Organic Pest Control

I think this forum could use an Organic Pest Control Sticky to help growers with such pests as Spider Mites (my most dreaded pest), fungus gnats and others.
Let's post our methods here and let the Mods edit it and use the information as they see fit.
Thanks.
Burn1

Fungus Gnats-
The best way I have found to deal with fungus gnats is to simply let the top layer of soil dry out for a few days. The gnats life cycle is interrupted and their population diminishes quickly.
Burn1

Spider Mites-
Predator mites can keep these pests under control. They are however very expensive to ship. Spider mites don't have their natural predators around when you have a grow indoors.
Neem Oil can be very effective on vegging plants, mothers and around the grow room. You don't want to spray it on plants in the mid to late flowering stage however. Plain water can be sprayed on flowering plants because spider mites live in a narrow temperature and humidity range.
Spider mites can get into your grow room in many ways. From your clothing worn outdoors, from your pets that have been outdoors and from soil and supplies you bring into your grow room. So, quarantine your supplies and soil a few weeks before bringing them inside to your plants. And try to take a shower and change clothes before working on your grow if you've been outside. A dedicated pair of sandals kept outside your grow room can help keep the mites out that may be on your shoes if you've been outside.
First sweep and clean up clutter and spilled soil or leaf material in your grow room. Spray your grow room floor, walls and plant shelves with a mix of Neem Oil, water and dish washing detergent. Look for instructions on the label. Be careful not to use antibacterial soap on your organic soil. It'll kill the microherd. And don't get water into your electrical equipment or connections.
Spider mite control is a daily battle. Even if you don't have them, it's good to use the Neem Oil to keep them away.
Burn1

Cedar Shavings-
Cedar shavings are a natural deterrent to insect pests. Spread some cedar shavings under the shelves you use to support your grow pots or bags. When you harvest your grow, sweep up the shavings and other matter and spread some fresh shavings around before setting your next crop. Cedar oil is another popular method of repelling pests.
Burn1

Timing . is... every... thing.

Was about to post a thread on exactly same lines but didn't want my efforts to wind up as thread # 1005. so, sticky! Yes.

Here's a post I wrote for a greenhouse grower with regards to how I control insects in my greenhouse.

" Insects in greenhousing. Two in particular - Aphids and Whitefly.

Both aphids and whitefly can survive the winter in greenhousing making spring time a veritable explosion of insects (and hardly any predators at this point).

The only way I've kept on top of these two species is by using Neem every 4th-5th day at dusk. The way to win the war is to spray all plants when they are small. Prevention! Now, you've done the plants....

Spray the doorway, on the ground, both sides. Spray the ground inside the greenhouse. Weed out any weeds and spray where they were. Do not shake out weeds inside the greenhouse - gently take em outside then bombard the ground they grew in.

I leave my windows and doors permanently open in Summer. A lot of interaction starts to happen with the insect population.

In spring plant sunflower/s a couple feet outside your door. Ants will actively remove many of the aphids in proximity from other plants and move them to the sunflower. This doesn't harm the sunflower, and does wonders in controlling aphids.

Ants in greenhouse? You betcha, they love it dry. Diatomaceous earth will deter them if they are problematic ie: carrying insects to your grow. Sprinkle this around the base of your pots.

Slugs and snails? Vaseline strips around pots slow them down but they sure are good at finding the one leaf touching the walls... Beer traps are excellent. A can with beer in it buried with the top at ground level. They drown in it. No worries. They'll go out singing and brawling!

Damp spots - avoid them if possible, they breed fungus gnats and other undesirables. The roof causes condensation and that's where the damp spots come from. Get in there at dawn to find them. These are potential trouble. Try keep your plants away from overly damp corners and keep them neemed.

Springtime, if you keep things open, can make or break things. Insect populations can grow so fast it's very important to keep the neem regime up especially on younger plants.

Now you should be in the garden looking on those trees for ladybirds. You need a bunch of them as it's their larvae that eat thrip aphid whitefly etc larvae so you want enough to start a gene pool. The neem doesn't harm them. Dont get ladybird imposters! Check local entomology charts and get the right ones.

Now find a pregnant preying mantis and install that on opposite side of ladybirds.

When these start to establish parasite wasps follow them in, but the wasps get trapped and die a lot, in the hot corners. The ladybird/mantis combo will slow insect populations right down and combined with neem you stand a very good chance of surviving the spring.

Caterpillars, moths, beetles and other larger type pests. Very hard to deal with. The neem makes the plants less tasty but shield bugs, some caterpillars etc still try to get a feed. As the wasps are not able to fly well in the greenhouse you must be the control agent of these too.

