I spotted a couple of what are probably mites on a few of my African violets, so all the plants in my main area are going to be sprayed with insecticidal soap to hopefully stop that spread in its tracks since I've caught it early. However, I've read that some(?) begonias are sensitive to insecticidal soaps.
Has anyone actually had an issue with this? Does it seem to happen more with one like.. category of begonia than others (rex, tuberous, etc)? Or those that like terrariums? Are extra fuzzy? Obviously between species and hybrids there are a TON out there and I'm just trying to figure out how careful I gotta be with these guys. My begonias are somewhat separate from my AV area and usually get cared for at different times than the AVs so there isn't a 100% chance of transfer, but I'd rather spray than check every single leaf and stem on my bigger rex under the loupe if that's an option.
The three that are most likely gonna be sprayed at least once are two rexes and a begonia metallica/incarnata, if that helps, though I've got three more varieties in the other room that might get a preventive spray too (b. pustulata, Eunice Grey, and another I forgot the name of, need to ask mom).
How often should you spray house plants with insecticidal soap? I had some infection on a couple of plants and sprayed them until the bugs were gone. Now, I have a half bottle that I added water too. I have been spraying my plants once a week since, they are indoors and the plants that were infected were too. Should I keep doing that or am I harming all my plants?
I noticed dozens (maybe hundreds) of what appeared to be spider mites on my plant in my container/planter. It would've been difficult not to flood the soil if I took it into my bathtub and sprayed it off with the high-pressure hose, so I sprayed the leaves and stems with Safer's insecticidal soap. Now the leaves and stems look dried and dead. I'm guessing that burying the leaves and stems back in the soil would contaminate the soil with the insecticidal soap. I'm guessing that throwing them into the compost would contaminate the compost with insecticidal soap. I guess I could just throw them in the trash, but wouldn't it be more eco-friendly to spray off the dried soap residue of the uprooted stems and leaves in my bathtub on an old mosquito net (so any dried leaf debris doesn't clog the drain pipe), and the throw the rinsed off stems and leaves into the compost? I've heard that there is water treatment of human sewage, but I'm unfamiliar with this process. I don't know if it would disable the soap residues so that they become harmless to the ecosystem. I have heard that medications have been found in tap water, because there are certain medications that can't be treated in the municipal facilities. Though I'm guessing that they use autoclaves, which use pressure to dismantle prions? I don't know if the heat and pressure of a giant autoclave would disable Safer's insecticidal soap. Anyone have any advice for me?
Hi everyone. I have an indoor grow starting and I’m trying to grow organic. So far I’ve noticed fungus gnats hatching from the soil, and spider mites on outdoor houseplants. I’m expecting the worst so I’ve been looking at buying pesticides/preventatives. Besides diatomaceous earth and sticky traps, what are some products I can buy to give me some peace of mind?
I have insecticidal soap but I’m worried about killing off my mycorrhizae, so I’m thinking spinosad sounds great. However, it sounds like there’s potentially problems smoking spinosad and it doesn’t seem recommended anymore. Would neem oil be a good blend of properties, or should I look into another product? Thanks for the help or recommendations.
Hello all,
I made a mistake and sprayed insecticidal soap on my veggies, and the temperature is going to reach 99f today. I’m afraid they’ll get burned so I moved all my veggies to the garage which is about 10 degrees cooler than the outside temps and shaded. Do you think it will be safe to move them back outside tomorrow (100f tomorrow)?
