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Post by Moonlight on Jul 13, 2014 16:49:40 GMT
I know that people use it to protect their dahlias.
Exactly which parts of the dahlias can it protect and which creatures can it protect against?
I don't like seeing aphids on the stems or ant farmers. I felt torn between wanting butterflies to become endangered and stressed out watching caterpillars eat my dahlias.
Suggestions?
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Post by scrumpy on Jul 13, 2014 17:21:19 GMT
Used entirely to stop the earwigs climbing the stems to the blooms. I don't use it myself, what I have found is that if there are signs of earwig damage, I go out at night with the torch when it gets dark and catch them as I've noticed the stupid little things tend to go back to the same spot they've been chewing  |
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Post by ian on Jul 13, 2014 18:03:29 GMT
Hi why don't you try to apply Ant powder to approx. the bottom 5-6" stem of your plants this does help to control the little critters. Also strip out the bottom leaves from the plants to apply the powder this will also help tidy up the plants, the bottom leaves have done their work and you are now concentrating on the laterals and getting the goodness into these. Hope this helps. |
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Post by Tel on Jul 14, 2014 5:28:29 GMT
Welcome to the forum Ian. |
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Post by Moonlight on Jul 14, 2014 10:03:55 GMT
Welcome to the forum Ian.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 14, 2014 10:19:00 GMT
Thanks Ian, I puff diatom around the bottom of my plants, but never on them as I wasn't sure if it would affect them. Will get out there later and do the stems as well. What with my upturned pots and diatom I'll cut back the earwig population . Oh, by the way, welcome to the forum..
Mark |
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Post by Moonlight on Jul 14, 2014 10:20:10 GMT
Used entirely to stop the earwigs climbing the stems to the blooms. I don't use it myself, what I have found is that if there are signs of earwig damage, I go out at night with the torch when it gets dark and catch them as I've noticed the stupid little things tend to go back to the same spot they've been chewing
I remember my Dad going round with his sprayer, he had a sprayer with a tank on his back, bit like a spaceman. I remember him squirting down the canes and watching the earwigs run up and out.
Dad doesn't think that insecticides are anywhere near as good as they used to be. He's been religiously spraying his but getting annoyed when finds more white fly. We found a frog or more probably a toad in our greenhouse the other day which hid behind our sunflowers and we couldn't get to it. The more I thought about it the worse I feel about the slug pellets that I've been using.
I remember that earwigs go fast and seeing caterpillars eat blooms even my huge mutant Staleen Condessas that I couldn't even reach to move them away. I'm torn because I don't want to see my dahlias eaten, especially not my ones that we have nutured alive from the US. Clearview Jenny is high on the menu list for the nibblers and Ruskin Myra is being gobbled to.
I get really annoyed with the ants farming the aphids. As soon as I see an ant marching across a leaf I feel grrr . ian I thought about the ant powder but I don't want to kill anything else that is down there. |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 14, 2014 11:00:58 GMT
Moonlight, this year I've been using a product called SB plant invigorater. It's a systemic insecticide which the little critters cannot get immune to. I spray once a week, and as yet I've not had one instance of farming or disease being passed on. If you look on LBS buyers guide website you will be able to read about it. I use 5 litres a week, so I buy the litre bottle, which makes 500 litres, so should last me about 3-4 seasons.
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Post by ian on Jul 14, 2014 16:56:51 GMT
Hi With the ant powder being puffed directly on to the bottom stem of the plant it acts as a barrier to critters climbing up the plants. Something else you may want to try, it is not to bad this season but when it is wetter conditions and the little snails are eating leaves quite high up in the plants. When you give a folia feed include slugit in the water and this will sort those out you will have to re apply if it rains it does work. You probably do this already but your plants will take up as many nutrients through the leaves then they do through the roots, so every time you spray include some feed in the form of high nitrogen or potash along with maybe seaweed and comfrey this is as benefitial to the plants as feed in the roots. The results are great. Good luck with your growing and showing whether it be Wisley or Harrogate |
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Post by daitheplant on Jul 14, 2014 18:51:42 GMT
Hi With the ant powder being puffed directly on to the bottom stem of the plant it acts as a barrier to critters climbing up the plants. Something else you may want to try, it is not to bad this season but when it is wetter conditions and the little snails are eating leaves quite high up in the plants. When you give a folia feed include slugit in the water and this will sort those out you will have to re apply if it rains it does work. You probably do this already but your plants will take up as many nutrients through the leaves then they do through the roots, so every time you spray include some feed in the form of high nitrogen or potash along with maybe seaweed and comfrey this is as benefitial to the plants as feed in the roots. The results are great. Good luck with your growing and showing whether it be Wisley or Harrogate First off, may I ask how ant powder stops earwigs climbing the plant? Secondly, when you use Slugit it is active for up to 6 months, once it has dried on the plant. Thirdly, plants should only be folia fed by fertilisers specifically for that purpose, also, are you suggestion members mix chemical fertilisers with chemical pesticides? That is ludicrous and dangerous. Also, why is everyone trying to kill earwigs? They are a gardeners friend. |
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Post by ian on Jul 14, 2014 21:24:43 GMT
Oops daitheplant, in my experience the use of ant powder does infact help stop earwigs. Yes the slugit dries on, well done. Again in my experience if people do not try different things then there is no change and you stand still, try it if it does not work for you bin it and carry on. There is nothing wrong with adding a little feed when spraying.
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Post by scrumpy on Jul 14, 2014 21:26:49 GMT
I can see the benefit of ant powder around the base to prevent the harvesting of blackfly.
As to earwigs being a gardeners friend, what do they actually do apart from aim straight for the growing point of dahlias to do as much damage as they can?
Regarding slug it, if it works for Ian then who are we to argue. I can't see how mixing metaldehyde in the way he does can be dangerous, as the normal way of using it would be as a drench over plants, so what difference does it make if sprayed with a fertiliser?
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Post by ian on Jul 14, 2014 21:39:35 GMT
Thank you for that, it is a case of suck it and see, always try something new think outside the box. But most of all share it. Then that Dahlia may just we'll be in sight all the very best |
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Post by Moonlight on Jul 15, 2014 8:15:43 GMT
Thanks Ian, I puff diatom around the bottom of my plants, but never on them as I wasn't sure if it would affect them. Will get out there later and do the stems as well. What with my upturned pots and diatom I'll cut back the earwig population . Oh, by the way, welcome to the forum..
Mark
Searches keep showing results on chicken protection and fish tanks.
Thanks, Dad is interested in finding out more... |
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Post by Moonlight on Jul 15, 2014 8:36:07 GMT
Moonlight, this year I've been using a product called SB plant invigorater. It's a systemic insecticide which the little critters cannot get immune to. I spray once a week, and as yet I've not had one instance of farming or disease being passed on. If you look on LBS buyers guide website you will be able to read about it. I use 5 litres a week, so I buy the litre bottle, which makes 500 litres, so should last me about 3-4 seasons.
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