Organic root aphid management - what are you using?
- Thread starter Albertine
- Start date
S
schwagg
shit sorry man, i tossed the package and don't remember which species was in it. they do work. period. keep the soil a little more moist then you normally would. they love the water. i see tons of dead or dying RA dropping out of the soil daily. i'd rather go this route then dumping some chem shit in my soil i've worked so hardly to build. i think another treatment of nemo's might be the kicker. overdose the soil with them till it's gone.
as for the DE, it works great but if you put it on wet soil, not so good. i switch between when the top of the soil is damp and dry. when it's dry, let the DE fly. it knocked the shit out of them on one plant i let dry out. the little bastards came out and bled out. nice how it works!
as for the DE, it works great but if you put it on wet soil, not so good. i switch between when the top of the soil is damp and dry. when it's dry, let the DE fly. it knocked the shit out of them on one plant i let dry out. the little bastards came out and bled out. nice how it works!
S
schwagg
it's all part of the plan to keep us from growing. hang in there. i am. they're infecting our soils with these little buggers on purpose.
"i'll just go to HD and grab some soil to grow my maryJ but wait, those little bugz just killed my shit!
atleast you can laugh while the little critters eat away at your shit!!
1/2 - 1 cup of either neem seed meal or karanja meal or a compbination of both to 1 c.f. of mixed potting soil will definitely put the hammer down on insect problems in the soil.
Apply as a top-dressing if the plant is already up and running. Making a tea from these seed meals and applying as a soil drench will get things moving quickly.
That's my experience as well as that of Capt.Cheeze1 and others on this board.
HTH
CC
Apply as a top-dressing if the plant is already up and running. Making a tea from these seed meals and applying as a soil drench will get things moving quickly.
That's my experience as well as that of Capt.Cheeze1 and others on this board.
HTH
CC
I have not used the karanja meal...I would love to give it a shot but,......
.....I have incorporated neem seed meal in my mix as well as crab shell meal. The gnats that came with the peat moss I started with over a year ago,and plants that are gifted to me here and there,have been the cause of getting gnats and root aphids.
I have used BT and neem oil drenches throughout the "herpes" like proliferation of these bastards. Only now after incorporating neem seed meal and crab shell meal in my soil do I not see a single flying insect....and this has been for a few months now.
Speaking of crab shell meal..I noticed "Neptune's Harvest" brand has 12 lbs. of crab shell meal for something like $35 bucks at my local "Dro" store....I think that's kinda' 'spensive! I can get crab shell meal for 5 bucks per 5 pounds from a less commercial source locally.
.....I have incorporated neem seed meal in my mix as well as crab shell meal. The gnats that came with the peat moss I started with over a year ago,and plants that are gifted to me here and there,have been the cause of getting gnats and root aphids.
I have used BT and neem oil drenches throughout the "herpes" like proliferation of these bastards. Only now after incorporating neem seed meal and crab shell meal in my soil do I not see a single flying insect....and this has been for a few months now.
Speaking of crab shell meal..I noticed "Neptune's Harvest" brand has 12 lbs. of crab shell meal for something like $35 bucks at my local "Dro" store....I think that's kinda' 'spensive! I can get crab shell meal for 5 bucks per 5 pounds from a less commercial source locally.
I'll quote Mr. Fista here because I really couldn't say it any better than he.......
..."The crabshell chitin that get's broken down in the soil is the same stuff insect exoskeletons are made of. So by adding chitin and recycling the soil a build up of organisms that use the chitin as a substrate is occuring. Some of the microbes that break down the chitin will also break down the chitin on living insects exoskeletons in your soil. Gnats and root aphids cannot complete their life cycles.
You can also use insect molt - locust cicada etc collected from trees. Lobstershell as well, crabs, insects, lobster - all arthropods. All have exoskeletons made of the same stuff - chitin."
..."The crabshell chitin that get's broken down in the soil is the same stuff insect exoskeletons are made of. So by adding chitin and recycling the soil a build up of organisms that use the chitin as a substrate is occuring. Some of the microbes that break down the chitin will also break down the chitin on living insects exoskeletons in your soil. Gnats and root aphids cannot complete their life cycles.
You can also use insect molt - locust cicada etc collected from trees. Lobstershell as well, crabs, insects, lobster - all arthropods. All have exoskeletons made of the same stuff - chitin."
I used 5 lbs. for roughly 75 gallons of soil.....I'm an eyeballer.
I think the most important thing about incorporating this into your mix is to recycle your soil. As Fista says,it's about the build up of specific organisms.....this is where it counts.
I scooped out a tablespoon of my soil the other day to show someone how much it crawls...the guy tripped out at all the little critters buggin' around in it.
I've recycled the same soil for the better half of the year running continuous cycles and it only gets better. There is no pest or disease that can't be balanced and/or managed in a painless organic fashion. Diversity is the key..and an understanding of the natural soil/food web.
You could ask Fista about the "one use" thing....he may have a better clue than I.
Crab meal is also a great source of calcium and a slower release nitrogen....good stuff,I'd use it anyway.
I've recycled the same soil for the better half of the year running continuous cycles and it only gets better. There is no pest or disease that can't be balanced and/or managed in a painless organic fashion. Diversity is the key..and an understanding of the natural soil/food web.
You could ask Fista about the "one use" thing....he may have a better clue than I.
Crab meal is also a great source of calcium and a slower release nitrogen....good stuff,I'd use it anyway.
Neem seed meal is cool in preventing the buggers, heres how to get rid of them:
Azatrol/Azamax
Liquid pyrethrum
SucraShield - Sucrose Octanoate Esters (SOE)
http://www.naturalforcesllc.com/ssfacts.asp
All soil drenches
Azatrol/Azamax
Liquid pyrethrum
SucraShield - Sucrose Octanoate Esters (SOE)
http://www.naturalforcesllc.com/ssfacts.asp
All soil drenches
Azatrol/Azamax application rate 1-4 tbs (5-20ml)/gal.
Applie the Sucrashield at around 15ml/gal and see if that works, if it doesn't kill them, bump it up.
Quite simply the Sucrashield delivers a pesticide that naturally occurs in tobacco. Why people use tobacco teas to kill bugs and why the non-organic, pesticide users use Imidacloprid in Bayer Tree and Shrub to get rid of them (Imidacloprid is a nicotine-isolate).
Here's an EPA report on Sucrashield: http://www.epa.gov/oppbppd1/biopesticides/ingredients/factsheets/factsheet_035300.htm
Lactobacillus^^^^
No, sorry I've had root aphids 5 times. Hygrozyme doesn't work.
Lactobacillius (hydroguard, not Hydrogard) doesn't worth either and I don't know if you were saying that there was lactobacillius in hygrozyme, but there isn't.
Enzymes are not alive.
Hygrozyme is basically EM-1...EM-1 = lactobacillus...but I'm pretty sure they won't tell you that.
Lactobacillus does NOT kill bugs...It just doesn't work that way. Sorry if that last post threw you off.
Here's one brand...there are more. Why not just make your own anyway. Easy,but takes time.
http://www.arbico-organics.com/product/EM-1-Microbial-Inoculant/organic-soil-conditioners
