I had no idea what was hiding under what seemed to be my lush healthy Confederate Rose leaves until I bushed up against it and a white cloud appeared. All 15 bushes against the fence were covered!
Late this evening I waged chemical warfare .. I'll see who won tomorrrow.
X
Eeeeewwwwwwww is right! I hope you win!
Yuk! (Shiver!) I didn't see what you were talking about until I enlarged the picture. What are they?
Whitefly's. Nasty little things that will suck the life right out of a plant. I sprayed them with Orthenex fungicide/insecticide. It's what I use on everything in my garden. I have yet to see any plant react badly to it including Brugmansia.
X
XERA,
GOOD FOR YOU!! Way to ATTACK and eliminate! I hope it worked well for you. I know my spray worked WONDERS on mine.
X - Why use a fungicide when the problem is an insect, and an insecticide when the problem is a fungus? Just wondering..........
CEE,
Cause it SPRAYS!! heheheh
Well, that and because Orthenex is a MIXTURE of a fungicide and bugicide. I am not sure you can separate the two.
Best;
bluelytes
Well, first you buy a separator. Then you pour it into the holding tank. Crank on the handle, say a few hehehehehs and out it comes..
Sure you can. Orthene is just an insecticide. Funginex is just a fungicide. And there are lots of others too. As a matter of fact, Orthenex is one of the few that is combined. Used on roses a lot because those roses get fungus diseases and insects so much, and rosarians don't like that. At the moment, I can't think of another. Prolly are some, tho'....
Aren't we having a similar conversation somewhere else, too? Sounds so familiar.
CEEJ,
A separator?? Per chance, do you mean a SPRAYER?? lol. I have my grandfathers old cream separator, would that work?? lol
and YES re: similar. lol
Best;
bluelytes
ceejaytown: which is the main reason that I don't grow roses...
I remember a few years ago, there was this commercial showing a rose, and the rose plant was dubbed with this southern belle voice, and it was saying... "I'm hungry. I'm thirsty. And there are bugs nibbling on my leaves!" - Hee - And I thought "Yup, that sounds just like I would imagine a rose would sound like." And I vowed never to plant one, so I wouldn't have to bother with them - heh... I did end up with one - hubby brought me a wild rose from the woods - but that rose has to fend for itself. I never spray it for anything, and so far, it has survived - mostly - though it does sometimes get some black mold stuff on it's lower leaves. It usually pulls through though.
Xera...whiteflies are very hard to get rid of because most sprays only kill the adults, not even sure if the orthenex kills whiteflys-is it on their label that it will kill whiteflies? If not, find one that will, and keep up a schedule of spraying every 5 days for at least 3- 5 weeks to get all of them-all the eggs that will be hatching.
Whiteflies congregate underneath the newer leaves at the top of the plant, but they lay their leaves underneath the older leaves at the bottom. If you look at the underneath of those leaves you should see little white dots-those are the eggs and if you can, take the leaves off that have them and throw away in the garbage. Shake the plants around the plants that have the whitefly and you may find more-
I have found that hort oil is very effective in getting rid of whitefly-this is one pest that you don't want building up a population of. I spray hort oil on the larvae as well.
Bluelytes-
That picture is aweful, it looks like something from a gardening horror movie! Yikes!
Well I went out this morning and the whitefly population is down considerably so I consider myself the winnner in the first round. I do realize this is not a one shot deal. I'll hit them once more with the Orthenex on Wednesday, then next weekend I'll hit them for the last time with Pyola which is oil based and will kill what ever is left including the eggs. Pyola is expensive and I use it primarily in my greenhouse.
Whiteflies are listed on Orthenex. Like I said, I have yet to find a plant that does not react badly to it. I've used it on Brugmansia, Datura, Canna, Confederate Rose, Hibiscus, Morning Glory, Franklin Tree and of course Roses. I use the combination fungicide/insecticide because it's much more convenient than having to mix up problem specific sprays when I can get a good all around sovereign specific that takes care of just about everything. Where I live, because of the heat and humidity, powdery mildrew and sooty mold seem to be everywhere so when I do have a problem, I'll mix up a gallon and spray it on just about everything that is prone to black spot, powdery mildew and sooty mold as well as my problem. I'm a spray on demand gardener. I don't pull out the poison until there is a need so when I do I try to get everything a once.
I started the Confederate Rose hedge from seed. It is so amazing to see a tiny seed the size of ground pepper grow into something so huge. This is their second year. Last year I cut them all to the ground in the winter and will probably do so again this winter which will probably be the last time. That way they will be dense and they can then grow on to be my privacy fence. The picure was taken last month. It's only half of them and I'm delighted they are doing so well.
X
FWIW, Orthene and Orthenex also kill butterflies and hummingbirds that drink nectar from the flowers of plants on which it has been used....Just a FWIW.