An electric bug zapper is definately helpful. As is an eye for damage control. If slugs and snails are being lured to drunken death the large holes in your plants are beetles and caterpillars. (plus snails leave evidence behind making the determination even easier!)

Basically, I got to try find the caterpillars and beetles, till the plants grow and enough shade develops, then the parasitic wasps finally get a chance to move in.

Wooly aphids arrive around the same time as the butterflies/moths. They are usually accompanied by lacewings. Lacewings are also your friends. Again check the charts you don't want to be killing these guys when you see them. They'll predate many pests young.

As you've probably experienced it is nigh impossible to get rid of all insects unless you make your greenhouse a toxic dump. So recruiting insects to be working with you is the way to win the war. The fact it is so hard to remove all pests works in your favour once the predators are all there, it keeps their populations alive.

Mites! - Get predator mites, I'm lucky, they breed in my beds feeding on the mites that live on algae. A sage plant will attract mites - and then predators. Worth trying away from grow and see if you can't attract your own predators.

Summing up - Springtime is the time to be ever vigilant. Summer is easier with insect assistance - regular (and thorough) neem does the trick.

By Autumn you should be flowering and so not spraying. With the right insect population installed you wont have to worry much at all.

Spiders will arrive early, and populate all over with many species. I like them in there, and they can deal with beetles and stuff neem doesn't deter that well. They don't do much really, but they certainly help in the big picture.

As soon as you harvest, drench the place again, strip out any and all weeds trying to grow on ground, up end anything touching ground and sides and check they aren't housing pests."

Nice tip on the cedar!

Good idea B1 I had been thinking of that the other day while spraying my bi-weekly does of neem.
I am all about prevention, like I said I am a neem oil fan.

For 1 litre of foliar neem

1 litre of RO or filtered water, dechlorinated and warm
5 ml of pure neem oil, cold pressed
2 ml of emulsifier, Safer soap, insecticidal soap, even dish soap as long as it's not antibacterial

Combine, shake like crazy before using, it's good for ~8 hours so don't make too much.

I spray the underside first the leaf tops, then I spray the soil surface, you can do a neem drench also when in flowering after major budset.

I find that it also delivers alot of N to the plant so when I use neem I switch to a flowering fert mix the newt time I water to balance the NPK out a bit.

My hydro store friend was telling me that fungus gnats are easily killed with neem but that a soil drench was important to kill the virus that the gnats carry.

Scy Beez had a thread about gnats and root rot but my friend was saying it was actuall a virus that would outright kill the plant once it had a foothold.

Something to discuss

Suby

Prevention is everything, as BongSong has already stated.

Prevent the problem before it ever appears.

My personal examples are on Monday I spray Serinade (B. Subtilis + baking soda), the next Monday is a spraying of Organicide and then back to Serinade the next Monday, ect ect. I hang a lot of blue and yellow sticky traps and change them regularly. Also, ladybugs, 1500 lady bugs are $5 and you can keep them in the fridge for a good amount of time. Also keep lady bugs in your rooms and they will patrol every inch of your foliage.

I've found that predator mights don't work very well; maybe for prevention, but I don't think they are good prevention measure.

A good prevention for root aphids and fungus gnats is a 1"-2" layer of playground sand (sifted and cleaned) on top of the soil and covering the holes on the bottom of the pots.

Bugs are attracted to Co2, organic matter that is decomposing releases a lot of Co2; the point is to keep your rooms clean and don't let old leaves or dirt stick around on the floor. Make sure there isn't stagnant water on the floor. Clean your walls and pots with Oxy-clean between grows. Use GOOD air filters for your air intakes & don't let pets into your grow area (they bring in a lot of bugs). The point is, the more sterile your room is, the less bugs will want to come in.

If bugs can't enter your grow, except when you go in, if they don't have a refuge that is a haven for them and if there are other things trying to eat them + you spraying things that kill them, I don't think your going to have pests that will get out of control.

I used to have a lot of bug problems, but as soon as I started using the above measures, I haven't had a pest problem since.

G/L and hope to hear a few new tricks!

Thanks Suby.

Hey BurnOne,

do you know of a organic pest spray that includes jalapeños? I remember master thai had a recipe but he edited it out of his post.

I think it was 3 jalapeños to a cup of water blended and strained, then foliar spray?

i got a bad thrip infestation hoping this will take care of it.

Thanks in advance,

Vini

Some info I came across - Have yet to try them but they sound valid & are organic.

