Organic insecticide

[Ben Brand]

Iv`e seen some members ask for organic insecticides, just read an article by a boffin on anything organic here in SA. She uses ( sorry all in metric) 400 g garlic extract and 400 g canola oil per 2 Lt of water. This mixture can be used on flowers, veg, herbs, fruit trees and I'm positive tobacco, just spray it on, and watch them die!!!

 

[Jitterbugdude]

That's a fairly common recipe. A lot of people build on it by adding hot peppers and even soap. I had a friend that used it (with the hot peppers added). He said it worked very well but it is a contact insecticide only.

 

[deluxestogie]

Any oil sprayed directly on most insects will kill them. It clogs their spiracles. I've sprayed garlic (aqueous) directly onto Japanese beetles and aphids. They didn't care. Garlic sprayed directly onto a tobacco leaf, however, imparts a garlic flavor to the tobacco.

On the Oliva tobacco plantation in Ecuador, they performed a trial of organic pest management, which included wooden poles with garlic oil stationed throughout a field. That was maybe 5 or 6 years ago. I haven't heard anything about it since. I'm sure that, like soapy water for aphids, it mitigates the pest burden, but does not eliminate it, and usually requires considerably more work for slightly damaged tobacco.

Bob

 

[Ben Brand]

I hear you. When I was farming tobacco we had little yellow boxes scattered through our tobacco lands, with a pheromone in, to lure the boll-worm males and trap them , to prevent them from mating with the females, eventually the population was suppose to die out. It did work in some ways, but spraying pesticides was still the best.

 

[CharlesWhitehead]

Organic Pest control is the best method rather than chemicals,which harms other living by using such chemicals. I recently appointed exterminator suffolk county ny which helped us providing natural home-made organic pest control services.

 

[LewZephyr]

Any of you use nematodes or diatomaceous earth?

 

[Jitterbugdude]

I use Diatomaceous Earth (DE) when I transplant and keep it up for about 2 or 3 weeks until the plants as strong enough. I've used nematodes for my fruit trees and bees but not in the garden. You have to be careful to not inhale the DE when dusting.

 

[Chicken]

Any of you use nematodes or diatomaceous earth?

I used nematodes once years ago for fleas..and noticed no difference.

I'll stick with my chemicals..I know they work.

 

[Jitterbugdude]

Nematodes can be tricky to use. You have to make sure you have the correct species for the pest you are treating. You also need to keep the ground moist for about a week. This allows the little buggers to burrow deeper into the soil or they will dry to death.