





Article 391 (4 more) in alt.sustainable.agriculture:
From: rjsalvad@iastate.edu (Ricardo J Salvador)
Subject: Journal of Biological Control
Organization: Iowa State University, Ames, IA
Date: Mon, 30 Nov 1992 04:55:02 GMT
Lines: 35

Academic Press is now publishing a journal devoted to Biological Control.
Editors are: R. Charudattan, H. Kaya, W. J. Lewis and C. Rogers.  AC's
definition of Biological Control is:  "...an environmentally sound and
effective means of reducing or mitigating pests and pest effects through
the use of natural enemies."  The Journal covers biological control
strategies for: viral, microbial, nematode, insect, weed and vertebate
pests in agriculture, aquatic, forest, natural resource, stored product,
and urban environments.  The Journal is quarterly, with two volumes (1991 and
1992) having been published to date.

Rates for the Journal of Biological Control (ISSN 1049-9644):

                       Institutional       Personal
In USA & Canada          $158.00 USD          79.00
All other countries       180.00              94.50

Write to:  Academic Press, Inc.
           Journal Promotion Dept.
           1250 Sixth Avenue
           San Diego, CA 92101-9923

           Academic Press Limited
           24-28 Oval Road
           London NW1 7DX U.K.

           Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Group (Australia) Pty. Ltd.
           Locked Bag 16, Marrickville, NSW 2204, AUSTRALIA

           Harcourt BRace Jovanovich Japan
           Ichibancho Central Building
           22-1, Ichibancho
           Chiyoda-ku
           Tokyo 102, JAPAN

A sample copy of the Journal is available upon written request.

(1350)  Sun 29 Nov 92  2:10
Re: Free Info on biological controls

I just got a wonderful free booklet in the mail.  You can all get one too by
writing to the California EPA, Dept. of Pesticide Regulation Environmental
Monitoring and Pest Management, 1220 N. St. PO Box 942871, Sacramento, CA
9427-0001. Request the 1992 Edition of "Suppliers of Beneficial Organisms in
North America."


Re: Homebrew garden pest control, from A.L.F. BBS

                        NATURAL PEST REPELLENTS


These recipes were taken from the June, 1987 issue of Country
Journal magazine (p. 42-45).


TOMATO

Tomato leaves, pureed *
4 - 5 pints of water
1 T. each cornstarch & Ivory Soap flakes

Mix together, let stand for a couple of hours. Strain. Spray on
roses to prevent black spot. Refrigerate any leftover liquid.


GARLIC

3 - 4 ounces chopped garlic bulbs
2 T. mineral oil
1 pint water
1 t. fish emulsion

Soak garlic in mineral oil for 24 hours. Dissolve fish emulsion in
water & mix with garlic-mineral oil. Stir well and strain. Store in
glass jar (it reacts with metal). Dilute as follows: 1 part mixture
to 20 parts water. Use on plants with large insect infestation. DO
NOT USE on peas, beans, or sage. Also repels rabbits.


CHIVE TEA

5 T. chopped chives
10 c. boiling water
1 T. Ivory Soap flakes

Pour boiling water over chives. Let stand until cool. Strain and
add soap. Spray on cucumbers to prevent or discourage powdery mildew.


NASTURTIUMS

Nasturtium leaves, pureed *
4 - 5 pints of water
1 T. each cornstarch & Ivory Soap flakes

Mix leaves, water, and cornstarch. Let stand for a couple of hours.
Strain and mix with soap. Spray on squash to deter squash bugs.
Also, use on broccoli to control aphids.




HOT PEPPER

5 Pepper pods
2 medium onions
1 Garlic bulb
Water *

Mash pods, onions, & garlic together. Cover with water and let
stand for 24 hours. Strain. Add enough water to make a gallon of
spray. Use on roses, azaleas, chrysanthemums, & beans.



*  No specific amounts were given in the article.

Re: Hommebrew natural garden fertilizer

                            HOMEMADE GARDEN SPRAYS


    These 2 recipes are from an episode of The Weekend Gardener TV
show. The
first is assumed to be a homemade liquid fertilizer of some kind.
The show in-
dicated its use when weather has been particularly hot, if plants
are under
stress due to other factors affecting their general health, or as a
mid or
late season nutrient boost. The second was offered as a set spray
for tomatoes,
which were said not to form blossoms above 90 - 95 degrees F.
Whether or not it
would be effective in cooler temperatures or on other types of
plants was not
mentioned. It is supposed to interrupt the nitrogen cycle, so the
plant will
set blossoms.


GARDEN TONIC

5 gal. bucket
Water
3 pkgs. Unflavored Gelatin
2 c. epsom salts
1 t. Borax (boron)
1/4 c. dishwasher soap (made with vegetable oils, NOT animal fats)

Put gelatin & epsom salts in bucket as you fill it with water, so
they will get
dissolved properly. Add borax and stor. Put soap in last (to keep
down suds).
Mix well. Use about 2 cups of formula per plant or group of plants.
May be
poured directly over foliage and allowed to soak in ground. In 2 -
3 days,
plants and foliage should "perk up".


TOMATO SET SPRAY

1 gal. Water
1 t. sugar

Mix well and spray on plants.



                     Companion Plants in the Vegetable Garden

Over the years there have been a number of suggested plant combinations that
work together in fending off insect pest problems. Actual research data on this
phenomenon is not well established.  Much of the information relates to the
experience and suggestions from gardeners. Some of this information has been
pesented in publications available from "Organic Gardening" sources. They
should be taken as suggestions and not as documented recommendations.

INSECT PEST                    "REPELLING" PLANT (S)
-----------                    ---------------------
ants ......................... pennyroyal, spearmint, southernwood,
                               tansy.
aphids  ...................... garlic, chives, and other allium,
coriander,
                               anise, nasturtium and petunia around
fruit trees.
borer ........................ garlic, onion, tansy.
cabbage moth ................. mint, hyssop, rosemary,
southernwood, thyme,
                               sage, wormwood, celery, catnip,
nasturtium.
Colorado potato beetle ....... greenbeans, horseradish, dead
nettle, flax,
                               catnip, coriander,tansy, nasturtium.
cucumber beetle .............. tansy, radish.
cutworm ...................... tansy.
flea beetle .................. wormwood, mint, catnip; interplant
cole crops
                               with tomato.
Japanese beetle .............. garlic, larkspur, tansy, rue, white
geranium.
leafhopper ................... petunia, geranium.
Mexican bean beetle .......... marigold, potato, rosemary, summer
savory,
                               petunia.
mites ........................ onion, garlic, chives.
nematodes .................... marigold, salvia, dahlia, calendula,
asparagus.
rose chafer .................. geranium, petunia, onion.
slug ......................... prostrate rosemary, wormwood.
squash bug ................... tansy, nasturtium, catnip.
tomato hornworm .............. borage, marigold, opal basal.
whitefly ..................... nasturtium, marigold.

Reference:  "The Encyclopedia of Natural Insect and Disease
Control" - Rodale
             Press, 1984.

Reviewed by:  J. Robert Nuss, Asso. Prof. of Ornamental Horticulture
Horticultural Department, Penn State
June 1987
PENpages Number: 09401183

From: jjohnsto@watmath.waterloo.edu (Jim Johnston)
Newsgroups: rec.gardens
Subject: Summary:  Herbs helping Vegetables
Date: 12 Feb 91 02:55:26 GMT
Organization: University of Waterloo
Lines: 62


 Hi everyone,

        Thank you for your great response and all of your help.  As
promised I am posting my edited responses.  Many people described
plants that helped or hindered plant growth.

Here is a list: (+ = good  - = bad)
aromatic herbs: cabbage +,  cucumber -.
asparagus: garlic -, tomatoes +.
beans: cabbage -, corn +, cucumbers +, onions -, savoury +.
beets: cabbage +, kohlrabi -, onions +.
cabbage: onions +, potato +, strawberries -, tomatoes -.
carrots: dill -, lettuce +, peas +, tomatoes +.
[more]

corn: beans +, cucumber +.
cucumbers: lettuce +,peas +, potatoes -, radishes +.
garlic: peas -.
kolrabi: tomatoes -.
lettuce: radish +, strawberry +.
onions: peas -, potatoes -.
peas: potatoes -.
potatoes: tomatoes -.
sunflowers: cucumbers +.
tomatoes: marigolds +, onions +, parsley +.

There were also many books mentioned:
        "Square Foot Gardening"  by Mel Bartholomew
              Rodale Press  SB321.B28.B32
        "The Postage Stamp Garden Book"  By Duane Newcomb
              J.P. Tarcher Pub. SB321.N45
        "Old Wives' Lore for Gardeners"  by Maureen and Bridget
Boland
              The Bodley Head publishers.  0 370 11369 1
        "Companion Plants" by Helen Philbrick and Richard B Gregg
              Devin Adair Co. QK 911.P44
        "Carrots Love Tomatoes"  by Louise Riotte

              Garden Way Pub. S603.5.R56
        "Roses Love Garlic"  by Louise Riotte
              Garden Way Pub. SB 453.R53

Some of the other ideas for companion planting were:
-planting lettuce or other vegetables that need shade between rows
of corn
-planting dill around plants that are benefited by ladybugs and
lacewings
 as dill contains small buds of nectar that attracts them
-peppers tend to discourage cucumber beetles
-marigolds discourage rodents
-radishes and carrots sown together radishes are harvested earlier
 leaving room and loosening the soil for the carrots
-basil discourages tomato pests and adds a complimentary flavour to
the tomatoes

One other mentionable :
A seed company in England publishes a catalogue that lists
complimentary
plants for vegetables.  They may not send their seeds to America,
but they
may send their catalogue.
Their address:
Chase Organics (GB) Ltd.        Phone: +44 932 858511
[more]

Addlestone
Surry KT15 1HY
England


Article 7988 (136 more) in rec.gardens:
From: Bob.Batson@p3.f322.n280.z1.fidonet.org (Bob Batson)
Subject: Where to find Good Bugs
Date: 1 Jun 92 16:52:42 GMT

        "Suppliers of Beneficial Organisms in North America"

  A newly revised ediution of this booklet is now available FREE of
charge from the Dept. of Pesticide Regulation, Environmental
Monitoring and Pest Management Branch, 1220 N St., P.O. Box 942871,
Sacramento, CA 94271. The booklet lists 95 commercial suppliers of
more than 100 different organisms used for biological control of
pests.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Reprinted with permission from the May 1992 _HortIdeas_. Copyright
1992 by Greg and Pat Williams. HortIdeas is $15 (2nd class mail within
the USA) for one year (12 issues). For more information or a
subscription, write: HortIdeas, 460 Black Lick Road, Gravel Switch, KY
40328, USA.