Spraying Basics:
1. It is best to use any type of spray in the early morning or the cool of evening. Do not spray when temps are above 80 degrees Fahrenheit! Your plants may "burn" or have a reaction to what you are using in excessive heat.This is known as "phytotoxicity."
2. Always perform a test on a small portion of the plant material first. Wait 24 hours to observe any negative reaction. Proceed if there is no damage.
3. More is not better. If you are not getting good results don't increase the strength of these remedies without testing first.
4. Target just the area you need to treat. Be careful... try not to harm thegood guys! You don't want to run off your allies.
5. When working with sprays or dusts always protect your exposed skin and face. Some of these ingredients can be very irritating to your skin, eyes and mucous membranes, especially any hot pepper sprays

Alcohol Sprays

The idea of using rubbing alcohol as a spray for plant pests has been around for years. Some people swear by it while others blame it for causing leaf damage.
Protection offered: People that have used alcohol sprays say they work on aphids, mealybugs, scale insects, thrips and whiteflies. Alcohol sprays have been used successfully on houseplants and tropical foliage plants. Most of these have heavy, waxy cuticles that are not easily burned. Alcohol sprays can damage African violets and apple trees.
How to Make: Mix 1 to 2 cups alcohol [Use only 70% isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol] per quart of water. Using undiluted alcohol as a spray is very risky for plants. You can also mix up an insecticidal soap spray according to the dilution on the label but substitute alcohol for half of the water required.
How to Use: Since alcohol can damage plants always test your spray mix on a few leaves of plants first. If the spray kills the pests and no leaf damage shows within the next 2 or 3 days, go ahead and spray further, using exactly the same ingredients and proportions you tested.

Tomato Leaf Spray

Plants belonging to the nightshade family, like tomatos, potatoes and tobacco, have significant amounts of toxic compounds called alkaloids in their leaves. These toxins are water soluble and can be soaked from chopped leaves and made into home-made sprays. Their toxicity, however, may account for only part of their effectiveness. The sprays also attract natural pest enemies that follow powerful chemicals in these plants as cues in searching for prey.
Protection Offered: Tomato leaf sprays have been used to protect plants from aphids. Also, spraying tomato leaf spray can reduce cutworm damage. A scientific study
has shown that plants sprayed with tomato leaf spray attracted significantly more Trichogramma wasps to parasitize moth eggs than the unsprayed plants did.
How to Make: Soak 1 to 2 cups of chopped or mashed tomato leaves in 2 cups of water overnight. Strain through cheesecloth or fine mesh, add about 2 more cups of water to the strained liquid, and spray.
How to Use: Spray plants thoroughly, particularly undersides of lower leaves and growing tips where aphids congregate. While this spray is not poisonous to humans on contact, use care in handling, especially if you are allergic to the nightshade family.

Garlic Oil Sprays

Organic gardeners have long been familiar with the repellent or toxic affect of garlic oil on pests. When it is combined with mineral oil and pure soap, as it is in the recipe that follows, devised at the Henry Doubleday Research Association in England, it becomes an effective insecticide. Some studies also suggest that a garlic oil spray has fungicidal properties.
Protection Offered: Good results, with quick kill, have been noted against aphids, cabbage loopers, earwigs, June bugs, leafhoppers, squash bugs and whiteflies. The spray does not appear to harm adult lady beetles, however it should not be used as a general spray since it can be toxic to many beneficial insects.
How to Make: Soak 3 ounces of finely minced garlic cloves in 2 teaspoons of mineral oil for at least 24 hours. Slowly add 1 pint of water that has 1/4 ounce liquid soap or commercial insecticide soap mixed into it. Stir thoroughly and strain into a glass jar for storage. Use at a rate of 1 to 2 Tbsp. of mixture to a pint of water. If this is effective, try a more dilute solution in order to use as little as possible.
How to Use: Spray plants carefully to ensure thorough coverage. To check for possible leaf damage to sensitive ornamentals from the oil and soap in the spray, do a test spray on a few leaves or plants first. If no leaf damage occurs in 2 or 3 days, go ahead and spray more.

