For those of you who have washed organic fennel/parsley- how did you wash it? For how long? I have ~20 cats of various sizes and I'm nearly cleaned out. I bought some O. Flatleaf Parsley and washed it and put out a test batch for the big guys.
Many thanks,
Maggie
Organic Parsley washing instructions? Need help fast!
I would just give it a good thorough washing, running the water and my fingers thru it, over and over. That's what I do with the parsley I buy or pick from my garden. Just have to watch for any eggs that might be on it already! My problem is finding organic parsley around here, this area is not big on "organic" anything in the stores, and my parsley in the garden is running out. I don't want to pick it all because then the adults BST's won't have anything to lay more eggs on, but when they do, what am I going to feed the little ones on? It's a vicious cycle, but I don't want to give up my BST raising, it's so much fun!!!
Thea,
Are you the person who talked about washing organic parsley to make sure you got all the Bacillus thuringiensis off of it?t? I was wondering if I have to wash it more than I would if I was going to eat it.
Thanks,
Maggie
No ma'am, wasn't me!! And I don't know, maybe someone else will jump in here. I don't know what is used commercially on parsley. I just had an awful experience: I'm running out of my parsley in the garden, to feed my black swallowtail caterpillars, so I've been buying it at the local grocery store, and washing it really well before giving it to them. No problems until last week. Must've been a batch that had been treated differently, with a systemic maybe, but sadly, all of the cats that I fed it to died (except for one, who pupated way too early). But the parsley looked perfectly healthy, and being the frugal Yank that I am, I put it in our salad instead of throwing it out, and we survived quite well! But it spelled doom for those poor caterpillars.....
I would think that many organic farmers would use BT since it is a biological pesticide and considered organic. I don't think washing it would get rid of it, the stuff would be in the plant tissue.
Maybe try a little on one cat and see what happens.
I buy whatever I can from a trusted nursery.....Fennel, Dill, Rue, Queen Anne's Lace, whatever they have and have switched it along the way with no problems. They will eat what is available.
Maggie, have you had trouble finding plants at a nursery?
Hey Fly-Girl,
My trustworthy nurseries are out- I bought the last flat. I keep putting plants out to get bigger and instead they get more eggs! I need a screenhouse that won't let in butterflies. I bought & grew fennel, dilI, QAL. I have quite a few left but too small to keep these guys going. I grew fennel from seeds- great glorious bronze fennel- I have one plant left. The others melted. I looked up causes of that sort of thing and it ,b>may be nematodes and I ,b>may not be able to plant more in the same place next year. I will plant the bronze fennel this fall instead of waiting until spring next time. I'm afraid to buy at nurseries I don't know- more likely treated w/ systemic. I found this information- http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hfp/gypsymoth/whatisbtk.htm. The problem then becomes trying to keep cut parsley out in the sun to inactivate the Bt. I was sure someone had successfully washed some organic plants w/o harm to the cats. I have also switched cats from one kind of plant to another w/o harm.
Maggie
Hi Maggie!
You could try putting netting over the plants until they grow some.
The problem with the BST plants is that they pupate on the stems and then the plant withers away in the cage. Sometimes I can cut the stem and then hang it up but often they pupate low. So, it gets expensive quick!
I didn't know that about the nematodes!
Rox
Rox,
I just try to figure it's cheaper than if I bought all these chrysalids on line. Most of the herbs I can get are very small- 4". Many of them don't survive simply because I think they arrive at the nursery partly root bound. There are a few places that have big plants but they are a couple hours drive and that's not even possible if I discover it after work.Currently, the cats are doing fine on the O Parsley I gave them so I guess I washed it enough. When you calculate in the cost and maintenence of the 4" pots, this is a deal! Nevertheless, the little pots are good for egg laying.
I'm so disappointed today! I had never seen the wasps people were talking about stinging their cats. Today I saw it. I had moved a passiflora in a big pot onto the porch complete w/ tepee support. The Zebra and Frit cats stripped it clean. I couldn't move the remaining pot inside by myself and there were so many cats, I moved them onto the remaining passiflora. Around lunchtime I saw this wasp in action and found only 4 of about 12 cats left! I may have saved one - I'm not sure. The wasp may have been the kind that plants its' eggs in the cat. I swatted the cat out of the wasp's grasp and it was initially stunned but was moving later. This wasp was pretty big and its' legs hung down as if it was designed to carry things off- sort of like eagle legs.
I have big frost row cover "pillowcases", but they are not big enough to cover the tepee and seal around the pot. they were sized to cover branches and small shrubs to protect the cats. I bought the ones I have but I may just invest in a big roll of it and make my own since i'll need it for winter anyway.
Live & learn. At least it reinforces that we're saving more than would have survived w/o us.
Thanks,
Maggie
Do any SC DG'ers know: does Queen Anne's Lace grown in SC? I thought I might that with my BST cats, but I never see it around here. We had it all over back in CT. What about carrot tops for BST's, I;ve never seen the BST's on them, but they're in the same family. I have a few carrots in my garden but see no eggs on the leaves.
According to the USDA map it grows all over the country - literally! http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=DACA6
I don't know of anyone that has successfully fed their Black STs carrot tops. In theory, you would think it would work. I got a new book the other day, and it claimed that Black STs will also eat milkweed. Has anyone ever tried that?
Melanie
Mellie,
I haven't tried it but I have found misdirected cats of both species protected in the same box munching on the wrong plant. It's usually when their own plant needs to be replaced.
Maggie