Newsgroup: rec.gardens
From: klier
Subject: Re: Bt (was huge green bugs...)
Date: 13 Aug 92 21:30:07 -0500

K.K.:
>|> Nope, my premise was that BT is a _living organism_. It can spread. It is
>|> not selective as long as the host has a certain gut pH.  You can put it
>|> on your tomato hornworms, but you might accidentally get other species,
>|> some of them ones you wouldn't intend.
>|> There's a big difference in my mind between using a non-selective,
>|> pesticide
>|> that can actually INCREASE in the environment-- remember BT is living --
>|> and using a carefully targeted, biodegradable, non-living pesticide --
>|> especially when there are simple tactics like caging a couple of plants,
>|> handpicking, or trap crops, that allow me both to harvest a crop and
>|> have the non-target species.

.....:
> I was under the impression that BT degraded and died after a few days
> exposure to the elements (sun light, etc.). If what you say is true,
> many of the organic gardening suppliers, magazines, etc., have been
> leading us astray on the safety of BT. Anybody out there with definitive
> information about BT's persistence in the environment.

Bt is _Bacillus thuringensis_; Dipel is _B. thuringensis_ var. _kurstakii_
spores. Bacillus spores are incredibly tough-- the wall consists primarily
of peptidoglycans and calcium dipicolinate in the core.  There is very little
water, and the combination of the lack of water and Ca dipicolinate
means that some spores can withstand boiling water for more than an hour;
if you want to sterilize spores with dry heat, better think about 120oC
for several hours.

The insect ingests a Bt spore, and it produces a new cell of Bacillus
thuringensis, and also starts producing 4 toxins.  The toxins eventually
cause the caterpillar to "get the slows" and eventually die.  The live
Bt cells in the caterpillar gut will produce more spores as conditions
become unfavorable for its growth.  Those spores can survive in the soil
or on the plant surface and be passed on to another caterpillar.

The _toxins_ are pretty labile, and I suspect that the suppliers are
talking about toxin degradation, not spore degradation.  I don't have
the field trial evidence immediately at hand (see refs. below), but
I do know that one dusting of Dipel supresses caterpillar populations
for several years.

Yes, there is a difference between spreading a broad-spectrum "hard"
insecticide (say DDT) and spreading a biological insecticide like Dipel.
Both are fairly broad-spectrum, which means they will hit non-target
organisms.  The DDT will eventually decompose, but the breakdown products
are likely to be hazardous themselves.  When Bt spores die, all you've
got is a very non-hazardous dead spore.

But if you think about using insecticides (or other pesticides) in an
evolutionary context, you start realizing that the more exposure pest
species have to a pesticide, the more likely that we're going to be
(unconsiously) selecting a resistant strain of the pest.  Just like
the DDT-resistant mosquitoes we developed in the course of attempting
to "wipe out" malaria...

So the more we use our best pesticides, the more likely the bugs are
to become develop a resistance.  When I have the choice of using
mechanical control of a pest (water sprays, exclosures, hand-picking,
encouraging predators), I'd much sooner do that and save the heavy
ammunition for the time that it is _really_ needed.

I garden for my enjoyment.  I'm not a truck gardener, nor a farmer.
I'm not going to starve if all my tomatoes are wiped out by some
plague or pest (might have in grad school, but there I hedged my
bets by planting 6-10 different and unrelated cultivars).  I can
tolerate a fair amount of damage before it becomes anything like
an economic problem for me.  Likewise for my neighbors, who are
also not dependent on their gardens for subsistence.  I'm certainly
not endangering local cash crops: the fields to my north are corn
and soybeans, and don't share the insect or disease problems of
my garden.

At the same time, as a biologist, I've been taught to think of the
interconnectedness of living organisms, and of living organisms to
environment.  I can't say I'm particularly fond of tomato hornworms,
but I recognize that they play a distinct role in the local ecology.
The eat some things.  They pollinate other things.  They are closely
related to other Sphinx moths that are known to be crucial to survival
of other species.  I just don't feel like taking the chance that
applying dipel for hornworm control could knock out local populations
of, say, Great Poplar Sphinx, or Cherry Sphinx.  Not when I can
cage a couple of tomatoes in egg-laying season, pick a few caterpillars,
or just buy some tomatoes in the farmer's market if they did manage
to kill all my tomatoes (unlikely).

I also know that if we get a population explosion of good-sized caterpillars,
the birds will be happy to help in the caterpillar control efforts.
Populations of species that have high reproductive rates (r-selected
species in ecologese) have boom and bust population cycles.  Even if I
don't do anything, the populations won't stay high.  Disease, predators,
and famine will bring the populations back down.


Recent books dealing with microbial pesticides (mostly compendia
and symposium proceedings):

Safety of microbial insecticides.  1991
Biology of bacilli: Applications to industry.  1992
Bacterial control of mosquitoes and black flies  1990
Natural toxins:  Animal, plant, microbial.


From : Song Bird
To   : All
Subj : Review: Sleeping with the enemy

Reading away into some of the back issues of Mother Earth News and ran across
an article by Rhonda Massingham Hart, called Sleeping with the Enemy; Managing
beneficial bugs in your garden.

She points out that there are many ways to entice and keep beneficial bugs
into your garden.  To synopsize;

Enticing Beneficial Insects -
No pesticides.  Plant flowers and herbs among vegetables, especially
umbelliferous flowers such as dill, parsley, angelica, fennel, or Queen Anne's
lace.  Daisies, strawflowers, goldenrod, yarrow, petunias, cosmos, zinnias,
nasturtiums, marigolds, and sunflowers also draw beneficials. Weeds, including
lamb's-quarters, wild mustard, dandelion, nettle, pigweed, and knotweed are
also important to beneficial insects.  Many small-flowered herbs, including
garden sage, thyme, oregano, lavender, catnip and other mints, rosemary,
carraway, anise, coriander, sweet majoram, and tansy (not ragwort) attract
beneficials.

Raise the habitat humidity to prevent dehydration of tiny beneficials by
placing plants close together.

Intercrop so that those plants that attract beneficials are planted with those
plants that need protection.

A bug for all seasons-

BEETLES
Black beetles eat slugs, snails and pest larvae.  The Fiery Searcher (calosoma
scrutator) eats caterpillers and other soft bodied larvae.  Lady bugs eat
aphids, scale, mites, mealybugs, whiteflies, and eggs of some other insects.
Downy leatherwing (Podabrus tomentosus) eats aphids.  The Pennsylvania
Leatherwing eatsgrasshopper eggs, cucumber beetles, and different
caterpillers.  Tiger beetles prey on a variety of small insects and spiders.
BUGS
Ambush bugs eat mites, scales and thrips.  Assassin bugs have an astounding
diet of caterpillers, aphids, Mexican bean beetles, Colorado potato beetles,
japanese beetls, leafhopper, hornworm, etc.  (THESE BITE!)  Big-eyed bugs
munch on leafhoppers, aphids, Mexican bean beetles, and eggs of several
insects.  Damsel bugs (or flies) devour mites, aphids, leafhoppers, larvae,
and other small plant pests.  Soldier bugs seek out cabbage loopers and
imported cabbageworm, mexican bean beetles and other harmful insects.
FLIES
Syrphid (Hover) flies attack aphids in the larva stage, putting away as many
as 1000 aphids before turning into an adult - while the adults feed on
mealybugs, thrips, and leafhoppers.  Robber flies take down flying insects of
all kinds.  Tachnid flies take out beetles, bugs, caterpillers, and
grasshoppers.  Green lacewing attacks aphid, spider mites, mealybugs,
leafhoppers, thrips, corn earworm, and other caterpiller eggs.
WASPS (these will not sting you)
Trichogramma Wasps parasitize more than 200 species.  Braconid wasps destroy
caterpillers and pest varieties of moth.  Ichneumon wasps are effective
against caterpillers.

Hart calls out several more varieties of predatory insects and mentions
new-comers to the market, including a type of beneficial nematode!

She has a book called Bugs, Slugs, and Other Thugs: Controlling Garden Pests
Organically.  It is available for $9.95 postpaid from
Storey Communications
Schoolhouse Rd.
Pownal, VT  05261
or alternatively, 1-800-827-8673.

From: Mike Langston
Subject: weed control (aka seed bank stirring)
Keywords: sorrels and bindweeds and sedges, oh my

just when you thought it was safe to go back out in the sun
comes this, fresh from the latest issue of `science news'
(vol 142-8, p 127):

   "test plots plowed only at night grew roughly half as
   many weeds as plots plowed during the day...daylight
   plowing exposes buried weed seeds for roughly 1/4
   second...just long enough to activate photoreceptors
   in the seeds that prompt germination"

for those of us who try to get by as much as possible
without preemergent herbicides, this may sound like rumors
reported before and probably too good to be true

nevertheless, the research team (from oregon state u) who
conducted the study are being taken seriously, at least
at `science news' -- also:

   "plots plowed at night by tractors with up to 8 headlights
   had similar reductions in weed growth"

wish my tractor had highbeams!

if you're adventuresome, night plowing/disking/tilling may
be worth a try

as a small-scale test, it may even be worth a try right now
if you're still weeding this summer's kitchen garden  (well
heck, i lost control of mine back in june as usual, about
the time things got too big for the cultivator :) )

From: klier
Subject: Re: weed control (aka seed bank stirring)

> just when you thought it was safe to go back out in the sun
> comes this, fresh from the latest issue of `science news'
> (vol 142-8, p 127):
>    "test plots plowed only at night grew roughly half as
>    many weeds as plots plowed during the day...daylight
>    plowing exposes buried weed seeds for roughly 1/4
>    second...just long enough to activate photoreceptors
>    in the seeds that prompt germination"

Phytochrome activation is required for seeds of many dicot species,
so this may indeed help a lot of us out!

