Ok, the *$^!# boisduval scale are driving me insane. And they are
totally resistant to most chemical pesticides. My profuse 'thanks' to
certain very large growers who have done that selection for me. Yes, I
could escalate the battle with more powerful weaponry, but I'm starting
to debate the merits of an all out nuclear arms race in my greenhouse.
Besides, cockroaches and scale will probably form the basis of the next
civilization, after we nuke this one.

Anyway, I know what I would do for a small collection, but I have
several thousand plants now. And the problem isn't really that bad, so
far, just a few select plants (some clones are more tasty than others,
it seems) - of course I haven't quite figured out which plants are the
tastiest yet.

So, I'm thinking about a more IPM (integrated pest management) approach.
Some little frogs (of course), and predatory insects. I just want to
knock them back enough that i can spot treat the occasional plant with
alcohol or soap. I have room to establish a little ecosystem.

To the actual question: What predator would be best for scale (haven't
seen any armored scale yet, but they are probably coming), mealy bugs,
and the occasional aphid or two? I was thinking lady bird beetles. I
could go with a combination approach. Does anybody have a favorite
source of beneficial critters? Any favorite IPM web sites for more
information? And where o where can I find some cute little tree frogs?
Oooh, maybe poison arrow frogs would kill scale on contact...

Have fun

Rob
--
Rob's Rules: http://www.msu.edu/~halgren
1) There is always room for one more orchid
2) There is always room for two more orchids
2a) See rule 1
3) When one has insufficient credit to obtain more
orchids, obtain more credit

LittlefrogFarm - Growing the plants Rob likes. )

Rob Halgren wrote:
Ok, the *$^!# boisduval scale are driving me insane.

See:
http://www.extento.hawaii.edu/kbase/...e/d_boisdu.htm
http://www.cips.msu.edu/ncr125/GuideScales.htm
Maybe they will help.
--
Reka

This is LIFE! It's not a rehearsal. Don't miss it!
http://www.rolbox.it/hukari/index.html

http://www.pbi.co.uk/provado/ultimatebugkiller/ Ultimate bug killer is
excellent & controls most pests,I don't know if it is available in
Europe/USA. A friend had scale insect really bad last year he used this on
his orchids and is now clear.Respected society members also recommend
this.In a large orchid collection I cant see many things working unless each
plant is treated.I can see why you are looking for biological control Rob as
spraying/treating all your plants is so time consuming.One downfall of
having a large collection!
Mind you if the problem is picked up at a early stage it could possibly be
treated & kept isolated?
--
Thanks Keith,England,UK.
"Reka" wrote in message
...
Rob Halgren wrote:
Ok, the *$^!# boisduval scale are driving me insane.

See:
http://www.extento.hawaii.edu/kbase/...e/d_boisdu.htm
http://www.cips.msu.edu/ncr125/GuideScales.htm
Maybe they will help.
--
Reka

This is LIFE! It's not a rehearsal. Don't miss it!
http://www.rolbox.it/hukari/index.html

keith ;-) wrote:
http://www.pbi.co.uk/provado/ultimatebugkiller/ Ultimate bug killer is
excellent & controls most pests,I don't know if it is available in
Europe/USA. A friend had scale insect really bad last year he used this on
his orchids and is now clear.Respected society members also recommend
this.In a large orchid collection I cant see many things working unless each
plant is treated.I can see why you are looking for biological control Rob as
spraying/treating all your plants is so time consuming.One downfall of
having a large collection!
Mind you if the problem is picked up at a early stage it could possibly be
treated & kept isolated?

http://extoxnet.orst.edu/pips/imidaclo.htm

imidocloprid is the active ingredient in the product you list. Nice of
them to tell us what the active ingredient is. We can get that here in
the US under a few different names, including Marathon. According to
the sheet, it interferes with neurotransmitters. Looks reasonably safe
to use, although not completely benign.

Interesting...

