The Recipe

We'll let you all know when I can start hose-end spraying every day.

I think a month of every-day spraying ought to be a fair trial?

I could choose to do just certain ones for a month?

'Before' and 'after' pics? Both the sprayed and unsprayed?

Thanks Maggi. Looking forward to seeing the results.

Well I am so glad I found this thread and I have bookmarked it to come back for the recipes.
As I came home today with my first brug....

Congratulations Mibus and welcome to the addiction...er um I mean brug family. Yeah that's it. lol

Anne

Thanks lol yeah I know...I came home with several hibiscus too 2 tropical ones and a confederate rose? and a Texas star and have to decide where to plant everything now LOL

Yeah I'm going to Bonnie's in Waco one day soon for some hardy hibs. I've got roughly 20 or so brugs and 10 - 15 trop hibs. Yeah I'm addicted.

Anne

I have a question about the humate. I already have dry humate and I'm trying to spend as little money as possible, so I really need to use it. Will this stuff dissolve and if so how much do I use? I assume I have to dissolve it in a half cup of water because that's how much liquid humate is in the recipe.

Does the humate package have directions about how much to use per gallon of water? You could divide that by 1/4, mix a quart of it and use 1/2 cup of that? You could store the remainder for the next batch?

It only has directions for sprinkling it on the soil in dry form for acreage and for gardens. I think it's 1 teaspoon per plant or something like that. I don't even know if it will dissolve in water. Maybe I could just try mixing 1 teaspoon in a gallon of water and pour that on each plant. It would be a hassle to do that separately from the brug recipe, but I have a huge sack of this stuff and I really need to use it. I haven't had time to experiment with it yet. I've been working really long hours.

Thank you 2pugdogs for the link to Puritans Pride.
I just ordered 7 bottles of Tea Tree Oil for total of
20.93+3.95 shipping ,,, I saved about $18.00 off Walmart's price. Thanks again,
jana

Silver, if you can not tell us the mix ratio then there is no way for us to give you any help.

I'm sorry I forgot to go read the label. It says 5 - 10 lbs per 1,000 sq feet. I tried to stir a rounded teaspoon of this humate into 4 oz water. It looks like most of it dissolved.

Maggidew, did you see 2pugdogs message? It was an address for PuritansPride that sells tea tree oil @70%off
$2.99 for a 2oz bottle. Good price and shipping was not much either--- and if you order $50. free shipping.
1-800-645-9584 . They may have larger bottles.

jana

I saw the great deal on Tea Tree Oil and plan to place an order :~) Thanks Jana!

Silverfluter, from what I understand of humates you probably could not do much harm with a rounded teaspoon per batch. Please let us know how it works for you.

Now I am having trouble finding a new supplier of the garlic spray and I really don't have time to make my own, so this last batch was mixed without it. It's only for repelling insects anyway, and we have lots of ladybugs out and about. The hoophouses are nearly empty of plants and there are still ladybugs in both, so I think we're OK for some insect control anyway.

I have started spraying BT, hoping to get a head start on the caterpillars and Canna leaf worms.

We're expecting a frost tonight - the LAST ONE, I hope and pray - and we'll see how things look in the morning.

Maggi, I have cannas also and they get leaf rollers, too. What is BT and is it to kill those pests that ruin the canna leaves?
jana

Thanks Maggidew, I'll try it.

BT is a Bio-friendly worm killer and it works. It gives them a tummyake. lol

Found this, which gives a pretty comprehensive discussion of leaf rollers and how to control them:

Canna Leaf Roller
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Although referred to as the Canna Leaf Roller, there are actually two different creatures that go under that name. Cannas are largely free of pests but in the USA plants sometimes fall victim to Calpodes ethlius, the larval state of the Brazilian skipper butterfly, which cuts the leaves and rolls them over to live inside while pupating and eating the leaf. In addition, the Lesser Canna Leaf Roller, Geshna cannalis a moth larvae, will sew the leaves shut before they can unfurl, by spinning a silk thread around the leaf. The resultant leaf damage can be most distressing to a keen gardener.

[edit] Treatment

There are several ways to manage infestations of the Leaf Roller caterpillars. Since there can be three or more generations of the butterfly in a single season, re-treatment should be anticipated.

* If the infestation is light, then affected leaves can be cut off and destroyed or unrolled and cleaned (removing the caterpillar). It is not wise to compost infected leaves, burning is the surest way to avoid re-infection.

* If there is extensive damage, a further measure to consider is Bacillus thuringiensis (BT) which is sold in the USA under various trade names including Dipel and Bio-Worm Killer. Applied as a spray, particular care should be taken to ensure that the underside of the leaves is wet. After applying BT the caterpillars will stop feeding on the leaves, although it may take them a day or two to expire. If BT is applied early enough in the growth of the caterpillars, little damage to the leaves will be evident.

* Another alternative is to apply a systemic insecticide in a foliar spray (i.e. Orthene). When applying systemic insecticides by spraying, careful attention should be given to food and herb crops planted in the immediate vicinity to prevent over-spray or drift of the insecticide.

* A further treatment option to consider is a carbaryl insecticide such as Sevin. Applied as a liquid, Sevin can help manage the infestation of many varieties of insects, unfortunately including beneficial ones.

* Finally, the gardener can try applying a fertilizer with Disulfoton, such as Bayer Advanced Garden 2-in-1 Systemic Rose & Flower Care. This serves to both feed and protect for a period of many weeks.

If using any of the chemical options, then consult the label for dosage rates and safety precautions. Alternating between the treatment options for management of the Leaf Roller caterpillars can help to spare beneficial insects. Alternating insecticides also prevents insects from building up resistance to any one particular method.