The hitch may be plowing on slopes is a _lot_ trickier than
plowing on level ground -- night plowing would probably be riskier.
Still, if it helps reduce dependence on herbicides, or takes one
less pass with a cultivator, this is good news!  May also help
with prairie restoration -- one of the big problems there is
the weed seedlings tend to outcompete the prairie plants for a
year or so!

From: Bob.Batson@p3.f322.n280.z1.fidonet.org (Bob Batson)
Subject: Where to find Good Bugs

        "Suppliers of Beneficial Organisms in North America"

  A newly revised ediution of this booklet is now available FREE of
charge from the Dept. of Pesticide Regulation, Environmental
Monitoring and Pest Management Branch, 1220 N St., P.O. Box 942871,
Sacramento, CA 94271. The booklet lists 95 commercial suppliers of
more than 100 different organisms used for biological control of
pests.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Reprinted with permission from the May 1992 _HortIdeas_. Copyright
1992 by Greg and Pat Williams. HortIdeas is $15 (2nd class mail within
the USA) for one year (12 issues). For more information or a
subscription, write: HortIdeas, 460 Black Lick Road, Gravel Switch, KY
40328, USA.


 * Originally by Pat Stockett
 * Originally dated 8 Feb 1992, 7:10

 BE> Also, does anyone know of any organic remedy for anthracnose on
 BE> raspberry canes?

Hi Betty,  This is from one of my favorite books Organic Plant Protection, by
Rodale Press.

Viruses are often spread from plant to plant by feeding aphids.  Once infected,
all parts of the plant will be diseased, usually beyond recovery.  Be sure to
buy high quality, certified virus free plants, and choose disease resistant
varieties.  Because aphids may be blown in the wind, you should plant your
berries 500 or even 1000 feet away from wild raspberries or old domestic plants
that may be infected.  Blackberry plants and other brambles sometimes harbor
diseases that infect raspberries, so it is bes to keep them separate.
Other preventive measures are :  Check plants regularly for virus symptoms;
keep the berry patch free of weeds; remove all old canes after harvest; destroy
the entire plant which shows evidence of disease and provide a healthy soil by
working in plenty of organic matter and by keeping the plant's well mulched.
  Moisture on the canes favors spore germination and infection, so provide air
circulation to speed drying.  If necessary use a spray of lime surfur, mixed 4/
5 pint per gallon or 10 gallons per 100 gallons of spray, in spring when 1/4
inch of green leaf is exposed from the buds.  Do not use this spray after the
delayed dormant period, or severe foliage injury may result.


Re: Hedgehogs for slug control in the garden
From: Ulrich Reutter
Subject: Re: Slimy Slugs in My Berries - HELP!

After we saw some good short-term ideas, including drowning in beer (what
a nice way to die!), here is a method you might consider in 8 months or so,
helps your whole garden and lets you enjoy some wildlife, too:
Employ a hedgehog to to eat the slugs.
You can only do that in autumn, when they are not relentlessly roaming about
to find a mate. Still, you have to convince it to stay with you. And if there
is one thing hedgehogs hate then it's tidy formal gardens, pets and people
running about, no proper food, and especially no suitable shelter.
Again, autumn is the best time to provide all that -

(1) Find a messy, sheltered spot in your garden, preferably near a hedge or
    dense shrubs, and if a pear tree is nearby - even better.

(2) Time for autumn pruning: make a large pile (at least 5 ft high) of twigs,
    slow-rotting leaves (oak, pear, beech), and some straw (NOT grass
cuttings!)
    Don't arrange it nicely, just throw it all on one pile.

(3) This is the tricky bit: catch a hedgehog! Unfortunately, they are most
active
    at night. And you have to be far away enough from your home so that they
    can't find their way back. Parking at a highway layby with headlights on
    and watching 'who' crosses the road, or just quietly walking in the dark
    along some hedges, armed with a torchlight, and listening for the quite
    obvious sniffing noise are two of the choices.

(4) Put it in a cage or box with holes until shortly before the sun comes up.
    Then roll the animal a few times on the ground near the pile and place it
    gently under the pile of branches in your garden.

(5) Regularily put food, especially pears and worms (from petshop, for birds
    and hamsters) near the pile, just on the ground and right after sunset
    (when birds went asleep).

(6) Usually, you should find the pears nicely hollowed-out next morning.
    Good sign. Once that stops, the gamble begins: either the hedgehog moved
    out, or it went into hibernation.  By no means try to look for it, and
    leave the pile of twigs undisturbed throughout winter.

(7) With some luck (you still have the "my place or yours" problem to overcome
    during the mating season - after all, you don't know whether you caught a
    he or a she), you will hear 3 or more sniffing noises one night in May in
    your garden, and you will see your slug polulation reduce dramatically!

(8) Only then can you shred the pile for compost. But make a new one in
    autumn again....I found hedgehogs not only cute, but probably the most
    effective natural pest control in my garden, yet gentle to plants and
    flowerbeds.

(9) But don't get too friendly with them: they carry a large colony of
    parasites around which you wouldn't like inside your house.


Re: Murphy's oil soap as insecticide
From: ken

Murphy's Oil Soap works well and is cheaper.  Mix 1 or 2 tablespoons
per gallon of water and spray on insects.  It smothers the insects.
Rinse your plant's leaves a day or so later and they'll shine.


FERTILIZER AS FUNGICIDE (UPI-2/5) -- A Florida scientist says use of calcium
silicate slag as a fertilizer for rice boosts the plants' disease resistance
and growers could use it as an alternative to some fungicides that could
cause cancer.  He said it also helps the sugar cane crop which is planted in
rotation with the rice.
of its plants at reduced hours because of poor profit margins.

FOOD IRRADIATION COMMENTS (NY Times) -- Two of three letters to the editor
say food irradiation is a risk.  One says more USDA oversight of the poultry
industry, and more consumer education, are needed to overcome the industry's
sloppy processing methods.  The third writer points out that irradiation is
accepted for food preservation throughout the world.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
FROM: AG a.m., a daily summary of agricultural news and feature items

From: Neal Bauer
Subject: Re: WARNING:  nettles

>Tomato leaves, macerated and stewed, produce a liquid which is
>sufficiently toxic to be used as an insectidical spray.

A friend of mine told me to use *nettles* this way.  Chop them up,
soak them in water for three days, then spray the liquid on my
garden to repel insects.  I was planning on giving it a try this
spring.  What do you think?  Maybe my friend doesn't like me as
much as I thought she did?

From: Dave Platt
Subject: Re: Attracting Beneficial Insects

BB>  Here is a list of plant that supposedly attract beneficial insects.
BB>        Coriandrum (Coriander)

I can confirm this one from my own experience.  I've planted coriander
during each of the last few growing seasons... some of the leaves end up
in people-food, but mostly the plants just flower throughout the summer
and go to seed.

Last summer, I had lots of coriander blooming, I didn't spray any
insecticides in the garden (not even pyrethrum or rotenone), had lots of
friendly insects in the coriander (ladybeetles, hoverflies, etc), and
_no_ aphid problems!

From: Raymond Willis
[1] Re: leaves as mulch
Date: Sun Feb  9 20:01:44 1992
Organization: U.S. Forest Service, Berea Kentucky.

>Two elements that are worth mentioning are lead (Pb) and titanium (Ti).
>These are two elements that one finds in inks and paint (or did at one time
>anyway).  Since these two elements are toxic, it would be harmful to do

I was challenged on the toxicity of titanium and have checked the Merck Index
to see what they have to say about it.  Merk gives the medical uses of titanium
metal as repair of fractures.  The most likely form of titanium in the soil
is titanium dioxide and the medical uses of it are protection against sunlight
and irritation and it is used in creams and powders.  Based on this
information, I think it is safe to say titanium is not toxic.
I stand corrected

It doesn't feel like spring here since we have a slight dusting of snow
on the ground but tomorrow (Monday) is starting day for tree planting
in the Daniel Boone National Forest plus we have had a couple forest
fires already this spring so as far as we are concerned, it is spring.

From: Bob.Batson@kcufgat.fidonet.org (Bob Batson)
Subject: Attracting Beneficial Insects

  Here is a list of plant that supposedly attract beneficial insects.

        Achillea (Yarrow)
        Anethum (Dill)
        Coriandrum (Coriander)
        Cuminum (Cumin)
        Daucus (Carrot, Queen Annes Lace)
        Foeniculum (Fennel)
        Helianthus (Sunflower, Jerusalem Artichoke)
        Mentha (Mint)
        Pastinaca (Parsnip)
        Petroselinum (Parsley)
        Selvia (Sage)
        Tagetes (Marigold)
        Tanacetum (Tansy)
        Thymus (Thyme)
        Tropaeolum (Nasturtium)


From: Bob.Batson@kcufgat.fidonet.org (Bob Batson)
Subject: Sucrose & Bird Damage to Fruit Crops

         Bird Damage to Fruit Crops: Some Sucrose Might Help

  A little-known fact about some fruit-eating birds (including the
American robin and the European starling) is that they do not have
the digestive enzyme sucrase needed to break down sucrose (the sugar
found in sugar cane). When these birds eat sucrose, they experience
digestive problems. U.S. Department of Agriculture scientists in
Florida have found that American robins learn to avoid dummy fruits
containing 15% sucrose. In fact, when the robins ate
sucrose-containing artificial fruits, their total consumption of
artificial fruits containing sucrose, glucose, and fructose dropped,
even though the birds could digest glucose and fructose. It appears
that they "generalized" to include all of the types of artificial
fruit in the category "not good to eat."

  The U.S.D.A. scientists suggest that high-sucrose fruits could be
bred to minimize pilfering by birds lacking sucrase. We [HortIdeas]
suggest that a more practical and quicker solution to the problem
might be achieved by placing high-sucrose artificial fruits in
orchards just before ripening of the real fruits. Perhaps the birds
would "infer" that the real fruits were not good for them, after
their (presumably) sickening experiences with the artificial fruits.
At least it's an idea worth trying on a small scale (Note: The
high-sucrose artificial fruits used in the Florida experiments were
agar cubes made by mixing sucrose and purified plant cell agar in
boiling water, with some food coloring.)
  Reference: Kristin E. Brugger (USDA/APHIS/ST Denver Wildlife
Research Center, 2820 E. University Ave., Gainesville, FL 32601) and
Curtis O. Nelms, "Sucrose Avoidance by American robins (Turdus
migratorius): Implications for Control of Bird Damage in fruit
Crops," _Crop Protection_ 10(6), December 1991, 455-460.
(Butterworth-Heinemann Ltd., Westbury House, P.O. Box 63, Guildford
GU2 5BH, UNITED KINGDOM.)
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Reprinted with permission from the January 1992 HortIdeas.
Copyright 1992 by Greg and Pat Williams. HortIdeas is $15 for one
year (12 issues). For more information or a subscription, write:
HortIdeas, 460 Black Lick Road, Gravel Switch, KY 40328, USA.


