For the last two years (I'm not bothering this year) all my brassica
have been covered in whitefly. I always thought this was a greenhous pest, not outdoors. Does anyone have a basically organic method o prevention/cure. The whitefly are persisting even after fairly shar frosts
- Peltiger
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"The least toxic material that can be sprayed for white flies is INSECTICIDAL SOAP. This material works several ways. First, it prevents adults from flying so they are not able to migrate to neighboring plants. Secondly, it stops the colonies from laying more eggs. Thirdly, it will suffocate some members of the colony immediately decreasing activity following treatments.
Since it's so safe, you can spray any plant - including fruits and vegetables - without any hazard to people or pets that may be eating the harvest. However, treatments won't last long and should be done at least once a week when activity is present - sometimes more."
Source:
Thank you, TQ
- Peltiger
----------------------------------------------------------------------- posted via
On Sat, 24 Jul 2004 04:27:19 +0200 in , Peltigera graced the world with this thought:
Take pieces of cardboard, paint them yellow. When they dry, mop on a coat of cooking oil with a paper towel or sponge. Set them out in the garden, the whiteflies will be attracted to them and stick.
It doesn't work.
Works just fine for me, however it can take more than one application and it/s best to get them under control when they first appear and not wait for an infestation to develop.
If it actually is working for you, you must not have much of a whitefly infestation. A couple of summers ago I was applying it daily with little success.
WF can be tough to control, especially if you don/t want to use harsh chems.
Like I said, I-soap works best if you apply the treatment before an infestation develops. At the first sign of WF, I spray, then spray again in a few days, and again a few days later.
It might help to slightly increase the concentration of the I-soap so as to get a better coating. The spray must coat the upper and lower surfaces of the leaves and stems. It also has to be put on 'thick' to the point where it drips from the leaves.
brassicas
greenhouse
sharp
Consider biological controls. A wasp called Encarsia formosa is parasitic on white flies. You can also get a beetle, Delphastus pusillus. I have used Encarsia, but not Delphastus. These predators are quite specific, so there is no danger to humans, pets or other beneficial insects. They are easy to use, just release and stand back. However, they will never completely eliminate the pest. In the case of whiteflies, that isn't necessary, just reduce the population and your crop won't be bothered too much. The downside is these are expensive. I include a link to one company from whom I have bought Encarsia.
Guy Bradley Chesterfield MO zone 6
Has anyone tried one of those ultrasonic noise makers ? I just set one out today and am giving it a whirl. Immediately, the misquito problem went away. I didn't see any flies around either and it's supposed to get rid of fleas and mice as well.
I don't have a mice problem, but there are a ton of squirrels around that are eating corn I think. I never seen them eating the corn, so it could be birds. But only one cob is being eaten each day, so I'm thinking it's a squirrel or two. The neighbor feeds peanuts to the squirrels but it looks like one really likes corn. :-) Whatever it is that's eating the corn, starts by poking a hole into the side. Then starts nibbling on the kernels. One cob was shreaded today.
I'm hoping that it is a squirrel doing it and that the ultrasonic thing will work. It is definitely getting rid of misquitoes and flies, and if the flies are going, I'm sure the frogs will probably move next door as well. Them tree frogs sure are cute little fellers. They show up in pots where there are flies and they scare the bejoobies out of me.
If it works on whiteflies as well, I'll be the happiest person in the world! They only cost $10.00 at Walgreens.
The ultrasonic thing got rid of the following: Flies Misquitoes temporarily, the misquitoes came back today, but that might be because of the rain and the standing water.
The whiteflies seemed to have almost disappeared, those things love squash more than anything else and they end up killing the squash. The leaves start turning white. They are fond of cucumbers as well. They avoid basil so I'm interspersing purple basic over a few different areas. The purple basil adds a nice color as well.
I'm giving black pepper a try to see if that will get rid of whatever it is that is eating the corn. :-) If someone else has another suggestion, I'm open for other suggestions.
Whatever is eating the corn is getting the corn at night or very early in the morning hours. I figured if it was birds, I'd catch them at various times of the day. There used to be a rat problem, but I don't think there are anymore rats (except the bushy tailed rats). Are squirrels nocturnal ? I see them running all over the place during the day, jumping between power lines, between phone lines, cable lines and trees. They definitely prefer climbing up trees.
One particular squirrel was sprawled out on a limb of a tree, about 8 feet off the ground, definitely within a leaping reach. :-) I got to about 2 feet from it before it took off. It was sprawled out on the limb making only the squeaks that they can make. It was behaving wierd. I was thinking it got a hold of cayenne peppered corn.
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