Ok, I'm going to bite the bullet and buy this stuff, I've had red spider mites, green aphids, white flies, all winter, and i've been using 50% malathion spray, and that stuff just ain't cutting it, every day I have to spray cause I see more bugs, It doesn't help cause I have quite a few brugs out there. I'm trusting in those of you who use it , to say it really works.
Now my question is.
I have about 60 brugs out there. I want to know, do I have to take everysingle one of them and spray each and every leaf under neath, and everywhere on the whole plant each plant, for this stuff to kill them all out. The little red ones are best seen under the leaves and in the very center in the new leaves. I'm getting soooo frustrated, I just don't know what to do. And I have tried everything too.
Does Merit kill the eggs as well? You ladies tell me how often you've had to spray with merit and how much did you use on the plant or rather, did you drench the whole plant and not leave a dry spot on the plant. Some of these brugs are big,
Any help would be appreciated. Also, Is this the cheapest price you've paid , $59.00 for 2 oz?
Also, There are other insecticides on rosemanias web site, advertising that they kill out aphids too, is Merit the best,
I know there's another forum on this. but I wanted to start this one. since that other one was so long.
Question on Merit before I buy it
I also have some new ichoromas and do they get mites, aphids, etc. as bad as the brugmansias do?
kathy
II also found merit for 56.95 for 2 oz. any body found it any cheaper but shipping was 5.95 so the 59.00 one was cheaper with no shipping charges
kathy
I've never heard of it but if price has anything to do with it, I'd say it's a winner. I do have Avid and it's pricey too, cost so much I find it difficult to use...good luck with the Merit, I hope it does what it's supposed to do for you!!!
Is Merit a lot better than Marathon? I have used the "man-in-the-street" version of Marathon and really like it.
Carol
Kathy Ann, everything I can find on Merit makes it sound like it is an insecticide used in the soil for grubs, etc.
For my money, if you have red spider mites, I'd go ahead and get Avid. I've used Kelthane and Otho Systemic, which did not do the trick. I held out for almost two years before I decided to go ahead and spend that much money, but it was worth it. One hundred bucks worth should last you the rest of your life if the shelf life is long enough. LOL Two applications of Avid, and I've seen no more mites.
I believe Mary Haik uses Murphy's Oil soap diluted down on white flies. Why don't you e-mail her and ask how she does it. I think I saw a post last year about it.
The systemics are good for aphids, but they are born pregnant, so almost anything else you use will have to be used often to get all generations.
'Hope this helps.
Kay
WEll, After looking up pictures of aphids and spider mites, I've decided their definitely not spider mites. aphids for sure. the pictures look exactly like what I have, I've gone ahead and bought the merit, I just can't afford the avid, thought I might split the price with someone somewhere down the road if merit doesn't work. I swear I have these aphids everywhere, their on the thunbergia grandiflora, the chefilier (spelled wrong) plant, their on the tangerine plant, i'm loaded down with those little buggers, went through a quart spray bottle of malathion in 2 days trying to wipe everything out and i'm spraying every day now. cause the babies seem to hatch everyday. It's a darned night mare I tell ya.
kathy
Kathy Ann...the aphids are being "worked" by ants and you must have a number of nests around. Many times they are in the roots of the bush they are working. I get rid of them by sprinkling powdered SEVIN around the base of the trunk...so if they go further down the trunk into the soil, they take the SEVIN with them and destroy MORE ants in the next. It works surefire for me. Then the aphids just die...but usually I spray them with a soap spray with a bit of oil in it and it gets those beasties.
The remaining ants migrate to another tree and we start all over again!!!
Carol, I'm confused re aphids and ants - do you mean aphids/ants work together?? I thought I had aphids earlier this winter, used the Safer Insect Killing Soap/Seaweed Extract and it appeared to have gotten them, but I never saw any ants. What kind/color ants?? TIA!!!!
We moved all the brugs last week, and several were loaded with ants and they were on the tables, I am fighting a loosing battle with ants, their in the pot with the thunbergia grandiflora too, I will put seven at the base of the plants and hopefully that will help, but you know, all those little aphids are at the tip top of each plant, even the grandiflora, no aphids down low all up on top. on new development, I do see ants going up and down the thunbergia grandiflora all the time. never seen them going up and down the brugs though, but apparently they were because they were in some of the pots. WE have a pest guy that comes out monthly for ants, in the house, he's chased them all out to the GH. LOL
Sherrylike, the ants do farm the aphids, and they almost treat them like gods LOL, they harvest the nectar, or what ever it's called that's inside the aphid, and they do this without killing the aphids. am I right Carol?
On the subject of spider mites, They have or make webs kind of on the leaves don't they, and their so tiny that you can't see them the web is what gives them away right? cause I've seen this on a couple plants. I have a sword vine that had the webs and teeny tiny dots all up inside the webs. they distroy the plant too, I had a frosty pink brug get this kind of pest on them, the malathion didn't work too well on that either, but my biggest problem is the aphids for sure. I have that murphy's oil soap, i'm gonna email Mary Haik and ask her about it, does anybody know her garden name?
kathy
Thanks, Kathy!!! Man, all that is news to me. My aunt and I share the same back/side yard and she's had aphids too, but she has never mentioned the ant thing, but I will check it out and I'll go back and check my GH and see if there are ants there, never have been. I do know that fire ants will destroy plants, and farm wells and air conditioning units, the part sitting outside, do aphids and fire ants go together??
the ants that are in my greenhouse are the common black sugar type ants, my pest control guy said their name, I forget, they have a foal smell when you smash them, once he took one and smashed it had me smell it and it was awful, coudln't believe that smell came out of that tiny thing. LOL
I borrowed a book from my 6 yr.old grand daughter who adores insects! It is called "PET BUGS" A kids guide to catching and keeping touchable insects....by Sally Kneidel.