Herbal Sprays

Many organic farmers are familiar with using sprays made from aromatic herbs to repel pests from the garden plants. Several recent studies confirm the repellent effect of such sprays. The essential oil of Sage and Thyme and the alcohol extracts such as Hyssop,
Rosemary, Sage, Thyme, and White Clover can be used in this manner. They have been shown to reduce the number of eggs laid and the amount of feeding damage by cutworms and other caterpillars. Sprays made from Tansy have demonstrated a repellent effect on imported cabbageworm on cabbage, reducing the number of eggs laid on the plants. Teas made from Wormwood or Nasturtiums are reputed to repel aphids from fruit trees, and sprays made from ground or blended Catnip, Chives, Feverfew, Marigolds, or Rue have also been used by gardeners against pests that feed on leaves.
Protection Offered: Try herbal sprays against any leaf-eating pests and make note of what works for future reference.
How to Make: In general, herbal sprays are made by mashing or blending 1 to 2 cups of fresh leaves with 2 to 4 cups of water and leaving them to soak overnight. Or you can make an herbal tea by pouring the same amount of boiling water over 2 to 4 cups fresh or 1 to 2 cups dry leaves and leaving them to steep until cool. Strain the water through a cheesecloth before spraying and dilute further with 2 to 4 cups water. Add a very small amount of nondetergent liquid soap (1/4 teaspoon in 1 to 2 quarts of water) to help spray stick to leaves and spread better. You can also buy commercial essential
herbal oils and dilute with water to make a spray. Experiment with proportions, starting with a few drops of oil per cup of water.
How to Use: Spray plants thoroughly, especially undersides of leaves, and repeat at weekly intervals if necessary.

Hot Pepper Dusts

Black pepper, chili pepper, dill, ginger, paprika, and red pepper all contain Capsaicin, a compound shown to repel insects. Synthetic Capsaicin is also available for field use. Researchers have found that as little as 1/25 ounce of Capsaicin sprinkled around an onion plant reduced the number of root maggot eggs laid around the plant by 75%, compared to a control plant.
Protection Offered: Capsaicin-containing dusts repel onion maggots from seedlings, as well as other root maggot flies from cabbage family plants and carrots. Pepper dusts around the base of the plants help repel ants, which is desirable in a garden where ants often protect and maintain aphid colonies on plants.
How To Make: It can be rather expensive to buy enough packaged pepper dusts to sprinkle throughout your garden. However, if you grow and dry your own red peppers, chili peppers, or dill, you can make lots of dust at low cost. Use a mortar and pestle to grind the peppers, or dill, including the seeds, to dust. Be careful handling the hot peppers because they irritate sensitive skin.
How to Use: Sprinkle along seeded rows of onions, cabbage, or carrots, in a band at least 6 inches wider than the row or planting bed. A fine sprinkling will suffice, but the more dust you use, the better the effect. Renew after a heavy rain or irrigation. To protect plants from ants, sprinkle around the base of plants in an area as wide as the widest leaves.

Hot Pepper Spray

Hot pepper sprays are also effective, similar to the pepper dusts above. They can also be used in combination with garlic oil sprays and soap.
To Make: In a blender with water, liquify 2 large cayenne or habanero peppers. Strain to remove the solids and add water to bring the volume up to one gallon of concentrate. Shake well before using, and spray at the dilution rate of 1/4 cup of concentrate per gallon of water. Add 1/4 tbs. of pure castille soap to make the mixture stick to the plants better.

i been using a guano mix to keep bugs including grasshoppers away for a few years & i get about a 90% success rate i mix a fairly high dose of bat guano in a gallon of water & let it sit for about a week when i open the lid & take a whif & it smells like raw sewage its ready. i filter it out really well & spray my plants very well a few times a week & stop about a month from harvest. the plants love the extra nutrients & there are little amount of bugs on the plants. i also spray other plants that surround mine.the plants use up the nutrients prior to harvest & there is absolutley no sewage/guano smell or taste.

icon said:

i been using a guano mix to keep bugs including grasshoppers away for a few years & i get about a 90% success rate i mix a fairly high dose of bat guano in a gallon of water & let it sit for about a week when i open the lid & take a whif & it smells like raw sewage its ready. i filter it out really well & spray my plants very well a few times a week & stop about a month from harvest. the plants love the extra nutrients & there are little amount of bugs on the plants. i also spray other plants that surround mine.the plants use up the nutrients prior to harvest & there is absolutley no sewage/guano smell or taste.

Click to expand...

Hasn't your mix gone anaerobic? It sounds that way. Normally anaerobic bacteria smell like an anus purged itself. I just feel a little skeptical about this one, sorry.

icon: Spraying your plants in general will help keep bugs off even if it is just water. High-N bats eat mostly insects so it is possible the smell could deter insects. I think when the seasons outdoors aren't favorable outdoors or food supply is short that they will try harder to survive. Anaerobic extracts of guanos work extremely well. More of a NPK technique than compost tea.

Bugs are definitely attracted to decaying organic matter but not to c02. If so, then all c02 enhanced rooms would have a greater amount of bugs and IME, I've found this to be the opposite.