The only problem with my collection is that well over half of it wasn't
mine until last year. So, when you get 3000 plants or so, it is
difficult to isolate the entire lot... *grin* But I fully agree, if you
catch any problem early it is a heck of a lot easier to handle than
catching it late.

Rob

--
Rob's Rules: http://www.msu.edu/~halgren
1) There is always room for one more orchid
2) There is always room for two more orchids
2a) See rule 1
3) When one has insufficient credit to obtain more
orchids, obtain more credit

LittlefrogFarm - Growing the plants Rob likes. )

Rob ,what about a isolation greenhouse:-) or maybe change Robs rules 1, 2 &
2a! :-(

--
Thanks Keith,England,UK.
"Rob Halgren" wrote in message
...
keith ;-) wrote:
http://www.pbi.co.uk/provado/ultimatebugkiller/ Ultimate bug killer is
excellent & controls most pests,I don't know if it is available in
Europe/USA. A friend had scale insect really bad last year he used this
on
his orchids and is now clear.Respected society members also recommend
this.In a large orchid collection I cant see many things working unless
each
plant is treated.I can see why you are looking for biological control
Rob as
spraying/treating all your plants is so time consuming.One downfall of
having a large collection!
Mind you if the problem is picked up at a early stage it could possibly
be
treated & kept isolated?

http://extoxnet.orst.edu/pips/imidaclo.htm

imidocloprid is the active ingredient in the product you list. Nice of
them to tell us what the active ingredient is. We can get that here in
the US under a few different names, including Marathon. According to
the sheet, it interferes with neurotransmitters. Looks reasonably safe
to use, although not completely benign.

Interesting...

The only problem with my collection is that well over half of it wasn't
mine until last year. So, when you get 3000 plants or so, it is
difficult to isolate the entire lot... *grin* But I fully agree, if you
catch any problem early it is a heck of a lot easier to handle than
catching it late.

Rob

--
Rob's Rules: http://www.msu.edu/~halgren
1) There is always room for one more orchid
2) There is always room for two more orchids
2a) See rule 1
3) When one has insufficient credit to obtain more
orchids, obtain more credit

LittlefrogFarm - Growing the plants Rob likes. )

keith ;-) wrote:
Rob ,what about a isolation greenhouse:-) or maybe change Robs rules 1, 2 &
2a! :-(


My wife is already having slight ... let us not call them fits, quite
yet ... about the first greenhouse. I think I'm going to have to wait a
while before I build another one. Besides, I still have plenty of room
(there is space under the benches, and from the purlins, and...). No
danger of breaking rule 2. I am starting to run into a few issues with
rule 3, though. Guess I need to sell some.

Rob

--
Rob's Rules: http://www.msu.edu/~halgren
1) There is always room for one more orchid
2) There is always room for two more orchids
2a) See rule 1
3) When one has insufficient credit to obtain more
orchids, obtain more credit

LittlefrogFarm - Growing the plants Rob likes. )

Rob,

I have a couple of little green lizards (Anoles) that scamper around my
greenhouse. They are great fun and I chase them around with the hose when I
water. They keep crickets, flys, and crawly bugs at bay. I think they may
be eating a slug or two when they show up. Unfortunately, they also eat the
spiders. I did have a toad that was around but I haven't seen him since mid
January. I believe he survived on anything crawling around the floor like
slugs and the rolypolys.

These guys don't seem to make any progress on scale and mealies. I did the
lady bug release a year ago and they found their way out of the greenhouse
and into my garden. Not a bad thing but they didn't eat many mealies when
they were around the greenhouse. I don't have much of an aphid problem in
the yard now.

Last summer I invested in a bottle of Enstar. I did two sprays about 3
weeks apart. I covered all the plants including the underside of leaves.
When I find an outbreak now I control it by hitting the plants with Enstar
in a specific area of the greenhouse.

I only have a few soft scales and an occasional mealiebug which I can
control with my thumb or a quick spray and isolate the plant. I swear by
Enstar. A little bottle goes a long way. It is a pain in the butt to do
those first two sprays to get everything really coated but worth the work.

Good luck,
Gene