It is written in simple language for children, but I am learning so much from it!
Here is what it has to say on the reproduction of aphids....
"What They Act Like
The most interesting thing about aphids is how they make their families. You are like your father in some ways_maybe the color of your eyes or the shape of your feet—and like your mother in other ways. That’s because most mothers have to find a male to mate with before they can have offspring (children). But aphid babies are exact copies of their mothers because they have no fathers. Aphid mothers don’t need to mate.
In the spring and summer, aphid mothers make only girl babies, no boys. When these female babies are only one week old, they begin giving birth to their own babies, all female. In fact, babies when born already carry babies within them! So if you put a single aphid on a plant, pretty soon you’ll have a lot more.
In the autumn the aphids reproduction changes in preparation for winter. The aphids give birth to males and females, who mate with each other. These new females then lay eggs instead of giving birth to more young. The eggs can survive the cold winter weather to come, while the aphids themselves can’t. In the spring these eggs will hatch into females only, who start giving birth again to girls oniy
There are a few other types of animals that have only female offspring. It’s a successful strategy for aphids because more offspring are born in a short time this way. Aphids have few defenses against predators and so they need large numbers of offspring to ensure that there are some survivors.
5ay a mother aphid had ten children, half girls and half boys, and each girl had to mate with one of the males to have her own children. Then only five of that mother aphid’s children would give birth to children of their own. Then imagine if a different aphid mother had ten children, all females, and those female children did not need to mate to have their own children, Then all ten of those children would give birth to children of their own. So the second aphid mother would have twice as many grandchildren as the first one.
Aphids are so tiny and squashable, they’re easy to overlook. But though they look simple, they have one of the most complex and interesting life cycles of any insect. Just goes to show- - you can't judge a bug by its cover!"
HOly cow Why on Earth did God make those things anyway, they can take over the world if they wanted to LOL
kathy
Kathy...maybe HE made them to keep gardeners like you and me from getting bored!...and rich too!!!
Margie
LOL, Yes, I do guess that's possible, LOL
kathy
Good grief, Margie, I'm thinking of adding an aphid shelter for my family and pets!!!
Has anyone ever tried a bomb like when you get fleas?
I know it knocks out a lot more than fleas and I started bombing the garage 2 or 3 times a year.
I've never noticed ill effects on the houseplants.
I realize it won't do anything for larvae in the soil but I'd think spider mites, aphids and anything flying would be toast.
Blaine, ask Renee what that bomb is that she uses in her basement. She says it really works, but I'm not sure what bugs it affects. She gets it at Carlin's. I think she said they are expensive, but can be used as a spray or a bomb and run about $14 each.
LOL Margie. Oh to be an aphid!
kell...which part of an aphids life did you like???
To be so biologically resourceful, I find it amazing!!! The secret life of a female aphid!
I tried the Bayer Tree & Shrub systemic Kell rec'd to me awhile back. It has worked very well - and is supposed to continue to work against aphids for a year (other bugs as well). I had only one Brug with eggs on it, and I took some soapy water with a little peroxide and a wet cloth and washed them off. I've had no problems since. I'm not sure how it does against red spider mites - I saw those in my side garden last year and am going to be on a warpath this summer if I see them again.
I have always had aphids in the GH but this this year in the fall I put the systemics in the soil and have NO aphids right now
I know the ants and aphids have a relationship,if thats what you would call it,out side,but I've never seen ants in my GH so I think those little suckers are working on there own in there
I can't seem to get rid of the white flies this year,even with the systemic,I have been spraying diffent things but still have them
I use the sticky yellow cards too ,that cuts their numbers down but I still have the little son of a @%#$&^% all over
and some of those guys get unstuck from the cards,even when I open a brand new one......
its a nightmare!
Lol, sorry about the aphids, CC, but I loved your post!!!!!!!!
Oh! I have found that duct tape, inside out, hanging from the ceiling in circles is great for getting aphids. I learned this because I used duct tape to hold up the plastic on the windows in my sunroom and that is how many of them found their demise. Sure grossed me out when I pulled the plastic down yesterday - there were so many!
What in the world did we do before duct tape??
Kathy Ann, I've found that my red spider mites don't always make webs that I can see. Of course I'm blind in one eye and can't see well out of the other. Actually, they look like little sprinkles of red pepper on the backs of the leaves. Their damage is a mottley whitish mess that shows on the fronts of the leaves. And their very favorite food is brugmansia leaves.
I agree that the systemics are best on aphids because they work from inside the plant. Whatever sucks the plants juices out gets a good dose. If it's the mamas, I guess they get a dose and die, and when the babies hatch out and start sucking the plant juices, they do the same.
Kay
Well, since I alrady bit the bullet and bought the merit I'm gonna have to stick with it, for the rest of my life I guess LOL I hope it works. cause someone said it would last that long
kathy