[CH] nicotine sprays
margaret lauterbach (mlaute@micron.net)
Sun, 04 Apr 1999 08:11:27 -0600
Date: Sat, 03 Apr 1999 15:16:05 -0600
From: Calvin Donaghey <gdonaghey@bitstreet.com>
Subject: Re: [CH] Aphids HELP!!!!
Debra,
Whatever you end up using, add a few garlic gelcaps to the mix (dissolved, of
course) and the little varmits won't be so eager to come back. I have a
friend
who boils a quart of water with a package of unsweetened chewing tobacco
shredded up in it in a coffee can and adds the water to his soap mix. I have
used it when I had a bad infestation of mites, and although it didn't
completely
stop the mites, it did stop the aphids (smells like burned hairballs, though).
It sounds as if your plants may be young, in which case I recommend washing
them
off by hand with mild soap mix. If the soap is too concentrated, the sun
might
burn young plants.
Good Luck.
Calvin
Nicotine solutions are deadly to mammals, too. That's using a cannon to
kill a fly, actually. You can blast aphids off plants with a jet of water.
Most don't fly, and die trying to climb back to their posts. If you use
nicotine, you endanger humans (I think that stuff can be absorbed through
the skin), and kill all of the beneficial insects who stand ready to help
you. Gardening without beneficials is a pain in the ......Margaret L