A few months ago someone mentioned that it was cheaper just to buy a type of sheer material from a fabric store than to buy actual bug netting. I even googled that type of material at the time and found some great prices for large pieces. Problem is, I’ve forgotten the name of the material and I can’t find the thread it was talked about on. Can someone please tell me the name of the type of material that would be good for bug protection…its sort of a sheer stuff like veils are made from. Thanks
I used tulle
You are probably thinking of tulle fabric. My thought is a floating row cover material should work just as well, may be just as cheap, may come in bigger sizes, and probably lasts longer in the sun. Those are all suppositions on my part.
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Yep. Question answered, thread (can be) closed. Tulle is what I was looking for. Thanks so much.
Fruitnut, I’m not sure what a floating row cover material you suggest would be. DO you have a link or a provider so I can look into your suggestion more?
BTW…the reason I’m looking for something now is FIGS. I (just barely) managed to fight off june bugs and Japanese Beetles from all my other trees enough to get by- though I suffered a lot of damage. But my figs are just starting to ripen and the bugs are absolutely KILLING ME! Someone said it is probably “Fig Eater” bugs that I call “June Bugs” and since its August and they are still here in big numbers, I guess its true. What I know for sure is that as soon as a fig gets almost ripe, these things cover it and destroy it. Very sad to say. Perhaps some tulle fabric could protect my figs.
Yes, they were talking about tulle. As fruitnut said, you could also look into bolts of row cover which could do double duty. There are many sources. I bought mine at Greenhousemegastore. You could also look into organza fabric.
Also often called “nylon net” which I think sometimes makes it cheaper
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Many weights and sizes. But maybe this would work:
http://www.johnnyseeds.com/c-461-agribon-ag-15-insect-barrier.aspx
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Tulle is very common in 54" and 108" wide by 40 yards long as I recall. The bigger size won’t seem so big once it’s draped over a bush. I think organza is the same thing, but maybe only similar. Prices vary considerably. White is often cheaper but I have found greens that are barely any more. As far as withstanding UV, in the rope world polyester is the one with that attribute and I have seen polyester tulle but it can sometimes be a challenge to figure out what material is used in different products.
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Do you think that thirty percent shade cloth you use would work for this purpose? I’m sure it would be more costly but I’m sure it would last a long time as well.
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There are shade cloths that would work for larger insects. Mine is woven and as a result has variable hole sizes. But it comes in many other forms including one that the weave is pressed into place.
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