AV/Gessie pests & what you do to get rid of them

Ok, so I was recently voted to be the 1st VP of our AV club, and it is my "job" to come up with topics for each meeting.

For our August meeting, the topic is Pests & what to do about them. Our ex-president (who also owns the AV nursery in Boerne) will do the presentation. He is pretty set in his ways (nothing wrong with that), but I want to be able to throw some good options at him during the meeting.

So, for pests such as gnats, mites, thrips and mealy bugs (both types), what do you use/have used, and how do you think they worked?

Thanks,
Nichole

Hi Nichole,
I mostly use Hartz Flea and Tick shampoo,2 tablespoons to a gallon.I bathe the plants and saturate the soil.That idea came from Heidi.I use Lysol for powdery mildew.I do have some Safer Insecticidal soap I use once in awhile.
Mostly I use home remedies,like alcohol or soapy water sprays.

Lynn

Hey Nichole!

Neem. That's pretty much all I use and I have had great results with it even on plants with "fuzzy" leaves like AVs.

The only "downside" is that Neem can leave some "goo" behind, which can be rinsed off with plain water.

Other than that: Prevention, prevention, prevention. Try to keep your plants happy and the chance for one bug to turn into an infestation will decrease.

Olaf

Yes,Neem is really great and safer than a lot of other products.

I've been looking online the past few days, and I ran across nematodes . . . I'd be real interested to know if those work as well . . .

Lynn, do you use the flea shampoo for mealy bugs, or to get rid of gnats, or both?

I agree, Olaf, that prevention is a key.

I also read an article someone wrote that mealy bugs . . . or at least their eggs(?) . . . can be in the soil-less mix that people use. Which would explain why people cook their dirt before they use it, but I've not been a big fan of cooking my dirt.

(yes, I said the 4 letter word . . . D-I-R-T . . . why? 'Cause it's shorter, easier to say than soil-less mix, and you all know what I mean anyway)

I just use it as kind of an all purpose.If a plant starts looking tight in the center or something just doesn't look right.It works for me and has not damaged the plants.I don't cook my dirt either,so the shampoo might help get rid of soil pests.
In the old days we used weak Clorox water.
As far as I know I have never had nematodes.An old AV magazine says to water with sugar water to kill them,but I have no idea if this works.
A little Lysol spray every now and then seems to deter gnats.

Lynn

Actually, my solution for gnats is simple: Drosera binata aka. "Fork Leaf Sundew". The one plant that I have eats them all - in the whole room. Seems like the Sundew is irresistable to gnats.

I only cook the dirt that I use for sowing seeds. I just make it extra wet, put it into a plastic container with a tight fitting lid and zap it in the microwave for a couple of minutes. I let it cool down, squeeze out the excess moisture and sow my seeds. Ever since I started doing this, I had no damping off, no mold or any other problems.

. . . off to find out what I can on Fork Leaf Sundew . . . ^_^

I got mine from ebay for a whopping $1.99 plus shipping and I love it! :)

In two months, it has quadrupled in size in a heavily obstructed South facing window that actually gets less sun than my East facing windows do and many of its leaves are covered in gnats and such. The white/brown "things" are Perlite/mix accidents...

It has bloomed earlier when it was a little cooler with pretty, white blooms.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/flowerfreak/5832234121/

It sits in a tub filled with demineralized water from the dollar store (ABSOLUTELY NO CITY OR WELL WATER UNLESS YOU WANT TO KILL IT!!!).

The initial 1x2"plug was potted up into a wet 50/50 LFS/Perlite mix diagonally into a 2.5", deep (not Azalea style) pot. Droseras tend to have deep roots.

What else? Once you find the right spot for it, just keep it watered with demineralized water and leave it alone. A LOT of dying leaves are totally normal until the plant has settled in. This won't take long.

I made the mistake and put it into a terrarium initially. It did great for a few days but then... Wilting, yellowing, blackening - the whole nine yards. Then I just took it out of the terrarium, placed it into a bigger water container, kept it watered and left it alone other than watering and grooming it.

From what I've read so far, it is even better than a venus fly trap! Do you still have the link for the seller on ebay, Olaf?

"markandrhisplantoddities" was the seller. I have no clue who they are. Just blindly bidding on a cheap plant for good shipping charges...

What I have to say, though, is that the plant arrived in EXCELLENT condition much faster than guaranteed.

I just checked and they are still around. They just don't have D. binata right now.

Well, let me go out on a limb here and see what I can do propping my plant. That is, as soon as the temperatures have come down a little...

Nichole,
If you are wanting to know how insecticides work,I know Jim,Bonnie and Gail know quite a bit about them.

Lynn - I just want to know as much as I can absorb (don't laugh!) before the meeting in 2 weeks, so that I can toss in some alternatives for the club members to consider. But you're right, Jim has told ma aLOT about Merit 75 . . .