From: Celeste Stokely
Subject: Re: Green Lacebugs

Green lacewings do a fairly good job of controlling aphids. I am waiting
for an order of them, myself. Here's what worked last year on a BAD aphid
problem

1st, if it's really a severe problem, spray well with insecticidal soap to
get the population down to something less than a plague.

Next day, I sprinkled 1000 lacewing egg/larvae around the garden, where the
infestation was the worst. 2 weeks later, add another 1000 lacewings. Add
another 1000 lacewings each month for 3 months. This kept the aphids nicely
in check last year.

I had a few lacewings left in my garden this year, but still there were too
many aphids, so I'm starting over. Bozeman Biotech is very nice about taking
my "timed" lacewing order and shipping them to me on my schedule.

Bozeman Biotech's number is 1-800-289-6656. Ask for their great catalog,
too. VERY informative about benificial insects.


From: Ruth Kline
Subject: Re: Non-chemical pesticide for Orange Tree

A recipe for a home-made pesticide that seems
to be potent to insects but safe for humans and pets:
1/2 tablespoon of hand-dishwashing detergent (that's *not* a degreaser)
1/2 tablespoon of rubbing alcohol
put both into a re-cycled spray bottle, such as a Windex
container.  I really don't measure the ingredients --
just as long as it's not too strong, an approximate amount seems
to be okay.  Don't spray the plant while it's in the hot, midday
sun, though, as this seems to cause burn marks on the leaves.
Make sure you spray the undersides of the leaves and the stems,
as some kinds of parasites choose those places.  I usually spray
the plant twice within a couple hours, just in case I miss a spot
the first time.  Hope this works for you!


Re: Beneficial nematodes.
From: Jeff Lichtman
Subject: Re: Onion maggot control

>>Is there another organic solution, besides deciding
>>not to grow onions?  Thanks for your help.

I missed all of the postings on this subject until now, so this may
have already been covered, but just in case...

Beneficial nematodes will eliminate onion maggots.  These nematodes
are not the ones that harm plants.  Instead, they attack grubs and
insects that live in the soil.  You can order them from Gardens Alive!,
a company that specializes in organic controls.  Their address and
phone number are:

                Gardens Alive!
                5100 Schenley Place
                Lawrenceburg, IN 47025
                (812) 537-8650

They take Visa, Mastercard, and Discover.  They carry two strains of
nematodes: Hb and Sc.  The former are more effective and more expensive.
The prices are:

        Item #  Strain  Quantity        Price

        8006    Hb      5 million       $12.50
        8007    Hb      10 million      $18.95
        8008    Hb      25 million      $33.45

        8003    Sc      5 million       $9.95
        8004    Sc      10 million      $14.95
        8005    Sc      25 million      $26.95

10 million nematodes are enough to treat 600 sq. ft. of conventional rows,
and 200 - 300 sq. ft. or raised beds or wide rows.

Another way to use beneficial nematodes is to inject them into squash vines
that are infested with borers.  They will kill the borers and restore the
plant's health.


Re: Insecticidal soaps.
Subject: IVORY vs SAFER's for insect control

Of course, I couldn't find the article I was looking for, but I
did find some information on relative value of Ivory vs Safer's
soaps as insecticides...        THIS IS A LONG-WINDED POST.

****************OVERALL SUMMARY***********************
Soaps and detergents are pretty good insecticides; often as good as
"hard chemicals" like Malathion or Diazanon or Orthene.  They work
best when they are applied at fairly frequent intervals (every
few days), and are less likely to burn the plant if the soap solution
is washed off after a few minutes' contact with the plant.
Some plants are more sensitive to one brand of soap or detergent
than another.  Ivory dish detergent worked as well as Safer's Soap,
and is cheaper.  High pressure sprays can give good control with
very low soap concentrations.

****MY ANALYSIS********  (or as I keep asking my students, how does
this fit in with YOUR life?)

Should I have cause to use a soap spray as an insect control measure,
I'll probably use Ivory dish detergent, because it's cheap, easy to
come by, and seems to work pretty well.  If I were to need to try
this on a mealybug infestation, I'd probably add some alcohol (maybe
a cup a gallon) to the finished spray, since I known alcohol does a
good job on mealybugs, and the soap should improve the alcohol's
penetration of the insect body.

Since Ivory is not labeled as an insect spray, coming up with a
workable spray is pretty much trial and error.  UC Extension used
a concentration of 19 ml Ivory Liquid per gallon of water, saying they
had dtermined the concentration by trial and error, so I'd start with
that.   That's 4 tsp dish detergent per gallon of water, but I'd
mix the dish soap with the alcohol, then add water to bring the total
to 1 gallon.   Next, if this is a plant I'm particularly fond of, I'd
treat a small portion of the plant, let the soap stay on for 20 minutes,
rinse it off, and watch the leaves for any sign of damage for a 4-5 days.
Only then would I be brave enough to douse the whole thing.  I would probably
use my hand sprayer on "stream", trying to get all the concentrated pressure
I could.  I would probably try to avoid soaking the soil of potted
plants with soap -- it's less likely to degrade as rapidly there as it is
outdoors.  Besides, I can turn a potted plant on its side -- can't
do that with a 20 ft tree!...


_Report #1_
This information is condensed from an article in California Agriculture,
October, 1983, pp 11-12.  Authors are Carlton S Koehler & Leslie W
Barclay (UC Berkeley Entomology Extension) & Thomas S Kretchun
(UC Deciduous Fruit Field Station, San Jose).  The study involves greenhouse
whitefly and twospotted spidermite on bush beans, cabbage looper and
cabbage wormm on cabbage, and potato aphid on squash.
    Materials were the 50.5% Safer Insecticidal Soap at 88.8 ml/
gallon water, Acco Highway Spray (38.5% base) at 9.5 ml/gal water,
Malation (50% emulsion) at 14.8 ml/gallon, Dicofol (18.5% emulsion)
at 5 ml/gallon and Ivory Dish Liquid at 19ml/gallon.

No differences were seen on the beans between Ivory and Safer or Acco
with either whiteflies or spidermites.  The soaps did as well as the
pesticides on whiteflies, but did not work on spidermites.  On potato
aphid on squash, diazanon was the only thing that worked.  Bacillus
thurinigensis (milky spore disease) worked on both cabbage looper and
cabbage mite.  Repeated sprayings of Safer's did not work on cabbage looper
and cabbage mite, and it did reduce the weight of the cabbages considerably.

Summing up:  no differences between Ivory and Safer's, but soap doesn't
work on everything and can cause plant damage or slow growth.

_Report #2_

Wayne S. Moore.  "Insecticidal Soaps"   _Horticulture_, Jan 1986, pp. 64-
65.  (Adapted from an article in Oct 1982 issue of The Garden, Journal
of the Royal Horticulture Society).

Mention of a series of replicated test on aphids, spidermites, psyllids,
thrips and spittlebugs on a variety of ornamental shrubs.  (That's the
^&*^$*&@ study I was looking for!).  (Since I couldn't find the original,
I have to repeat Moore's summary.)

They tested Tide laundry detergent, Ivory dish detergent, Ivory bar soap,
Fels Naptha bar soap, William's shaving bar soap, tincture of green soap,
glycerin soap, Shaklee Basic H, Safer's and Acco.

Conclusions:  liquid dish detergent is about as good as anything else, and
cheap and convenient.  Dissolved bar soap did not do better than stuff
that started out liquid, and it was more work.  Detergents and soaps worked
equally well.

Next, they sprayed 2% soap solutions (2 oz bar soap to 200 oz water, or
2 cups liquid soap to 200 cups of water) on plants, looking to see
which had the most chance of harming the plants.  These are MUCH stronger
solutions than are normally used for insects.  They also sprayed in
full sun, trying to maximize the burn potential.  Plants tested were
coast redwood, camellia, abelia, Moraea iridoides, Kahili ginger, viper's
bugloss, an oxalis, and wandering jew.  Tide burned all plants except
camellia; basic H burned 5 of 8 species, and Acco, Ivory and Fels Naptha
each burned one species.  Wandering jew was particulary sensitive, and
only Acco did not burn it.  [[Maybe that would make a good test plant
for soap solutions??--KK]]

Moore goes on to talk about the fact that the soaps and detergents work
be disrupting insect membranes.  Therefore, only wet solutions do any good.
Once they dry, you might as well rinse them off (helps keep the plant
from being burnt, too).

The pressure you use also has an effect.  Common hose-end or hand sprayers
deliver relatively low pressure sprays, and you need fairly high soap
concentrations for the spray to work (usual recommendations are
1.6-2.4 oz liquid soap per gallon).   Commercial sprayers that can attain
pressures of 200-250 psi can get good results with 0.1% - 0.01% soap
solutions, mainly because the extra pressure also dislodges the insects.

Summing up:  Soap and detergent solutions work for control of many insects,
and Ivory dish detergent seems to be as good as the high-priced stuff.
Some plants are soap sensitive, and need to be washed off after the soap
sits on the plant for a few minutes.  Higher pressure dislodges insects
better, giving as good a control of the insect problem with dilute
solutions and low pressure solutions of higher concentrations.

Personally, I usually let the plants and the insects fight it out for
themselves...

Kay Klier      Biology Dept   UNI


Re: Source for beneficial insects, info on use, 4-variety insect samp.pak.
Source for the following beneficial insects:

ladybug
trichogramma wasp
praying mantis
green lacewing

BIOFAC, INC.
Box 87
Mathis, Texas, 76369
512-547-3259


Videocassete of 1/2 hour "The New Garden" show covering the activities of this
company and the use of these 4 insects in agriculture is available from:

     The New Garden
     Box 2267
     San Antonio, Texas, 782(??)

