Is there a recommendation for general soil treatment for harmful insects.
I have an in ground garden patch about 25 feet by 12 feet. I recently filled 4 trash bags removing the weeds - mostly a sedge and chamberbitter.
While doing that weeding I saw, literally, hundreds of bugs per square foot. No kidding there were bugs everywhere.
I had the thought before starting cool weather vegetables in that area to spray the soil with something to get ahead of the bugs a bit. Maybe not a big concern for winter, but for next summer.
I also know not all insects are bad, so I need to be aware of that as well.
Maybe just a good soaking of Neem oil?
A general insecticide?
Both?
Is it worth it?
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There are fungal based insecticides that will colonize the larve on contact and eat them. Beauveria bassiana is one example.
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True insects overwinter either as larvae, nymphs, eggs, or pupa.
Surface treatment would not be contact treatment though. I’d have to dig each o e up right? Or maybe spray first, turn the soil, and spray again.
Forecast high today is 104°. My average high for this date is 89°.
I wonder if it’s too early to even treat the soil if there are still insects who are laying eggs, etc.
Also if I do a Neem oil soil soak (which looks easy and inexpensive), it shouldn’t affect seeds or germination right?
I don’t imagine it would affect it, but knowing it would after the fact would suck…
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for soil treatments recommend drenching vs. spraying. First wet the area nicely with something that will penetrate deep by reducing the surface tension of the water and open up instectide to do deep in the soil. You can use something like Penterra or yucca extract powder or thermX-70 (expensive) if you want to go organic route.
Then, mix the bio insecticide in water and drench the area pretty good. The process will work much better if you do this after a good rain.
After that you can mulch the area with newspaper/cardboard and cover it up with plastic or row cover held with landscape pins.
There are also parasitic insects and nematodes that can be employed to kill the pests, but I find those solutions expensive and timing has to be perfect on when to introduce them. I have tried using ladybugs for aphids while they work but they fly away sometimes for unknown reasons. In addition, I have tried nematodes can’t tell whether it worked or not.
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I also had good results this year using Potassium Silicate (Dynagro Protekt) for my vegetable grow. Those plants I used Protekt have thick leaves, stems and I have zero aphids, spider mites on peppers, egg plants and only a few stink bugs. There is one Hollywood plum tree that is in my front yard and didn’t get the silica and it has plenty of aphids munching on the tender leaves.
Edit: look up the lifecycle of the insect you are trying to control and apply the treatment when they go into a stage where the insecticide can work.
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Thanks.
I’ll look into some of those products. I was considering a Neem soak with a bit of soap as surfactant I guess… Or to spread the oil in the water for application.
I hear you on the ladybugs.
I had a relative small Asian pear a few years ago with thousands of aphids. I bought ladybugs and let them loose on the tree.
The next day I couldn’t find a single ladybug but the tree still was full of aphids.
There must have been an aphid rave somewhere nearby and they got distracted. I guess I could have netted the tree after letting them go.
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I am pretty conservative when it comes to using neem oil, unless you are buying “real” cold pressed oil from India, there are instances where products had no neem or synthetic toxins (looking at you Bonide). Also, neem is deadly for pears.
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@Oregon_Fruit_Grow
Damn… I think the concentrate I have is Bonide.
There is little truth in advertising in the US…
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Bonide has been a good product every time I’ve used something from them.
That’s my experience.
It’s a 4 year old article. I wonder if the manufacturing issue still exists.
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Get some fence lizards, they are some of my best insect eaters in my garden.
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@Shibumi
Forget the Neem oil!
There are Bt granular products that will control those grub populations. Gnatrol is the most expensive of them, there are a few brands at almost 1/10th the cost in 20+ lb bags (the quantity you’ll need).
@Oregon_Fruit_Grow has also named other bacteria based products worth trying.
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Thanks. I’ll take a look.
I had a bunch of sting bug nymphs running around one of my lemon drop watermelons the other day.
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Those do not look like stink bug nymphs.
Do an assay for insects in the soil closely outside the area you intend to treat.
Are there tons of insects in your garden patch because the soil is weedy and also nicely loosened?
Perhaps the area outside the patch is less hospitable.
If there are many insects outside the patch, the treatment area needs to be more extensive or may be impractical. Not counting the flying pest insects that will arrive next year.
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Triazicide is inexpensive for a 20lb bag. I can’t read the ingredients from the Lows image.
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