nematodes and garden pests

In "Teeming with Microbes" I came across the information that nematodes could control snail and slugs, and more it turns out. Haven't tried it yet but it is too tempting to pass up.

Anybody have any feed back?

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Sorry for the ad.

Beneficial Predatory Nematodes (1 million) - S&H Included Item 02499 Predatory Nematodes

(Steinemema carpocapsae & Heterorhabditis heliothedis) Control soil-dwelling insects and insect larvae

Heterorhabilitis: Lives inthe top 7" of the soil. Steinernema: Lives on or near the surface of the soil.

Predatory Nematodes are an effective control for literally hundreds of pest insects that have a life stage in the soil. This is a partial list of the more common species "Double-Death" Predator Nematodes are known to control:

Beetles: Banded Cucumber Beetle, Bark Beetle, Click Beetle, Colorado Potato Beetle, Checkered Beetle, Flea Beetle, Japanese Beetle, June Beetle, Leaf Beetle, Mexican Bean Beetle, Pine Beetle, Powder Post Beetle, Scarab Beetle, Southern Pine Beetle, White Fringed Beetle

Borers: European Corn Borer, Onion Borer, Round Headed Borer, Wood Borer

Crickets: Field Cricket, Morman Cricket

Flies: Black Fly, Crane Fly, Fruit Fly, Saw Fly

Moths: Carpenter Moth, Codling Moth, Gypsy Moth, Meal Moth, Oriental Fruit Moth, Pine Tip Moth, Winter Moth

Weevils: Banana Root Weevil, Boll Weevil, Cane Weevil, Corn Root Weevil, Pecan Weevil, Pine Weevil, Rice Weevil, Strawberry Root Weevil

Worms: Army Worms, Cabbage Worm, Corn Earworms, Cutworms, Fall Army Worm, Hornworm, Meal Worm, Measuring Worm (Loopers), Melon Worm, Pink Bollworm, Potato Tubeworm, Sod Webworm, Southern Rootworm, Spruce Budworm, Tobacco Budworm, Tobacco Hornworm, Webworms, Wireworms

Miscellaneous: Algae Gnats, Apple Leaf Roller, Assassin Bugs, Bean Leaf Roller, Billbugs, Cabbage Aphid, Cabbage Looper, Chinch Bugs, Cotton Stainer, Fleas, Fungus Gnats, Gall Midges, Gall Gnats, German Cockroaches, Grasshoppers, Imported Fire Ants, Lacewings, Leaf Skeletonizer, Leather Jackets, Pear Aphids, Red Bugs, Seed Corn Maggot, Squash Bugs, Sting Bugs, Termite, Thrips, White Grubs, Yellow Fever Mosquito

As you can see, this is quite a list! This is only the insects known to have been controlled by "Double-Death" Predatory Nematodes, and many more probably are controlled by predator nematodes, if they have a life stage in the soil.

Predatory Nematodes can survive over a wide temperature range (32degrees ­ 90 degrees F.), but are most effective as an insect control at soil temperatures of 50-85 degrees F. Apply Predatory Nematodes every 4-6 weeks throughout the season when soil temperatures are in this range. For insects that emerge in Spring and return in the Fall, Springtime and Fall applications are most effective, timed for when the soil temperature is about 50-55 degrees F. both times. Use One Million Predatory Nematodes to treat up to 3,000 square feet of soil surface.

Microscopic Predator Nematodes attack and kill almost any insect that lives in the soil, even large as a cutworm. Not to be confused with pest nematodes, Predator Nematodes attack ONLY pest insects, never plants, and they are harmless to earthworms, too. But if it is an insect, watch out! So long as an insect spends part of its life cycle resting in the soil (as many insect pests do) Predatory Nematodes attack by invading the insect body and then reproducing on what remains, until only a "shell" is left behind. More nematodes then emerge to repeat the cycle.

Predator Nematodes are so tiny, one million fit on a small 2"sponge. Each million treats up to 3000 square feet of soil surface. To use, rinse the sponge(s) in a gallon of water. This gallon can then be further diluted with as little of as much water as desired, and watered into the soil.

How do you water them into the soil? It doesn't really matter - you can water them in with a watering can, spray them in with a pump sprayer (no, the pressure doesn't hurt them - they go through the nozzle fine), or even run them through a hose end sprayer or fertilizer injector. The important things are to use them within 2 hours of mixing (because after that they start to drown) and release them in the early morning or evening (because sunlight harms them until they are watered into the soil). Water them in so they are flushed through the top 2-3 inches of soil.

For most pests, good control has been reached with repeat applications of nematodes every 4-6 weeks. They will live longest when the soil stays moist, but not saturated with water. IF you want to store the nematode "sponges" for a while prior to release, they will keep in the refrigerator (at 40-50 degrees F.) for up to 2 months. Add a few drops of water if they seem to be drying out.

Our Predator Nematodes perform better and go farther because they are raised on a diet of live insects. Some other brands are raised on an artificial diet and are not nearly as vigorous as our live-reared nematodes. Stored live in the refrigerator (not dehydrated), our Predator Nematodes are immediately active and rapidly set up breeding populations.

Although the use of Predator Nematodes is well established for soil pests, some growers are using them on foliage pests as well. These gardeners spray nematodes on foliage in the evening and then mist foliage throughout the night to keep moist conditions favorable to nematodes. Nematodes actually crawl into the leaf-miner tunnels this way and have been used against other pests as well. Please let us know your results if you experiment in the manner and we will pass your information on. Application: Each package covers 3000sqft, 1500sqft for fleas. We recommend repeated applications every 4-6 weeks during the insect season.

This product must remain refridgerated prior to application. Price includes USPS Priority Mail Shipping.

Due to special permitting requirements, we regret that we are not able to ship to Hawaii. Manufactured by: Nature's Control

PRICE: $19.50

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Billy Rose
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snip!

When something sounds too good to be true, it usually is.

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Manelli Family

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