Does Sevin really do anything?

Last year, my cleome were plagued with harlequin bugs -- just devastating. I tried bursts of water, homemade capsaicin, then finally Sevin. The bugs were completely unaffected by it. Not only did they not die, they kept multiplying like nothing was ever sprayed. It was so bad, that I've pulled every cleome volunteer this year.

This year I found loads of red aphids (I think) on my heliopsis (false sunflower). I tried Sevin again and same thing-- days and even 2 weeks later, bugs were thriving and multiplying. How long does it take to work, if ever?

I guess my question is that if Sevin doesn't work, what does? Is there something else, obviously besides RAID!

Well, aphids you can get rid of with a strong blast from the hose, or with some insecticidal soap, you shouldn't need to resort to things like Sevin. I'm not sure what Sevin kills though or what the active is in it since I don't use it, but I would read the label and see what sort of bugs it's effective against, most pesticides are effective against some types of bugs but not others.

Sandy,
I have a quick question for you. Is there a chance you're using a bottle of SEVIN that has frozen, over winter?

I can't imagine it not killing those insects, or even phasing them.

Sasha

Well, the bottle did remain in the garage this past winter, and it probably did freeze for some time. But it didn't work last year either when the bottle was "fresh." Have you had success with Sevin?

As for the blast of water, there had to be at least 500 aphids. Would that have been possible to do? Would the force destroy the plant?

Sandy,

I would encourage you to buy another bottle of SEVIN, or the SEVIN Dust.

I have never had SEVIN that didn't kill any bug I put it on-from bean bugs, to squash bugs, to Jap Beetles, to leaf hoppers, etc., etc.

My guess is that that bottle had already been frozen when you got it-if it's not zapping anything.

There is a warning right on the label, about not letting it freeze. In essence, the liquid is rendered useless.

I always buy the concentrate in the small bottle and mix it myself in a squirt bottle. That way I can use just a tiny bit, as I need it, and don't spray it all over everything.

SandyRN
I have better luck with Malathion 50 for aphid. Seven is good but it did not work as well as the Malathion. Also, Seven will kill bees and you don't want that because we all need them to work at pollinating.
The Walmart brand of Malathion 50 is as good as the brand name and much cheaper;
Good luck.
B

All insecticides are capable of killing bees, but Sevin dust in particular is bad because it can be carried back to the hive on the hairs of the bees and wipe out the whole hive. The bee population is way down this year, and it is causing a lot of worry because they are our best pollinators. Another problem with Sevin dust is that it can cause phototoxicity, actually injuring the leaves of the plant. If you feel that you must use Sevin (or any other sprayed insecticide), use the liquid spray in the evening, after bees have returned to their hives. Hopefully it will be dry by morning and less toxic to them when they return to gather pollen and nectar. That includes Malathion - it kills bees too.

For aphids, you don't need anything stronger than soapy water (or Insecticial soap, if you prefer).. It will dessicate their soft little bodies. You'll need to watch, and repeat when they show up again. You're bound to miss some, and they breed quite rapidly.

For other insect problems, my poison of choice is Imidacloprid, which is systemic. By watering it in, beneficial insects aren't killed, only those munching or sucking on the plant. (It does not work on cottony cushion scale.) And it lasts for several months. It is not taken into the flowers, and so does not kill butterflies or hummingbirds either.

Bt is for destructive caterpillars. When they ingest it, the bacteria break down their digestive system. Birds can eat them without harm. Just be careful not to use it near your butterfly garden, or where butterfly caterpillars are munching. It kills them too.

Thanks everyone. Great information. I will try your suggestions. I thought I read once that for making insect soap, use 3 oz. soap per gallon. Is this correct?

Also, has anyone tried pyrethrin. I hear it's more environmentally friendly and safer.

Pyrethrin's better than Sevin in terms of friendliness, but it's still a broad-spectrum insecticide and will take out a lot of good bugs as well as bad. So will insecticidal soap for that matter, but it's friendlier than the pyrethrin. If you're just dealing with aphids, I wouldn't go with anything stronger than the insecticidal soap, there's just no need since they're easy to kill. As far as dilution for the insecticidal soap--it may depend on what brand you have, I would read the directions on the bottle. Some brands may be more concentrated than others but the bottle will tell you how much to use.

A couple of tablespoons of dishwashing soap per gallon of water....

ceejay,
I am really interested in hearing more about Imidacloprid (personal experience, I mean).

Wher can I find this product? It does sound much safer.

Sasha

Imidacloprid is the active in Bayer Advanced, probably others as well.

Here's a website I really like for getting info about various pesticides--you can find info on toxicity (to people, environment, etc), find out what products have that particular active in them, what pests those products claim to kill, etc and lots of other info. Some of it can get a bit technical but if you click around a bit you'll find all sorts of good info.
http://www.pesticideinfo.org/Index.html

I have used it on verbena with lacebug and for scale on sago palm (not that new scale that is killing them in Florida. I suspect it may not work on that.) Orthonex works but it goes into the flower, which is food for butterflies and hummingbirds, and it is toxic to them. According to our Extension agent, imidacloprid doesn't pass into the flower. He told me that Cockerell Butterfly Center, here in Houston, had an outbreak of scale. They needed to do something, but didn't want to injure or kill their butterflies. So there was some testing done, and apparently imidacloprid passed the test. It takes a while to be effective because it has to be taken up into the plant first. But once there, it lasts for months. Many landscapers use it here because of that.
It goes by the brand names Merit and Marathon. One is for greenhouse use - can't remember which. You can also buy a Bayer Advanced product that is imidacloprid. That, soapy water, and Bt are the only insecticides I use, and not very often. I plant things that attract beneficial insects and they are very good at handling insect problems. (And I don't plant things that are probems...)

sandy - Pyrethrin is more environmentally friendly because it has very short residual action - it breaks down rapidly. But it is as toxic when freshly applied as Malathion, Sevin or any other major insecticide.

Ecrane and ceejay,

Thanks so much for the info!! I had wondered what set the Bayer products apart from the others.
Ecrane, I will definitely check out that link on pesticides!

Thanks again.
Sasha

Sasha - Bayer Advanced is the brand name for many products, not just imidacloprid. Be very careful to get the right one. They also make one that is di-syston, and it is highly toxic to mammals - such as dogs and cats. I wouldn't use that one for anything!!
You're very welcome. Glad we could be of help.....

Ceejay,

Oh good! That's more great info. I will look for the right one!

Sasha

ecrane and ceejay,
Thanks for the pyrethrin info. I've not seen it at stores like homedepot. Must it be purchased online?

I think one of the Safer or Garden Safe brand products has pyrethrin in it, don't remember which one though. My Home Depot carries those brands, not sure if yours would or not. Have you actually looked close at the bottles of the various products you find at HD? You have to read the fine print on the front usually to find out what the active is. Sorry I can't be much help, I won't use pyrethrin so I never paid much attention to which products have it. You could use the website that I linked to a couple posts ago, but there are a lot of different sorts of pyrethrins and probably a lot of products that use each one so while you can still easily find the toxicity info, it may be less useful than it would be for other types of actives for finding products.

These products contain pyrethrin.

Hi-Yield Rotenone Dust or Bonide Rotenone-Pyrethrin

Thanks for the info!