I read a study a few years ago that had tested various pesticides on whiteflies - the problem being that the adults take off when you are spraying, and so don't get hit. It found that horticultural oil was the most effective, even when tested against products such as Orthene, Malathion, etc, because, to their surprise, they found that when the adults returned to the plant, they got stuck in the oil, and died. If I can find that article in my files, I will gladly give you all the reference. When I showed it to our Extension Agent, he suggested using a little Malathion in with it, just for a quick drop down. That is now what we recommend.
This message was edited Jul 10, 2006 3:20 PM
I always spray in the early am when the whiteflies are sluggish and don't move so fast, and I spray the air around where they are flying away.
I use a fine mist which means when they fly off they are getting hit with it as well. Plus, they settle back on the leaves which are wet and it gets them too. I spray in the evenings so that it doesn't dry so fast and the little critters are less inclined to go hunt for a better place.
You appear not to like chemicals Ceejay .. that's your choice. As I said, I spray on demand which actually is very seldom. This is the first time I have used chemicals this year and I might add that I only spray if it's an infestation like the Confederate Rose. I have had whiteflies on my brugmansia since May but not enough to make me mix up some poison. I had leaf rollers on my Canna, but again, not enough to make me want to mix up some poison. I've something .. not sure what it is eating tiny holes in my datura leaves but again, not enough to make me want to mix up some poison. Since I had a reason to mix some up, I made the choice to hit the datura and roses (of which some are showing signs of black spot) as well. I'll hit em again come Wedneday or Thursday then hit them with Pyola on the weekend which is an oil based plant extract insecticide which will take care of any eggs. I've used this approach before and it works very well for me. I might also add, that I bought a new bottle of Orthenex, the small, one last year and I always write the date I purchase it on the bottle (actually I write the date on just about everything including lightbulbs & batteries etc. so I get an idea of how long things last) . The date on my last bottle was June/1999. I remember it quite well because I was surprised at how long it had lasted.
X
You misunderstand me, X. I do use chemicals when necessary. I just use the least toxic chemical possible that will get the job done and will impact other things the least... I use Bt for canna leaf rollers, because it works, and doesn't hurt anything else. I use Sevin dust (yes, Sevin!) under plants to kill pillbugs that we have by the millions and that destroy my calla lilies and several other plants. But I don't spray it, I put it where the pillbugs are. I use Sluggo for snails, again because it works and isn't toxic to pets. I don't use Orthene on flowering plants that are attractive to butterflies and hummingbirds since I've learned it kills them when they drink the nectar. I use imidacloprid instead, if it works on the insect in question, because it doesn't make the crossover into the flower. Imidacloprid is a systemic insecticide. White fly is a terrible pest to have, and I would do what was necessary to get rid of it. Honestly! We only disagree on what is necessary. And you are completely correct - it is your choice what you use and it is my choice what I use. I was only trying to point out some viable alternatives - not trying to make you feel bad. Please forgive me if I did.
Actually imidacloprid does cross over as you say to the flower. It is systemic .. the cellular structure of a bud or flower is in no way specialized to stop the influx of any chemical systemically in a plant. Bee keepers in Europe are very concerned.
Increasingly alarms are being raised that this chemical is systemic, persistent and damaging in subtle ways to bees at lower exposure levels than previously imagined. As a result, public protests in Europe have made the news and increased scrutiny is being directed towards the research that has been used to support the claims of safety.
If you wish to read the news release here it is:
http://www.honeybeeworld.com/imidacloprid/index.html
X
I am inducting XERA into the BLUELYTES IS RIGHT club, lolrof. CEEJ, You can join too!! C'mon over to the chemical side, Muahahahhaha!!! hehehe
Best;
bluelytes
The article does not say that it definitely crosses over. It says that they are debating and researching the issue. The beekeepers are concerned; the chemical companies claim to provide proof that it doesn't.
All I know is that TAMU tested it at the Cockrell Butterfly Gardens here in Houston, in response to a problem they were having with scale. They found that Orthene crossed over, but that Imidacloprid didn't, so that is what they use.
Orthene will kill thrips in flowers, but Imidacloprid won't. Orthene is recommended for insects in flowers; Imidacloprid is not.
Greetings _ I have read postings regarding white flies with great interest. I'm new to gardening and I just planted 180 plants that I have grown from seed to my outside containers. When I found what I think are furry white flies with a trail of white substance down the stem of a dwarf sunflower, I removed the whole flower from the container and threw it away. Could you explain more about horticulture oil and possible brands to use. I have these small white flies on tomato plants along with microscopic brown bugs which I think are mites. I clean them off with water each day and used a insecticide/fungicide on Sunday. It worked just a little and now they are coming back strong, Thanks so much for any info you can provide.