     Videocassete: "Beneficial Insects", $19.95

A transcript of this show is also available from TNG at about $8.00.

Re: Beneficial insects & biological pest control(From Usenet, rec.gardens)
Article 6521 (36 more) in rec.gardens:
From: klier
Subject: Re: Nematodes
Date: 9 Apr 92 22:52:14 GMT

> I have a friend who claims that nematodes prevent cutworms
>from invading your garden.  I have another friend that claims
>that nematodes attack tomato plants with ill effects for the
>tomatoes.  What is the low down on nematodes?  If they are good,
>where can I find some?  Thanks.

Um, this is alot like saying that plants are poisonous and plants
are good to eat.  Depends on what species you're talking about.
Nematodes are tiny little worms that are part of the soil ecosystem.
They're there (unless you sterilized your soil somehow).  Most of them
have no effect one way or another on plants; a few are harmful.
Root-knot nematode is one of the bad guys, but there are others.

As to beneficial nematodes, caterpillar nematode, Neoaplectana
carpocapsae carries a symbiotic bacterium (Xenorhabdus nematophilus)
that does a nice job on contralling ants, beetles, buds, flies, wasps,
and quite a few others.

You might want to contact Nematode Farm, Inc., 2617 San Pablo Ave,
Berkeley, CA 94702.  This is a 1990 address.

Kay Klier  Biology Dept  UNI

Article 6460 (23 more) in rec.gardens:
Subject: Re: Nematodes
Date: 10 Apr 92 17:20:17 GMT

[quoted text deleted, same as above]

Nematoda is a very diverse group of critters.  There are plant feeding
nematodes and insect feeding nematodes.  Most are reasonably specific in
respect to the hosts they can feed on.   There are even nematodes that
parasitize people, eg. elephantiasis.

I'm not an expert on nematodes but I do know that they're being used as
biocontrol agents for various insects.  And, at least, one species is being
sold commercially, _Steinerneima carpocapsi_, although I don't remember any of
the brand names.  I works very well on certain insects, is long lasting, and
has no adverse environmetal effects or human hazards.

Plant feeding nematodes, eg. tomato root knot, can severely damage your plants.

I'm not sure what's on the market for homeowner use, a widely used
agricultural fumagant for nemetodes (and other things) is methyl bromide.  This
is similar to CFCs (it's a halinated hydrcarbon) and can potentially damage the
ozone layer.

That's bout all I know about nematodes.

John

From: Blazek Michael W
Subject: Safe Insecticide...
Date: 17 Mar 92 18:33:05 GMT

W.R. Grace & Co. and Ringer Co. are introducing a natural insecticide derived
from the seed of an Asian mahogany tree. The extract, known as azadirachtin,
has been shown to control about 170 types of insects - yet it's harmless to
birds, animals and beneficial insects. Ringer will offer the product by catolog
to home gardeners. From Nature News, v.4, no. 4 & from Wall Street Journal.

This came from NN, a bulletin of the Nature Book Society...
Does anyone know anything about this extract - azadirachtin?
How can this xtract control "170 types of insects" and not be
harmful to birds, animals and benis?
Anyone have an address for Ringer Co.?

Thanks!
Martin

Article 5953 (25 more) in rec.gardens:
From: twomey
Subject: Re: Safe Insecticide...
Date: 19 Mar 92 00:33:54 GMT

See Science v255:p1070, 1992 for a fuller discussion.  This is a summary of
that article.  Azadirachtin is one of the active ingredients of neem oil,
derived from the seeds of the neem tree, widely found in Asia and Africa.
Azadirachtin is an analog of ecdysone, an insect developmental hormone.  In
some insects, azadirachtin blocks the action of ecdysone, preventing molting of
immature larvae to more mature forms.  In  other insects, azadirachtin is a
feeding deterrent, interferes with swallowing, prevents gut motility, disrupts
mating, causes sterility and disrupts chitin formation (depending on which bug
you are looking at).  On the other hand, azadirachtin caused no immune response
in rats, no mutations in the Ames test and in general seems harmless to
non-insects.  Plants absorb azadirachtin and distribute it throughout their
leaves.  The result is that only bugs that eat the plants are killed while
non-plant eaters are not.  Azadirachtin is being marketed under the trade name
Margosan-O.
This all sounds real nice, but let me ask a question that's bothered me since I
started using systemic insecticides on my roses: sure they only kill bugs that
eat the plants, but don't they also kill things like earthworms that you WANT
eating vegetable matter in your garden?
Patrick Twomey

Article 5969 (11 more) in rec.gardens:
From: klier
Subject: Re: Safe Insecticide...
Date: 19 Mar 92 01:35:05 GMT

Ringer Corp.
9959 Valley View Road
Eden Prairie, MN 55344

I, too, have problems swallowing "controls 170 kinds of insects", yet
harmless to beneficial insects.  The last study I saw on it _suggested_
that there was little effect on a couple of species of parasitic wasps
and a predatory mite.  Perhaps if you write Ringer's they'll have some
more solid studies on such critters as lady bugs, mantids, lacewings,
bees, etc., that you can share with us.

The neem studies look like the substance acts as an antifeedant in some
insect species, as a toxin to others, as a repellant to still others,
as a growth disruptive, and as a sterilant.  I'm not an insect
physiologist by any stretch of the imagination, but that list of
effects suggest that the compound is probably hitting several metabolic
pathways.  I'd like to know which ones before I dumped a fair amount
into the environment.

Kay Klier   Biology Dept  UNI

Article 6488 (68 more) in rec.gardens:
From: Ecology Center Fund
Subject: Re: HELP!!! Fuchsia mite
Date: 8 Apr 92 19:44:00 GMT

The mite is carried on the heads of hummingbirds, therefore, it seems like
you'd be able to control it by pruning and then somehow restricting
hummingbird access to your fuchsias.  Ive never tried this, though, nor
do I know anyone who has.

Last I heard, Kelthane was considered completely ineffective against
Brazilian Fuchsia Mite.

Chris

Article in rec.gardens:
Subject: Re: HELP!!! Fuchsia mite
Date: 9 Apr 92 00:25:00 GMT

Jim:
You may want to try a new botanical pesticide that is just being released
this spring.  Its marketed by SAFER/RINGER and is called Neemesis(there is
a second name that is being tested also).  This has a very low toxicity to
beneficials and I have used it indoors on thrips with fairly good success.
I recall mites being listed as a target but the label fails me now.  You
might want to call Ringer to see if its registered/useful.  Another possibi-
lity would be to use insecticidal soap, if it won't harm the fuchsias, or
predatory mites.  The latter work best in a greenhouse environemnt and are
very costly.

Good luck.
Craig

Article 6529 (28 more) in rec.gardens:
From: klier
Subject: Re: HELP!!! Fuchsia mite
Date: 9 Apr 92 23:53:02 GMT

Neem is a broad-spectrum insecticide -- and I haven't found any
real information about toxicity to other-than-insects (though I
know it's low human toxicity).

Chinaberry tree leaves and bark (Melia azadarach) can be brewed into
a tea and sprayed like neem. (it's a closely related species widely
grown in warmer areas of the US).  Don't have any formulations handy,
but the usual ROT is as much water as leaves and bark; soak for 24 hours,
strain off the resulting "tea", add a bit of dish detergent as a wetting
agent, and spray.

Kay Klier  Biology Dept UNI

Article 6497 (60 more) in rec.gardens:
From: Michael Carr
Subject: Re: Garden sprayers, whitefly
Date: 9 Apr 92 16:26:57 GMT

I have found that the best way to kill whiteflies is with the Ortho Sticky
Whitefly trap. Within ten minutes of setting up the trap, you will have
killed at least four and in one day about 30. After a week or two, you will
have no problems with them at all.

The trap is made of cardboard painted yellow with a sticky substance.
Whiteflies are attracted yellow and the sticky substance keeps them on the
cardboard. It works 1,000 times better than the leading spray.

Mike Carr

Article 6510 (47 more) in rec.gardens:
From: Mindy Machanic
Subject: Re: Garden sprayers, whitefly
Keywords: whitefly, ash trees, spray
Date: 9 Apr 92 18:59:58 GMT

I don't know about how it would work for trees, but planting pyrethrum-bearing
flowers (i.e., calendula and painted daisies) seems to keep the whiteflies
away from our hibiscus bushes, which they otherwise adore. Last year, we
planted calendulas near them, and up until it got so hot the calendulas fried,
we had no whiteflies around the hibiscus (we did have them on the lantana with
no companion calendulas). When the calendulas died, the whiteflies appeared on
the hibiscus. This year we are planting painted daisies, which won't die off.
(our seasons for this are backwards here - the calendulas do spectacularly well
in winter and spring and then die; reseeding happens and the new plants show up
in late fall.) Since painted daisies are taller than calendulas, maybe planting
a bunch of them around the tree will help, at least at the bottom. (At worst,
they'll look pretty!) -- Mindy Machanic  (AG Communication Systems/Quality
Engineering, Phoenix, AZ) Article 6526 (31 more) in rec.gardens: From: Mindy
Machanic Subject: Re: Garden sprayers, whitefly Summary: only if you've got a
few whiteflies Date: 10 Apr 92 00:07:51 GMT

> I have found that the best way to kill whiteflies is with the Ortho Sticky
> Whitefly trap. Within ten minutes of setting up the trap, you will have
> killed at least four and in one day about 30. After a week or two, you will
> have no problems with them at all.

This works if you start before you have a serious whitefly infestation.
However, whiteflies have one-day lives and reproduce incredibly quickly.
Once they get going there's not a whole lot you can do with traps. BTW, any
yellow surface coated with Vaseline or other sticky surface is supposed to
work just as well as the stuff you buy. You just have to put a lot of them
around to do any good.

Article 6415 (7 more) in rec.gardens:
From: Vida Jakabhazy
Subject: HELP SOUGHT FROM OWNERS OF MID-LARGE GREENHOUSES - BUG INFESTATION!
Keywords: aphids, bugs, greenhouse
Date: 8 Apr 92 23:54:51 GMT

I am one of several people who have been left to maintain a university-owned
greenhouse (if we don't do it, the remaining specimens will die).  We are
well-intentioned people, but do not have sufficient knowledge to combat a
recent infestation of aphids and gnat-like critters.  Due to the recent
introduction of fresh water plants, we have now the ideal breeding grounds for
these pests and they are taking over the greenhouse.

