Pest control

[el48tel]

It was strange over the years, despite the bottles being new and well sealed, the liquid volume inside the bottles almost halved.
Still worked though.....

I am wearing a black armband in sympathy

[habanerocat]

And as for that Diatomaceous Earth....

I've conducted tests with that also. Get one on the move on a table top. Surround it with Diatomaceous Earth.
All it does is bury it's hear under a lump. Come out the next morning and it's gone. Where to God only knows.

So I stopped those tests.

The tell tale early signs of an infestation are hidden by the white powder.
I think I'd prefer to keep a clean table top and inspect under the pots for the white fluff and casings regularly. Like the old days.

[Chris L]

And as for that Diatomaceous Earth....

I've conducted tests with that also. Get one on the move on a table top. Surround it with Diatomaceous Earth.
All it does is bury it's hear under a lump. Come out the next morning and it's gone. Where to God only knows.

So I stopped those tests.

The tell tale early signs of an infestation are hidden by the white powder.
I think I'd prefer to keep a clean table top and inspect under the pots for the white fluff and casings regularly. Like the old days.

I tried DE and came to the same conclusion. I was more worried about breathing in the dust and the effect it might have on me.

Now, I have noticed that since my plants have been in 100% pumice I have noticed far fewer mealies and I wonder if it is working like DE.

It is scratchy like DE. Then there is no "warm" soil to hide in over winter. If there are far less rotten/dead roots then they have less chance of getting a foothold too.

The next month or so is usually "mealie season" and I will be keeping a watchful eye for them.

[habanerocat]

I think this IS mealy season.

I got some of that Bug Clear Ultra. Unlike the Malathion which killed them dead, this seems to put them in a bit of a daze. They seem to make a run for it. Up around the plant, side of the pots, across the table top.

Silly question time.
Is death imminent?
Some seem to be on the move two or three days later.

[edds]

I am using the Bug Clear as there don't seem to be any other options but I'm currently done two treatments this year drenching everything and they are still here and multiplying fast. Getting rather irritated with them!!!

[juster]

Although Bug Clear Ultra is supposed to kill the little blighters, I've not found it very effective. This year I've returned to the old method of dabbing them with a small paintbrush dipped in meths. Works well on those I can see but continued vigilance is needed.

[TomInTucson]

Although I'm not suffering from Malathion withdrawal pangs (it's still legal throughout the USA), i would like to offer some possible alternatives I've used on plants which are damaged by it (like the Crassulaceae). With Echeveria, and it's near relatives, I've found that Acephate does an excellent job if Imidacloprid is used on subsequent applications (an alternate to avoid any insect pest resistance). If any of those are unavailable, I have used a few drops of a high quality dish detergent dissolved in a liter of water. It will usually dissolve the waxy coating on their egg cases, and sometimes that of the adults exoskeleton.

[Eric Williams]

Hi Juster, I agree, meths very effective but also time consuming. I think eradication is not achievable, control is the best I can do. Cheers

[el48tel]

I'm not finding the current legal sprays of any use. In fact they seem to have limited control of greenfly on my roses this year. Although more regular than specified spraying has had some success.
I'm finding meths in a spray bottle (I keep one for sterilisation of the gardening knives) a control but not a solution. It must be a right combination of temperature and humidity this year.

[Tina]

Gazelle SG 500 g Insecticide, looked intersting, its on ebay cheaper.
https://www.progreen.co.uk/gazelle-sg-s ... gKekvD_BwE
Gazelle SB is a highly effective, broad-spectrum, systemic insecticide. Ideal for use against a large variety of plant chewing and sucking pests. On label approval for use against aphids and whitefly with EAMUs for specific weevil species.