The "coastal root aphids" that have been so bad this year in norcal would have a beach party in sand. They can freely move through heavy clay soil. Sand works well for fungus gnats but will do nothing for root aphids. The ONLY way to get rid of the coastal root aphids is to get rid of ALL SOIL and go back to cuttings. Feel free to laugh at my 4 month olympic battle thread if you don't believe me.

Ladybugs work great when the lights are off.. they fly straight towards the light suicide style when it is on. Nematodes are great for preventing aphids, thrips, and fungus gnats in the soil but take a while to establish them in good numbers (about a week or two).

vinivici: Spinosad (Conserve sc is one brand) to get rid of them, nematodes for prevention.

suby said:

Scy Beez had a thread about gnats and root rot but my friend was saying it was actuall a virus that would outright kill the plant once it had a foothold.

Click to expand...

It was root aphids/root rot. Any munching insect can potentially spread a virus if it eats on a plant with a virus then starts eating on your plants. The root aphids use a root rot disease (furasium? I'm bad at spelling) to help them eat.


Just trying to clear up misinformation, no beef please I'm vegetarian.

- sbz

Flies and wasps are attracted by proteins. Mosquitoes and many other insects are attracted by bright colors, carbon dioxide, lactic acid, floral or fruity fragrances, warmth, and moisture and pheromones.

Click to expand...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insect_trap

I believe the observations that have been noticed about co2 filled rooms, is because the PPM is usually around 1500... possibly to high for bugs, but I know when I was running 1500ppm I got root aphids & mites.

No beef here, just clearing up some misinformation.

Mr Celsius said:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insect_trap

I believe the observations that have been noticed about co2 filled rooms, is because the PPM is usually around 1500... possibly to high for bugs, but I know when I was running 1500ppm I got root aphids & mites.
No beef here, just clearing up some misinformation.

Click to expand...

1,500 PPMs of CO2 is not high enough to kill bugs at all.

You need to be between 5,000-10,000 PPMs to asphixiate the bastards. 8 hours or so will nuke their asses and send them to see jesus.

The best organic shit to kill bugs is neem oil. You have to be religious about using it to bust up a bugs life cycle but there is nothing better. It is a great soil drench as well.

ThereIsHope said:

1,500 PPMs of CO2 is not high enough to kill bugs at all.

You need to be between 5,000-10,000 PPMs to asphixiate the bastards. 8 hours or so will nuke their asses and send them to see jesus.

The best organic shit to kill bugs is neem oil. You have to be religious about using it to bust up a bugs life cycle but there is nothing better. It is a great soil drench as well.

Click to expand...

Point taken, thanks for the clarification. Could you send me a link to some info on killing bugs with Co2 and what ppms it takes?

I have been now battling thrips, the Western Flower thrip is a develish little fucker to boot.

I want tot point something about neem oil, it`s been brought to my attention by a friend.
When using neem one should avoid doing a soil drench with it too often, oil clogs the fine root hairs in the soil and blocks the roots from working efficiently, he recommended sticking to foliars if possible.
I have noticed a little less plumpness from my buds after a few soil drenches of neem so that`s something to consider.

Suby

I was actually just talking with a friend today about his root aphids and he asked if he could use neem oil, I was pretty iffy on it and told him to research it.

So can you? I've used SM-90 without problems...

High concentrations of c02 will only kill live insects and not their eggs. It could work if repeated but, downtime of c02 (can't leave it at 8000-10000ppm all the time) will allow for more to be born and breed. A good method for a quick knockdown but not a complete solution.

Suby: Spinosad for thrips.

Mr. Celcius: I think there are different species of these going around. I first battled them in the midwest 6 years ago and they were ridiculously easy to get rid of with a few applications of Safer's Soap. Then my most recent outbreak (I make it sound like an STD) had me fooled several times thinking I got rid of them and as soon as I would give them an inch they are back in full force. I tried month long applications of Azatrol, Pyganic (5.4% pyrethrum), Nematodes, and Imidacloprid (all work together) for 4 months with no luck. After running into locals with the same problem, other icmag members online, and my friend who is a vine manager at a very well known Biodynamic Winery in the area I realized I wasn't the only one. I wholeheartedly recommend going back to cutting if possible. If he/she isn't on the coast or in CA, I'd recommend Pyganic from my personal experience.


- sbz

We're in Northern CA. I probably know what winery you're talking about, I've probably toured it. It has a really nice man who once studied to be a meteorologist.

Right now my friend is trying to apply neem oil with a few drops of soap and then some liquid pyrethrum. He's also spreading DE all over the place and on top of the soil.

He's about 5 weeks in, so he's trying to keep them alive for long enough. I looked at everything last night, just a slight yellowing of the leaves and not extremely droopy.

Thanks for the advice/experience Scay Bees