Comments on: Infested!

By: Jon

Jon — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 13:21:15 +0000

DE is Diatomecous Earth. I recently “discovered” it for getting rid of clover/spider mites, and a light dusting is all thats needed and it is good as long as it is actually present AND dry. When it gets wet it loses it pesticide properties, but those properties return when dry.

From wikipedia, “it absorbs lipids from the cuticle, the waxy outer layer of insects’ exoskeletons, causing them to dehydrate. Arthropods die as a result of the water pressure deficiency.”

It did work for me as long as it was dry. It is potentially an irritant to people if inhaled and can dry out hands if handled excessively without gloves.

Pool type DE is not recommended for this.

By: Raceytay

Raceytay — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 23:17:10 +0000

I’ve used Trounce before with success. Their sulphur as well. You might want to throw in some Chrysanthemums along with radishes. Of the two active ingredients in the Trounce, one is pyrethins, made from Chrysanthemum.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyrethrum

I’ve also planted Marigolds and Nasturtium, hoping they’d help (the jury is still out). A good list of companion plants can be found here:

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_companion_plants

I think the links made the comment not work, so I removed the http part. Sorry if you see this comment twice.

By: Nancy Bond

Nancy Bond — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 19:18:21 +0000

Little beggars! What a shame. I’m afraid that I’d be going the chemical route for something like that — something *I* am loathe to do, also, but sometimes it’s the only way to rid yourself of the critters. Good luck!

By: Kathy

Kathy — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 19:18:20 +0000

Hi Raceytay, I could do that but this is the second set-back I’ve had on the cucurbits this year. The first one was my fault for putting them out so early and letting them get frost damage. But striped cucumber beetles? What the hell! I’ve never had them before and now they just suddenly appear? And, I just put the replacement cucurbit seedlings outside to harden off last week and they might be infested as well. I got my partner to bring them indoors today but it’ll be nearly two months before I know if they’re infested or not. Blech.

Hi Amy, what’s DE? I did read about nematodes but I think I’m going to have a serious look at this Trounce stuff.

Thanks guys, this is pretty discouraging.

By: Amy

Amy — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 19:04:00 +0000

I’m guessing DE wouldn’t work, but you might try nematodes to kill the eggs underground. Maybe something like neem oil to make the leave less tasty?