I have tried to read up on this problem, but most treatments deal with
individual plants.  I have made calls to several local greenhouses and they
all say that we have to know what plants we have in order to know how they
will react to certain treatments.  (We know what plants we have, to a great
degree, but they're specimens from around the world and I don't think we can
make all of them happy.)
Some people have suggested smoke bombs, some beer (did not work), others CO2
bombs, others suggest washing off individual leaves with soap and water, and
of course the use of malethion (msp?).  Most of these folks seem reluctant to
"divulge" their secrets.  So much for kind gestures....

Here are the catches: 1) the greenhouse contains a sufficiently large number
of plants that washing individual leaves with anything is out of the question;
2) fish live within the tanks of fresh water plants rendering the bomb idea an
impossible alternative; 3) we are trying to keep the solution to this problem
an "organic" one as we are also growing edibles, hence the collective cringe
at using deadly chemicals; 4) there is no money to bring in outside help.

I don't know what other information to supply.  If anyone has any suggestions,
please send them my way.  I'd be happy to provide any further information I
can.  I'm hoping there's someone out there who has dealt with this problem on
a large scale.

Thanks in advance,
Vida Jakabhazy

Article 6527 (29 more) in rec.gardens:
From: klier
Subject: Re: HELP SOUGHT FROM OWNERS OF MID-LARGE GREENHOUSES - BUG
INFESTATION!
Date: 10 Apr 92 00:21:45 GMT

Several years ago, I heard of a consortium of university greenhouses
that was forming.  The consortium was to try to figure out how to
use biological controls and very low toxicity pesticides (like
pyrethrins) for managing mixed greenhouses.   Since I was a grad
student at the time, I (of course) didn't pay much attention.

My recollection is that the organizers were at one of the
Illinois state universities -- Carbondale, Urbana or DeKalb,
most likely.  I'd love to get in touch with these folks.  Anyone
know anything more???

Kay Klier   Biology Dept  UNI

Article 6528 (29 more) in rec.gardens:
From: klier
Subject: Re: HELP SOUGHT FROM OWNERS OF MID-LARGE GREENHOUSES - BUG
INFESTATION!
Date: 9 Apr 92 23:37:33 GMT

[quoted text deleted]

Vida:  You have several options:  straight "chemical" (in which case som
someone will probably need to get a pesticide certification); mixed
"chemical"  and organic, and straight organic.  My experiences seem to
indicate that the mixed approach, using selected pesticides and an
integrated pest management approach is probably the least-cost, least
time approach, but it does require a fair amount of knowledge.

Our gh at UNI uses a mixed approach for a variety of reasons (some
political, some biological); we use a lot of sticky traps and Enstar,
some fungicides and some insecticides.  I'll get our current spray
schedule from the gh manager tomorrow and email it to you.
You will probably need to get a pesticide certification sooner or later
unless your state is really loose about regulations.
In general, except for insect growth regulators like methoprene and
enstar, and except for physical control methods (like flyswatters or
sticky traps), you'll need to rotate the chemicals you're spraying
to avoid building up resistance in the insect populations.  Doesn't
matter if you're spraying pyrethrum (organic) or diazanon (most
decidedly nasty), spray it long enough and you'll start selecting
for pests resistant to your goodies...

Several things you should look at in much greater detail:

Yellow sticky traps -- can be simply homemade by cutting up cheap
 masonite or aspenite or something similar and painting it bright
 yellow.  About the shade that they use for trim on John Deere tractors.
 A little more yellow (less gold) than the average school bus.
 Let the paint dry, coat it with anything sticky (white corn syrup
 works well, and it's cheap) and suspend over the benches.  We use
 a 6" square every 2-3 feet along a bench.  Collects beaucoup
 whitefly; also fungus gnats and a lot of other flying insects.
 Somebody gets to wash the boards about every 2-3 weeks; then
 recoat with karo and you're in business again.

Enstar-- insect growth regulator effective against many species;
 expensive, fairly long lasting, well worth it.

Bacillus thuringensis -- good against a lot of insects, including
 most lepidopteran larvae with a high-gut pH.  I prefer the
 strain called B.t. var Kurstaki, sold as Tribactur and Javelin.

Kay Klier  Biology Dept  UNI


 * Originally by Linda Martin

A friend of mine just called to tell me she saw this
suggestion on the Ag Show yesterday morning...
a botanist was on the show and suggested this recipe
for organic pest control:

To make concentrate:
1 cup safflower oil
1 tablespoon liquid dish soap
mix well

Put 1 tablespoon concentrated mixture into a spray bottle
and fill with water.  Shake well before each use.
(My friend said the botanist didn't mention the size of his
spray bottle but that it looked like a quart to her.)

Spray the underside of leaves.  The botanist said this is
good for all ornamentals and vegetables, except that it caused
a brown spot on one of his cabbages.  It is supposed to repel
aphids and other small insects.  Try spraying only a little
patch of each plant first, in case there is a bad reaction.

 * Originally by Eagle Eyes

         A LIST OF NATURE'S INSECTICIDES
         SOURCE: National Cooking Echo 04/21/90

Contributed to the echo by: Karen Burt

NATURE'S INSECTICIDES

Basil: plant with tomatoes to improve growth and flavor. Plant with
asparagus to increase vigor. Plant near compost pile to keep insects
away. Plant around doors and windows to keep insects away. DO NOT
plant with Rue.

Bay Leaf: A fresh bay leaf in storage containers of beans or grains
will deter weevils and moths.

Borage: Plant with tomatoes, squash, and strawberries to deter
hornworms and black flea beetles. Also attracts honeybees. Plant as
close as possible to compost pile; adds potassium, calcium, and other
minerals when decomposing.

Caraway: Good for loosening compacted soil.

Catnip: Deters flea beetles.

Camomile: Improves flavor of cabbage and onions. Also promotes growth
in near-by plants.

Chervil: Improves growth and flavor of radishes.

Dill: Improves growth and health of cabbages. DO NOT plant with
carrots or tomatoes.

Fennel: DO NOT plant in garden for any reason. Plant separatly, plant
coriander with it to prevent seeds from setting. Attracts bees.

Garlic: Plant with roses, raspberries, and lettuce to repel aphids and
japanese beetles, also repels blight from potatoes and tomatoes, flea
beetles from potatoes, red spiders from tomatoes, and green loopers
from cabbage. DO NOT plant near peas.

Horseradish: Plant near potatoes to repel potato bugs. Also at the
base of fruit trees to fight fruit rot.

Hyssop: Plant with grapevines to increase grape yield. DO NOT plant
with radishes.

Lovage: Plant with any plant; improves health of all vegetables.

Marjoram: plant with any plant; improves flavor and health.

Mint: Plant with tomatoes and cabbage to improve health. Also repels
cabbageworm; black flea beetles from radishes; hornworm from tomatoes;
ants from most everything.

Parsley: Plant with roses to repel rose beetles; mix with carrot seeds
to repel carrot flies; attracts bees second year if allowed to flower.

Rosemary: Plant with cabbage, beans, and carrots to improve overall
health.

Sage: Repels cabbageworm, and white cabbage butterfly. Also repels
carrot flies. DO NOT plant near cucumbers.

Southernwood: Plant near cabbage to repel cabbagemoths; also dried
leaves repel ants.

Savory: Plant with beans and onions to improve flavor; repels cabbage
moths, hornworms, and black flea beetles.

Tansy: Plant with blackberries, grapes, raspberries, and roses; repels
cane borers. Also repels flying insects, japanese beetles, striped
cucmber beetles, squash bugs, cabbageworms, cabbage butterfly, and
ants.

Thyme: Deters cabbage butterfly and cabbageworms.

Valerian: Plant anywhere in the garden to attract earthworms.

Yarrow: Plant with any other herb to increase the oils in that herb.
Also good with any vegetable to improve health and flavor.

Article 6791 (152 more) in rec.gardens:
From: K. Klier
Subject: Re: hazards of using BT, was Re: cabbage worms
Date: 22 Apr 92 20:20:24 GMT

[some text deleted]

Some manufacturers and names of Bacillus thuringensis var. kurstaki
preparations:

Abbott Labs:  DiPel
CAFFARO SpA:  Bactucide
Knoll Bioproducts: Larvo-BT
Duphar BV:  Bactospeine, Futura
Novo Laboratories:  Biobit, Biobit 16K WP, Biobit 32B, Foray, Foray 48B,
  Foray 64B
PBI/Gordon: Bactospeine
Ringer Corp: Caterpillar attack; sod webworm attack, tomato worm attack dust,
  vegetable insect attack dust wp.
Sandoz Crop Protection:  Javelin, Thuricide

Kay Klier  Biology Dept  UNI

Article 6814 (130 more) in rec.gardens:
From: Steve Lienhard
Subject: Re: Cabbageworms
Date: 23 Apr 92 15:33:12 GMT

>Cabbageworms are gnawing through our cabbage and cauliflower leaves.
>I have a bottle of diazinon which is apparently effective against it
>but am a little reluctant to use it. Does any one know what else I
>can do or if diazinon sprayed early on during the growth will still
>show up at maturity? Please help!

Bacillus Thurengiensis (sp?), or BT for short, is widely available and is
highly effective against the cabbage worm.  It's a bacterium that infects
the digestive track of the worm, paralyzing it until it starves to death
(about 3 days).  It's completely nontoxic, unlike diazinon, which is under
investigation as a possible carcinogen.  Additionally, it will only kill
certain worms... diazinon will indescriminately kill everything.

Article 6753 (102 more) in rec.gardens:
From: Bob Batson
Subject: Re: Cabbageworms
Date: 20 Apr 92 23:15:12 GMT

 > Cabbageworms are gnawing through our cabbage and cauliflower leaves.
 > I have a bottle of diazinon which is apparently effective against it
 > but am a little reluctant to use it. Does any one know what else I
 > can do [TEXT DELETED]

Use any insecticide containing a product called BACILLUS THURINGIENSIS
and (BT) apply it to the plant as a foliar spray. Just be sure to cat the
undersides of the leaves also. Any caterpillar ingesting a leaf with BT
on it will soon develop a fatal stomach ache. PS - Thuricide and Dipel are
two products containing BT. IMHO, Thuricide is easier to use.


