I don’t really worry about aphids that much in tree fruit. Aphids cause some leaves to curl and may effect total production but I’m not a commercial farm. Aphids cause mostly cosmetic problems here. I have much more problematic pests here and most of us here too. I spray for plum curculio mostly and apple fly maggot. Aphids are probably killed as a bonus.
Are aphids really causing loss of fruit for you?
Do you have other pests to worry about?
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I am planning to spray Assail this season which is another neonicotinoid.
Pretty much all insecticides are more or less toxic to bees since they are insects after all. Follow best practices to avoid spraying insecticides when bees are active.
Assail is listed as moderately toxic. It’s probably less toxic than the products it replaces like Imidan. Sevin is very commonly used by home growers and it’s listed as more toxic to bees than Assail
Toxicity of Pesticides to Pollinators and Beneficials | Center for Agriculture, Food, and the Environment.
What is now packaged as Sevin is a different chemical. I wonder if your source is up to date. I believe the new material is a pyrethroid- Zeta-cypermethrin,
I think my source listed Carbaryl, the old formulation.
I just looked at the tables again. It lists Zeta-cypermethrin as highly toxic.
Yeah, I believe that’s in the process of application… not so much once it dries. I always try to get my customers to scalp their flowering weeds under and near fruit trees during spray season. Some keep bees and I have no reason to believe that the sprays are a problem if they aren’t foraging under the trees at time of spray. I’ve read there can be a problem of them going to leaves to drink dew, so nothing that kills bees is perfect but I think it’s possible to be overly concerned. I don’t keep bees on my property, but I certainly have a very flourishing population of native pollinators as do all of my customers.
I usually don’t worry about aphids ether but they are halting a fourth of the growth on this specific plant so I am trying to find a good treatment. I am less concerned about bees since the plant does not have any flowers yet, I was more concerned about human health and diseases such as cancer.
This is just my opinion and maybe Alan can chime in. I switched from Imidan to Assail (and Avaunt) because Assail is granulated instead of powdered. The most dangerous part of using insecticides is the mixing process when you are exposed to them in concentrated form. Imidan is a fine powder, finer than powdered sugar. It you mishandle it, you get a face full of very fine powder.
Granulated insecticides are much easier to handle and probably safer. I don’t like to use liquid products because they only last one year or less. It’s also probably a little more dangerous to handle liquid products than granulated. I like to be able to store stuff for as long as I like.
Liquid insecticides are also more expensive to ship.
Wear appropriate ppe as described on the label and follow all directions.
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Got it! Is it dangerous in anyway when you consume the fruit?
As long as you follow the label it is not.
I’m pretty sure you take the exam in the US and get an US license. So EU regulations won’t be on the exam. And your license isn’t valid in the EU.
Licence or not. You said that the EU did not ban them. And only banned them in seed coatings.
The official EU website, states otherwise.
Therefore, the Commission services maintained the proposals to completely ban the outdoor uses of the three active substances and these were supported by a qualified majority of Member States in the Regulatory Committee on 27 April 2018. The Commission Implementing Regulations amending the conditions of approval of the active substances imidacloprid, clothianidin and thiamethoxam have been published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 30 May 2018. As a result, all outdoor uses of the three substances are banned and only the use in permanent greenhouses remains possible.
I’m not claiming that should stop you in the US. Or that you should not use it. I’m just pointing out that what you said is incorrect.
I’m sorry you feel this wen’t into a religious tone. I don’t see how. And i took effort to keep my personal opinion on pesticides out of my post.
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rarely is the safest option also the most effective one. There is almost always a give and take.
Like others mentioned the aphids might not be such a big issue.
If they are yearly, there might be a lack of early season aphid predators. Holistically you could try to solve that lack and avoid a yearly aphid “bloom”
If however you want to do something fast. Spraying the leaves from below with a garden hose will knock them loose. And those aphids usually can’t get back to the tree.
That’s super safe. And quite effective.
If you want to use a pesticide, you could use a contact pesticide like alan suggests a pyrethroid. That pesticide only (or mostly) hurts the insects it hits. So if you spray that when there are no bees around and only hit the aphids. That’s very safe for the “environment”
safe for yourself is just following the label.
If you follow the label (maximum days allowed to use before harvest of fruit) your home grown fruit will most likely have less pesticide residu on it than almost all store bought fruit (non organic). So if you don’t worry about regular store bought fruit. You should also not worry about the spray on your trees.
The insecticide you mentioned earlier, is a systematic one. Those get absorbed by the plant. And than insects that feed or come in contact with your plant get killed by it. Super effective. But also more risk for bees and beneficial insects.
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I didn’t see a religious tone either. I think we’re all trying to get the right information out there. Each of us is imperfect and fallible. We can all only state what we believe is true, get corrected, no big deal. This is a forum for learning. Cheers!
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Thank you guys for all your time and effort trying to help me pick the right insecticide.
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I applied Imidacloprid in my greenhouse about 10 years ago. It was soil applied for uptake by the roots. It severely impacted the bumblebees I was using for pollination for the next 2-3 years. So it lasts a long time in soil. I won’t use it again.
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I have been using this one up to this year- " Bonide Fruit Tree & Plant Guard" . I am trying a new product this year called “Pure Crop1”. It is supposed to be more “organic”, so they say. I am using the " Pure Crop 1" in my entire orchard this year. So it will either be a great switch or a fail. Time will tell.
Well said and I agree with you.
Here is a more natural “poison” against insects. From what I have read, “Pyrethrin naturally occurs in chrysanthemum flowers and is often considered an [organic] insecticide when it is not combined with [piperonyl butoxide].”
Here is a link for my reference of this insecticide.
Steve ( fruitnut)- That is what I have read that it does as well. That is why I will not use it nor buy any nursery stock from companies that use it. I appreciate you confirming what I had read.
I was thinking of getting that exact product, is it effective in insect control from your experience?
The Bonide product:
Pure Crop 1 (if I found the correct product label that is):
Lambda-cyhalothrin is a pyrethroid. Not sure how the soybean/corn oil compare?