I'm using The Recipe now on nearly all my plants & they love it! :))

Question - Has anyone used this on their veggies and fruits?

Is anybody adding bonemeal or any phosphorous source for plants other than brugmansia?

I have used it on our vegetables, I like the ingredients and so do the plants. I don't know for sure, but I think it would be classified as an organic fertilizer.

Brugs don't really need a high phosphate fertilizer. Monika Gottschalk, the lady wrote the most recent book on Brugmansias who is a hybridizer of Brugs , used to be very active in the Brugmansia forum. She uses a fertilizer not found in the US, but the fertilizer that comes closest to it is a hibiscus fertilizer whose phosphate content is about 1/2 that of the nitrogen and potassium. Her Brugs are gorgeous.

If the plants are in the ground, they should be OK without. Texas soils contain plenty of phosphates.

bump

You must've been reading my mind, Savagegardener! I was just sitting in my lawn swing thinking about this thread yesterday!

I'm feeding all my plants on the 1st & the 16th of the month - easiest way for me to remember - but I can barely wait that long! I want to feed them all the time. So....

How much is too much? I use The Recipe, 1 Tablespoon/gal, on all my container & inground plants. But aren't some of those heavier feeders, like my Brugs & Cannas? I know my potted Trailing Carnations can't seem to get enough, and I'm wondering about some of my others.

(Should this be thread of it's own?)

Good idea, on the 1st and 16th, huh? Fixing to try the recipe myself!

I finally found some tree tea oil which I was having trouble finding locally, funny thing is I had it in my closet all along ......with my medical supplies. HUMMPH!!

Maybe this thread needs a sticky!

Sharon

I haven't used the Tea Tree oil in mine; didn't even have the Bloom Buster or B12 when I first started using it, but I've added those since.

Hello all!!! Tea Tree Oil can be found at Walmarts in their pharmacy section with the vitamins and herbs and also with their 1st aid stuff. Generally around $5 or $6 a bottle. I'd be interested in knowing how you all use it the other ways mentioned i.e. rooting, fungus knat (nasty critters) control etc. - what you mix it with - water with or spray with...you get the idea. Thanks much!! ^_^

I've been using the Tea Tree Oil when I water the seeds I planted. The flat became contaminated and fungus moved in. The fungus disappears for a few days, but reappears. So the oil seems to keep the fungus in check but doesn't get rid of it completely. It helps though. About 60% of the Mountain Magic X Earth Angel seeds have germinated. I thought I was going to lose all of them. Sadly some seeds that were given to me have rotted.

Great idea, Betty - do you know how much Tea Tree to how much water?

I don't have too many seeds planted so I'm using a 16 oz jar of water with about 1/8 tsp of Tea Tree Oil added to it.

Perfect - thank you.

I have found Fruit & Nut Tree Spray by GreenLight.. it's Neem based and will keep the fungus gnats and fungus or mildew in check very well.. I use it on seeds, cuttings, or whatever.. works great!

I used the Tea Tree Oil and it helped some, but too expensive.

Ahh, I will check that out, thanks ZZ!

Ok, Kenboy... Where do you get garlic spay? I will send DH to Pott's Feed in town for the Kelp. I hope they have it. I have gotten everything else except the cheap beer and DH will get it tomorrow also! Can't wait to use this...

Did ya'll find out if the 2 TBS per gallon is better or not? And also, why is the amount of tea tree oil critical? Is it harmful if you use too much?

The closest fertilizer that I can find to Monika's 16-8-22 is MG's 24-8-18. IT is a little backwards however it does have the minors. I guess we just don't have it here. What do you and Maggi use?

I have looked in all the feed stores around here for unsulphured molasses. I guess I will go back to buying from the grocery store. Is there any problem with store bought, and, what does the molasses do for the plants?

I decided to try using the watering hose and the miracle grow bottle and see what happens when I fill the bottle with the "recipe" so much easier than the pump and spray in the 3 gallon sprayer. I think it may just work for me. It takes much less time and I think it gets just enough to the plants.

Marie

unsulphered molasses can be pricey in grocery stores. I paid $3.00 a quart today for black strp molasses in a natural food store. I talked with the pwner and he is going to get me a gallon and the price will be even better. Maybe if you try asking for black strap molasses.

Marie, Please let me know how that works out. I have thought about doing that, but I just did not know. Do you use this in addition to MG or do you use it instead?

Today I am feedling my brugs and roses molasses and bananas. I have ground the bananas, peels and all into a liquid by adding plenty pf water. I will mix this puree into a five gallon bucket of water and hand feed around the top of the plants.It will not work with any of my feeders, and it is a bit of work, but I am hoping to see results. This should give my plants plenty of potassium for a while. I save up banana peels in the freezer till i have enough. The groceryt store down the street also gladly gives me any that have gone by. I foliar feed "the recipe" once a week. I have been doing this two years and my plants seem to love it. They are growing very well, green and filling up with buds.

yummy Brenda... sounds like breakfast .. babanas and molasses....my lawn is looking good with the recipe spray also.. as is everything else ...
I keep looking a trip that will bring me near Watertown then I might beg a visitation .. you're amazingly far north there... I've been even more impressed with your results since my understanding of this..
Gordon

I will wait to see the results. I just started watering with the hose and fertilizer that I mix up in the recipe. I add MG and Blood Buster to the mix so just waiting. I did give them all a dose of rose food from Millers Packing Co. They have really perked up in color since that . I have 2 brugs that are getting little buds, Very exciting. I will keep you posted on my test.
I have been spraying the lawn and tomotoes with the recipe also. I don't know if I should so I will see what comes from it.

Soon to have pictures.

Marie