Nicotine is a powerful alkaloid insecticide and was available to
amateur gardeners fifty or so years ago. However it is also very
poisonous to humans as well as being addictive, and is now only
available to commercial growers (AIUI). Even they have to adopt
stringent safety precautions when using it.

Tobacco leaves typically contain about 5% nicotine. Someone on a
recent thread (I think it was one on red spider mite) mentioned almost
jokingly that they'd heard you could make an insecticide by soaking
old cigarette butts in water. Is there an old-established recipe for
doing this (so many ounces of tobacco per gallon, soaked overnight, or
whatever) that gives a nicotine solution of sufficient concentration
to be insecticidal but harmless to us mortals? Is there a harmless
concentration? After all, smokers happily puff their way through
umpteen cigarettes a day, and whatever long-term illness they die
from, acute nicotine poisoning isn't it.


--
Chris

E-mail: christopher[dot]hogg[at]virgin[dot]net

Chris Hogg wrote in message . ..
Nicotine is a powerful alkaloid insecticide and was available to
amateur gardeners fifty or so years ago. However it is also very
poisonous to humans as well as being addictive, and is now only
available to commercial growers (AIUI). Even they have to adopt
stringent safety precautions when using it.

Tobacco leaves typically contain about 5% nicotine. Someone on a
recent thread (I think it was one on red spider mite) mentioned almost
jokingly that they'd heard you could make an insecticide by soaking
old cigarette butts in water. Is there an old-established recipe for
doing this (so many ounces of tobacco per gallon, soaked overnight, or
whatever) that gives a nicotine solution of sufficient concentration
to be insecticidal but harmless to us mortals? Is there a harmless
concentration? After all, smokers happily puff their way through
umpteen cigarettes a day, and whatever long-term illness they die
from, acute nicotine poisoning isn't it.

Actually there is sime evidence that nicotine itself encourages the
growth of cancers.
--
Neil Jones- http://www.butterflyguy.com/
"At some point I had to stand up and be counted. Who speaks for the
butterflies?" Andrew Lees - The quotation on his memorial at Crymlyn
Bog National Nature Reserve

Chris Hogg wrote in message . ..
Nicotine is a powerful alkaloid insecticide and was available to
amateur gardeners fifty or so years ago. However it is also very
poisonous to humans as well as being addictive, and is now only
available to commercial growers (AIUI). Even they have to adopt
stringent safety precautions when using it.

Tobacco leaves typically contain about 5% nicotine. Someone on a
recent thread (I think it was one on red spider mite) mentioned almost
jokingly that they'd heard you could make an insecticide by soaking
old cigarette butts in water. Is there an old-established recipe for
doing this (so many ounces of tobacco per gallon, soaked overnight, or
whatever) that gives a nicotine solution of sufficient concentration
to be insecticidal but harmless to us mortals? Is there a harmless
concentration? After all, smokers happily puff their way through
umpteen cigarettes a day, and whatever long-term illness they die
from, acute nicotine poisoning isn't it.

Actually there is sime evidence that nicotine itself encourages the
growth of cancers.
--
Neil Jones- http://www.butterflyguy.com/
"At some point I had to stand up and be counted. Who speaks for the
butterflies?" Andrew Lees - The quotation on his memorial at Crymlyn
Bog National Nature Reserve

In message , Chris Hogg
writes
Nicotine is a powerful alkaloid insecticide and was available to
amateur gardeners fifty or so years ago. However it is also very
poisonous to humans as well as being addictive, and is now only
available to commercial growers (AIUI). Even they have to adopt
stringent safety precautions when using it.

Tobacco leaves typically contain about 5% nicotine. Someone on a
recent thread (I think it was one on red spider mite) mentioned almost
jokingly that they'd heard you could make an insecticide by soaking
old cigarette butts in water. Is there an old-established recipe for
doing this (so many ounces of tobacco per gallon, soaked overnight, or
whatever) that gives a nicotine solution of sufficient concentration
to be insecticidal but harmless to us mortals?

Homeopathic levels ;-)

Basically you do not mess with the stuff. A half decent chemist can
extract enough nicotine from a couple of cigarettes for human LD50.
There are recipes out on the web that will get you into serious trouble
unless you are used to handling dangerous chemicals. Natural toxins are
not "safe". And the kitchen sink chemistry recipes to extract them are
positively dangerous (besides being unlicensed use).

Is there a harmless
concentration? After all, smokers happily puff their way through
umpteen cigarettes a day, and whatever long-term illness they die
from, acute nicotine poisoning isn't it.

Only because burning the stuff is an incredibly inefficient process.

The other problem with nicotine as an insecticide is that it generally
comes laced with tobacco mosaic virus which despite its name will also
infect lots of other valuable plants. TMV can even be viable in the
smoke from tobacco.

Regards,
--
Martin Brown

Hope it is ok to post here........just saw on one of my gardening
programs here in California, about synthetic nicotine........
it paralyzes the bugs on Crape Myrtle trees........a systemic that you
mix with water and pour around plant........didn't catch the
maker....maybe BAYER? I went on line to search but did not receive
anything further........good group you have here.....maybe you can tell
me about this product? Thankyou, Sara

".........The other problem with nicotine as an insecticide is that it
generally comes laced with tobacco mosaic virus which despite its name will
also
infect lots of other valuable plants. TMV can even be viable in the smoke
from tobacco ........"

Not for at least the last 50 years, this was basically an old wife's tale
from the 30's.

We used Nicotine shreds regularly on tomato crops and in 10 years we never
had one case of Mosaic virus, and we grew around half an acre a year.
--
David Hill
Abacus nurseries
www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk

".........The other problem with nicotine as an insecticide is that it
generally comes laced with tobacco mosaic virus which despite its name will
also
infect lots of other valuable plants. TMV can even be viable in the smoke
from tobacco ........"

Not for at least the last 50 years, this was basically an old wife's tale
from the 30's.

We used Nicotine shreds regularly on tomato crops and in 10 years we never
had one case of Mosaic virus, and we grew around half an acre a year.
--
David Hill
Abacus nurseries
www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk

".........The other problem with nicotine as an insecticide is that it
generally comes laced with tobacco mosaic virus which despite its name will
also
infect lots of other valuable plants. TMV can even be viable in the smoke
from tobacco ........"

Not for at least the last 50 years, this was basically an old wife's tale
from the 30's.

We used Nicotine shreds regularly on tomato crops and in 10 years we never
had one case of Mosaic virus, and we grew around half an acre a year.
--
David Hill
Abacus nurseries
www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk

In article ,
says...

".........The other problem with nicotine as an insecticide is that it
generally comes laced with tobacco mosaic virus which despite its name will
also
infect lots of other valuable plants. TMV can even be viable in the smoke
from tobacco ........"

Not for at least the last 50 years, this was basically an old wife's tale
from the 30's.

We used Nicotine shreds regularly on tomato crops and in 10 years we never
had one case of Mosaic virus, and we grew around half an acre a year.
--
David Hill
Abacus nurseries
www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk



I do know that the leaves of my ornamental niotanias are covered in dead
insects.

--
Jonathan Ward
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