Article 6748 (106 more) in rec.gardens:
From: Nicki A Stassen Lantz
Subject: fungus gnat solution & a question
Date: 21 Apr 92 12:18:41 GMT

I have had very good luck getting rid of fungus gnats with GNATROL which I
bought from Gardens Alive. It's a form of Bt, and takes maybe 2-3 applications
to really work. I try to use it when I repot or pot plants using fresh potting
mixture because this seems to prevent many fungus gnats from occuring. I've
used GNATROL for maybe 2 years now, and am pleased with the results.

Gardens Alive:      5100 Schenley Place, Lawrenceburg, IN 47025
                    (812) 537-8650

Now for the question: a letter in a houseplant magazine mentioned
"springtails" which jumped from the soil surface when you watered your
plants. I also have small critters which match this description. Are these
really springtails, and if so, are they considered pests? I've looked in
all my gardening books and can't find any detailed info on these.


Article 6792 (151 more) in rec.gardens:
From: klier
Subject: Re: FUNGUS GNATS, SHORE FLIES, SPRINGTAILS
Date: 22 Apr 92 20:05:08 GMT

> I use wick watering for mine
> and therefore I have springtails.  My expert grower friend has had
> springtails for years (15 years!) and they have never hurt his plants.
> He insists that their presence means that you are maintaining the
> proper level of moisture for your AV's *and* that these springtails
> just show up -he thinks that they are in everyone's water.  (Kay, is
> this true?) Pauline Bartholomew, author of _Growing To Show_ also says
> that they do no appreciable damage.  She says to ignore them.

Collembola (springtails) are very tiny, and are thought to be detritus
feeders: bacteria, fungi, declaying plant material.  There's about
60 jillion species, so I can't swear that NONE of the species are
harmful to plants, but I've never seen any plant damage inflicted by
springtails.  I've just always considered them as indicators of moist,
high-organic soils.  The eggs probably blow around in the wind quite
nicely.

The only damage I've ever heard of from springtails was to a professor
who collected them: they are normally collected by using an aspirator
to suck up the adults into a collecting tube.  Somehow, he got a
nice dose of collembola eggs that lodged in his sinuses and hatched
out.  Apparently he's the first known case of collembolan sinus
infection...

Article 6793 (150 more) in rec.gardens:
From: klier
Subject: re: FUNGUS GNATS, SHORE FLIES, SPRINGTAILS
Date: 22 Apr 92 20:11:29 GMT

> I'm still looking for a book or such which contains pictures/descriptions of
> these "quasi"-pests. I have other interesting critters in the potting mixture
> that I'd love to ID.

A couple of suggestions:  Borror and White.  Field Guide to the Insects
(general, but will help you get your critters to the right family): part
of the Peterson Field Guide series.

Cynthia Westcott: The Gardener's Bug Book.  Much more applied.  I have
an old copy, but it's been through several editions. Good stuff.


Article 6795 (148 more) in rec.gardens:
Subject: RE: Springtails and Fungus Gnats
Date: 23 Apr 92 14:04:36 GMT

Springtails are pests of ornamental plants, tomato, potato, lettuce, cucumber,
sugarbeet, cotton, and pine seedlings.  They feed on roots, leaves that touch
the soil and the germinating seed radicle. These insects have also been
implicated in the transimission of fungal diseases of seedlings.  If you want
more detail on the pest status or ecology of springtails (Collembola) read:
1) Pest and Disease Control Handbook by Nigel Scopes and Michael Ledieu 1983.
Printed in Great Britain by The Lavenham Press Limited Lavenham, Suffolk.
2)Christiansen, K. 1964. Bionomics of Collembola. Annual Review of
Entomology    9:147-178.

Fungus gnat larvae are very soft bodied insects and wuite sensitive to
desication.  We try to get our growers to manage soil moisture as a part of
their overall management program for this pest.  This includes moisture in the
pot as well as under the benches. We offer these tips as guidelines only
knowing that proper hort practices for each plant differs.  The larvae of these
insects live in the top few cm of the soil and many of our local growers would
rather dry out the top few cm than drench with diazion or vydate.

Article 6774 (97 more) in rec.gardens:
Subject: FUNGUS GNATS, SHORE FLIES, SPRINGTAILS
Date: 22 Apr 92 04:02:26 GMT

Gnatrol does work in soils that don't have alot of bark in it.  Nematodes also
attack this pest as do a predatory mite called Hypoaspis.  Both are available
>>>>>>[see below]<-----<<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
from a number of companies such as Hydrogardes in Colorado.  Springtails will
feed on very small roots but more importantly they transmit various fungal
diseases.  Both of these pests and shore flies indicate a water problem--YOU
ARE KEEPING THE SOIL TO MOIST!
Lance

Article 6778 (93 more) in rec.gardens:
From: Merri L Naka
Subject: Re: FUNGUS GNATS, SHORE FLIES, SPRINGTAILS
Summary: too much moisture is relative
Keywords: moisture
Date: 22 Apr 92 15:55:20 GMT

>indicate a water problem--YOU
>ARE KEEPING THE SOIL TO MOIST!

NOT NECESSARILY!

Seriously, this moisture business is relative.  Lance is probably 100%
correct for most houseplants.  However, for African Violets, the soil
*needs* to be somewhat moist for them to be happy.  Since they like to
be evenly moist like a wrung out sponge, I use wick watering for mine
and therefore I have springtails.  My expert grower friend has had
springtails for years (15 years!) and they have never hurt his plants.
He insists that their presence means that you are maintaining the
proper level of moisture for your AV's *and* that these springtails
just show up -he thinks that they are in everyone's water.  (Kay, is
this true?) Pauline Bartholomew, author of _Growing To Show_ also says
that they do no appreciable damage.  She says to ignore them.

Since he's told me that, I've never worried about them and they have
done no damage to my precious African Violets.


By: Frank Matthews
Re: mites

for a greenhouse or growroom the best spider mite solution is Predator
Mites...buy a pack Quick!! and release them...in a few days their populations
will balance (the predators will eat the spider mites...and since they have
eaten their food supply will mainly die off...but since they can't possibly get
ALL the spider mites they
will balance out...)

Re: Gnatrol and Gardens Alive (from rec.gardens, Bob Batson)
From: Bob.Batson@p3.f322.n280.z1.fidonet.org (Bob Batson)
Subject: Re: Gardens Alive address

  > Recently, there was a discussion of fungus gnats and a biological
  >control to get rid of them.  I've looked everywhere for it, but
  >no one carries it!
  > I think the source mentioned before was Gardens Alive.  Could
  >someone e-mail me their address (or that of another supplier)?

Yes, it's carried by Gardens Alive and it's called "Gnatrol (Bt/H-14).
It's a strain of Bacillus thuringiensis called H-14 and is on page 41
of the latest catalog (Vol.9, No.4). One pint (catalog #1963) is $9.95 and
supposedly has an indefinite shelf-life. The address is:

        GARDENS ALIVE           [CATALOG FREE]
        5100 Schenley Place
        Lawrenceburg, IN 47025
        (812) 537-8650          [Orders ONLY]

Re: BIRC (from Usenet, alt.save.the.earth)
From: Jym Dyer
Subject: Re: Rumors of trouble with Pressure Treated Lumber?
Date: 23 Apr 92 13:30:00 GMT

>>> What ever happened to the Borax PT wood that was supposed to
>>> be coming out on the market[?]
>> I believe the Borax treatment is water soluble...
> borax itself is toxic to cats.
> Of course, I wonder if the other chemicals they use in PT wood
> could be toxic to animals under the same circumstances.

=\= According to the Rainforest Action Network's _Wood_Users'_
_Guide_ (a book I highly recommend), a Berkeley-based group
called the Bio-Integral Resource Center (BIRC) does have a
nontoxic alternative to pressure-treated lumber.

=\= I've never checked this out, mostly because I haven't built
anything intended to be used outdoors.  I've heard of BIRC
before, from their work in Integrated Pest Management.

=\= If anyone's interested in checking up on this, I've attached
some info about BIRC below.

[From EcoNet, 14-Dec-1991]

Facts about BIRC The Bio-Integral Resource Center (BIRC) is a
non-profit organization formed in 1978 to provide practical
information on least toxic methods for managing pests.  Our
interdisciplinary staff, working with an advisory board of
distinguished scientists and research associates, has designed
highly effective, environmentally sound pest management
strategies for a wide variety of pest problems throughout the
United States and Canada.  This work has been based on the
principles of Integrated Pest Management or IPM.  We have a
small hard copy catalog which lists our publications on
thousands of pests, our membership information, and describes
our programs.  It has not yet been converted to an ascii file
for on-line posting.  Until then, send E-mail to lhall at birc
or write BIRC at PO Box 7414 Berkeley CA 94707.  Our telephone
number is 510/524-2567.


rec.gardens #6298 (55 more)                                                (1)
From: Paul Harvey
[1] Peach Leaf Curl
Date: Tue Apr 21 19:57:57 1992
Lines: 31

If you want the best tasting peaches, you have to put up with "The Curl".
There is a correlation between curl and taste that the best breaders have
yet to undo. Floyd Zager in Modesto, CA may be able to do it yet. But for
now you have to put up with it.

FIX FOR THE CURL:

Spray with lime-sulfur or Bordeaux when the leaves fall in fall, at full
dormancy in January and when the blossoms just show color in early spring.
If you get heavy spring rains, the final spray should be just before the
rains begin, (but more than 24hrs), if you can manage that. Dormant pruning
should be heavy, like 2/3'rds. Prune to open up the tree and improve airflow.
Cut back new growth to a couple of fruit buds, (the big ones). Only one year
old wood will fruit, so you have to prune hard to maintain young wood.
Un-pruned trees bear all their fruit at the tips and eventually kill
themselves. These trees have been highly domesticated by humans, and they
need your help to survive.

