/garden/diary

Thanks for the information.

I just order some Bayer insect control plus fertilizer plant spikes which
seem to be just what I want.

I've been watching the organic vs. chemical debate for years. I have tried
to go organic, but with very limited success. The plant stakes I've ordered
seem safe enough and they are not too expensive. Much of the organic
materials I've used were a lot more expensive than chemicals and in many
cases I needed to use much more of them to get the same results I could have
gotten with a few chemicals.

If my grand dad had tried to go organic on our farm, we would have starved.

Freckles

Too many people confuse "organic" with "natural". For my comments on
this, see my http://www.rossde.com/garden/garden_organic.html.

My own gardening practices involve a mix of organic methods and
non-organic methods.

I produce my own compost (actually, a leaf mold), which I add to my
potting mix to inject the mix with the kinds of soil bacteria that are
needed to convert nutrients into forms that plant roots can absorb. I
use bone meal and blood meal in my potting mix for house plants. I
generally wait for ladybugs to deal with aphids. (I don't have to buy
and disperse them; they come naturally.)

To combat brown snails (Helix aspersa, also known as Cantareus
aspersus), I can't use poisonous snail bait because my tortoise would
then eat the still toxic dead snails. Instead, I use carnivorous
decollate snails (Rumina decollata), which eat the eggs and young of the
brown snails. I also wrap copper wire around flower pots containing
plants that are especially attractive to brown snails.

On the other hand, I feed my roses, citrus, and other plants with
chemical fertilizers. After pruning them, I spray my peach, roses, and
grapes with a mix of dormant oil and copper sulfate. Newly planted
flowering shrubs have super-phosphate dug into the soil below their root
balls. Yes, I do use systemic insecticides on my roses and citrus and
Roundup on thistles sprouting on my hill. As for my leaf mold, I
accelerate its decomposition by adding urea (50-0-0) to the pile.

Am I an environmental rogue? I don't think so. Birds and squirrels
seem to enjoy my garden. Raccoons steal my grapes. Many, many bees
constantly visit my flowers. And Cleopatra -- an endangered California
desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) -- has happily grazed in my back
yard since 1977. (Before you consider reporting me for having a
contraband tortoise, Cleopatra is already registered with the California
Department of Fish and Game; she is legal.)

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean
Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean
influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19)
Gardening diary at http://www.rossde.com/garden/diary