Once the tree leafs out, you have to take what you get. You might still
get some curl even if you did the dormant sprays correctly. You can try
all the miracle cures you want, but NOTHING will kill curl once the leaves
are out. Pick the curled leaves off, if only the lower part of a leaf is
curled, leave the rest of the leaf on. If every leaf has curl and you have
to strip the whole tree, well such is life. You don't have to worry too much
and you don't have to strip all fruit, although thining, say one foot between
each pair of fruits, would be called for. Peach trees are very tough otherwise
and can handle de-foliation. They will put out new leaves quickly and if the
weather has dried out, there should be less curl. If the new leaves are
chloritic
or yellower that normal, spray with a good foliar fertlizer, like Miracle Grow.

EAT MORE PEACHES! (The mango of the temperate climates)

Article 6693 (95 more) in rec.gardens:
From: Marcos O. Camargo
Subject: Peach leaf curl
Date: 17 Apr 92 16:40:27 GMT

Once a peach leaf curl there is nothing you can do.  Actually spraying
copper after tree leafs out may kill the tree.  Let the tree leaf out again
and pull all fruits this year.  Keep the tree healthy this year.  Next
year spray tree with lime sulfur (the least toxic fungicide to control
peach leaf curl).  Maybe some some chemist on the net can explain what
lime sulfur is (calcium polysulphide).  Copper eventually can become
a problem as a heavy metal in soil contamination.  Also suggest that you
plant a variety of peach called "Frost", which is peach leaf curl resistant
and you can purchase this tree form Raintree Nurseries in Morton, Wa.

Good luck,

Marcos O. Camargo

Article 6694 (94 more) in rec.gardens:
From: Ecology Center Fund
Subject: Re: Cure for Peach leaf curl
Date: 17 Apr 92 15:54:00 GMT

I'd use the copper.  Copper sulfate is considered compatible with
organic gardening, is in fact a plant nutrient, and when applied
as recommended has no ill effect on your garden ecosystem save
potential temporary retardation of peach tree growth (something
i've often wished for!)

Short of that, hand removal of the affected leaves will provide
partial control, as well as that growth inhibition mentioned
above.  (fewer leaves = less growth.

chris

Article 6724 (89 more) in rec.gardens:
From: Marcos O. Camargo
Subject: Re: Cure for Peach leaf curl
Date: 20 Apr 92 17:26:47 GMT

>I'd use the copper.  Copper sulfate is considered compatible with
>organic gardening, is in fact a plant nutrient, and when applied
>as recommended has no ill effect on your garden ecosystem save
>potential temporary retardation of peach tree growth (something
>i've often wished for!)
>Short of that, hand removal of the affected leaves will provide
>partial control, as well as that growth inhibition mentioned
>above.  (fewer leaves = less growth.
>chris

Chris,

Copper can build in your soil and it is considered a heavy metal.  Try
using "lime sulfur".  It controls "peach leaf curl".  Try planting a variety
called "Frost", which is resistant to "peach leaf curl".

Marcos O. Camargo

rec.gardens
Date: 21 Apr 92 23:25:04 GMT

>>In an effort to not use any chemicals when not needed, I didn't spray my
>>dwarf peach tree this year.  I now have a terrible case of Peach Leaf
>>Curl.  I have started spraying with copper (which I hate due to necessity
>>of avoiding any kind of skin contact).  Is this the best solution?
>I have been wondering about this too.  Is there anything that can be
>done to control fruit leaf curl after It has happened.  Are these
>trees here doomed for a whole year?  I cannot spray copper now that
>they have curled leaves right?  The guy at the nursery said there
>was nothing he could sell me...that I should just pick off tthe
>curled leaves, but that is all of them... on just about all of the
>trees.
>It is on all the apricots and all the peaches and maybe even the
>fuji apple.  I have a feeling that this has been going on for a
>while, and I will be sure to rake an burn evrey thing real clear amd
>spray copper and some dormant sprays well througout next december,
>but What Can I do Now?
>What is Peach Leaf Curl...It looks like a fungus, but is it a
>pathogen...  Can it kill a whole tree?

Peach leaf curl is indeed caused by fungi, _Taphrina_ species if
you're interested.  The spores of the fungus overwinter on litter, and
probably around the bud scales on the tree as well.  _Taphrina_ species
infect peaches, plums, cherries, oaks, but I don't think they infec
apples.  Although your trees may look nasty all year, the flowers and
fruits as well as the leaves, they will probably survive.  The fungus
enters young leaves and other plant parts; once it gets into the plant,
fungicides won't do any good.  That's why you want to spray late in the
fall after leaves fall, or early in spring before the leaf buds swell.
A single application of copper sulfate should do it.

Karen Snetselaar


Re: Natural earwig control (from Usenet, rec.gardens)
Article 6900 in rec.gardens:
From: Chuq Von Rospach
Subject: Re: Earwig Help Needed
Date: 28 Apr 92 17:39:00 GMT

>Earwigs are eating my vegetable garden at night.  I saw them myself last night
>when I inspected with a flashlight.  How can I stop this problem?
>I prefer safe organic solutions.

The best solution I've heard is to chop up an old hose and place the pieces
in the garden. The earwigs will use it as a place to hide. Then every day or
so, grab each piece and dump the earwigs into a bucket of water. A few weeks
of this and no more earwigs.

Article 6916 (8 more) in rec.gardens:
From: Sharon Badian
Subject: Re: Earwig Help Needed
Date: 28 Apr 92 21:59:41 GMT

|> The best solution I've heard is to chop up an old hose and place the pieces
|> in the garden. The earwigs will use it as a place to hide. Then every day or
|> so, grab each piece and dump the earwigs into a bucket of water. A few weeks
|> of this and no more earwigs.

It works. I've tried it myself. I had a bad problem in NJ. They devoured
my parsley in no time flat. After a few days of trapping and killing
them, I hardly ever saw them again. Nothing else worked, by the way.

Re: Earwig info (from Usenet, rec.gardens)
rec.gardens #6494 (33 more)
From: Roger Vortman
[1] Re: Earwig Help Needed
Date: Thu Apr 30 15:05:59 1992

I would like to add two things to the postings already made.  First of
all, if you are going to drown them in water, it works better to add
some soap (dishwashing liquid is fine...) to the water to cut the
surface tension of the water.

The second is that I have heard that burying open cans up to the brim
in the place where you have an earwig problem and putting vegetable oil
in each one will trap earwigs as well.  I haven't tried this, but I have
heard this from several independent sources.

And, in case you didn't know it, earwigs can inflict a rather painful (for
a short period of time) bite on an unprotected finger.  They don't seem to
do this unless they feel in danger, but I have been bitten and it is not
pleasant.

rec.gardens #6518 (27 more)
From: klier
[1] Re: What are earwigs?
Date: Fri May  1 21:50:03 1992

> Would someone out there please explain to me what an earwig looks like.
> I keep reading about these earwig creatures, but I am pretty clueless
> as to what they really are.  I grew up in Iowa and now live in
> Colorado, but I have never heard of earwigs except on the net.  Are they
> found in either of these places, or have I just been living a sheltered life?

Earwigs are order Dermaptera, and look like brown termites with sugar-tong
pincers to the rear.  I've never seen them in Iowa, and never spent
enough time in CO to amount to anything, so you probably haven't seen them.
The ones in the South are maybe about 1/4" long; on the east and west coasts,
some of the big ones make an inch.

Article 7148 (97 more) in rec.gardens:
From: Ann Kamman
Subject: Good Flowers for Good Bugs
Date: 6 May 92 16:21:17 GMT

Do you environmental gardeners read GARBAGE magazine?  My May/June issue
just came yesterday.  Their big article was "Flower Power! Luring Good
Bugs - Avoiding Pesticides" by Robert Kourik.  It contained two
lengthy charts: Good Flowers for Good Bugs, and Predators and
Parasites; and 3 resources: Gardening at a Glance: The Organic
Gardener's Handbook on Vegetables, Fruits, Nuts and Herbs; Good
Neighbors: Companion Planting for Gardeners; and Designing
and Maintaining Your Edible Landscape - Naturally.  It's very likely that
your local public library has a subscription to this interesting magazine.

Sample intro paragraph of the article:  "As we learn more about insect
ecology, we find that the flowers we cherish for their colorful bloom may
be one of our most important allies in luring greater populations of
beneficial bugs to our gardens.  What contemporary gardeners need is
specific knowledge on growing flowers to help moderate the population levels
of pests.  A natural gardener doesn't try to eradicate all the bad bugs,
but attempts to keep them in check with the help of beneficial bugs,
organic sprays, and other benign controls.  The beauty of flower power is
its convenience.  Flowering plants bring complexity to the garden, an
ecological complexity that can help win the war against bugs, at no
additional cost to the gardener."

rec.gardens #6551 (34 more)                                                (1)
From: Paul Harvey
[1] Peach Leaf Curl
Date: Tue Apr 21 16:38:56 1992
Lines: 30

If you want the best tasting peaches, you have to put up with "The Curl".
There is a correlation between curl and taste that the best breaders have
yet to undo. Floyd Zager in Modesto, CA may be able to do it yet. But for
now you have to put up with it.

FIX FOR THE CURL:

Spray with lime-sulfur or Bordeaux when the leaves fall in fall, at full
dormancy in January and when the blossoms just show color in early spring.
If you get heavy spring rains, the final spray should be just before the
rains begin, (but more than 24hrs), if you can manage that. Dormant pruning
should be heavy, like 2/3'rds. Prune to open up the tree and improve airflow.
Cut back new growth to a couple of fruit buds, (the big ones). Only one year
old wood will fruit, so you have to prune hard to maintain young wood.
Un-pruned trees bear all their fruit at the tips and eventually kill
themselves. These trees have been highly domesticated by humans, and they
need your help to survive.

Once the tree leafs out, you have to take what you get. You might still
get some curl even if you did the dormant sprays correctly. Pick the curled
leaves off, if only the lower part of a leaf is curled, leave the rest of
the leaf on. If every leaf has curl and you have to strip the whole tree,
well such is life. You don't have to worry too much and you don't have to
strip all fruit, although thining, say one foot between each pair of fruits,
would be called for. Peach trees are very tough otherwise and can handle
de-foliation. They will put out new leaves quickly and if the weather has
dried out, there should be less curl. If the new leaves are chloritic or
yellower that normal, spray with a good foliar fertlizer, like Miracle Grow.

EAT MORE PEACHES! (The mango of the temperate climates)




