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01-07-2018, 04:07 PM
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Jun 2017
Zone: 10a
Location: Mexico City
Age: 34
Posts: 157
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Help getting rid of mealybugs without hurting birds
I think I got rid of the mealybugs in my orchids. I only noticed them in my Cattleya and I have been thoroughly checking in every nook and cranny in my orchids ever since). I thoroughly sprayed my Catt 4 times, once every 2 weeks with Ortho Plant care plus (Bifenthrin) and a Pesticide I bought in an orchid show (it's just diluted Potassium hydroxide). Just to be safe I sprayed every orchid once.
So, the questions about the mealybugs are: do you think that was enough to eradicate the problem in my orchids? And, my main concern: How do I get rid of them outside without hurting the birds that come to my feeders? I noticed them in my Ficus and a couple of other really leafy plants, so I can't really check every leaf and remove them by hand. And is it really worth it to spray everything if my neighbors are infected too? My patio is really small and I have two neighbors with small, neglected yards. I'm pretty sure most of my pests come form my neighbors. Thoughts?
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01-07-2018, 04:23 PM
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Member
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Join Date: Dec 2017
Location: Texas
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When I had my house I would sometimes use imadacloprid on some of my susceptible plants.
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01-07-2018, 04:31 PM
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Join Date: Jun 2015
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Location: Phoenix AZ - Lower Sonoran Desert
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You can't get rid of them permanently if they are in the environment. Your choices are to use a systemic insecticide, to spray regularly with non-systemic insecticides in rotation, or to be very vigilant and treat when you see them.
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01-07-2018, 04:52 PM
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Join Date: Jun 2017
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I think I'm gonna try systemic for the first time. After a quick search, I found someone selling Bayer's Confidor and New Leverage (Imidacloprid + Deltametrin). Are these safe for orchids? Are they bird safe too?
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01-07-2018, 05:01 PM
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Join Date: Mar 2015
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As far as I know those products are only toxic to bees.
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Meteo data at my city here.
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01-07-2018, 05:08 PM
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Join Date: Jun 2017
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rbarata
As far as I know those products are only toxic to bees.
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That sucks, but I have almost nothing in flower this time of the year, so hopefully they won't be around to get killed by me.
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01-07-2018, 05:18 PM
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Join Date: Jun 2015
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Systemics remain in the plant for months after application. Insects eating any part of the plant in the future might be killed. This includeds bees eating pollen. Agaves here in metro Phoenix are protected against the local Agave snout nosed weevil for several years after an application in the soil where they are planted. Thereafter people use contact insecticides at the base of the plant, because these aren't taken up to affect bees feeding on the flowers.
Birds wouldn't be likely to eat enough of the plant to have a problem.
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Post Thanks / Like - 1 Likes
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01-07-2018, 08:30 PM
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Join Date: Jun 2012
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Outdoors? That's an expensive and losing battle. Like ES said in his first sentence:
Quote:
Originally Posted by estación seca
You can't get rid of them permanently if they are in the environment. Your choices are to use a systemic insecticide, to spray regularly with non-systemic insecticides in rotation, or to be very vigilant and treat when you see them.
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Look into predatory insects?
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Anon Y Mouse
"Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity." Hanlon’s Razor
I am not being argumentative. I am correcting you!
LoL Since when is science an opinion?
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01-07-2018, 08:46 PM
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Join Date: Jun 2017
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AnonYMouse
Outdoors? That's an expensive and losing battle. Like ES said in his first sentence:
Look into predatory insects?
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I have tried to buy predatory insects in the past but I couldn't find any vendor that would sell the tiny amount I needed. I don't think there's a big market for predatory insects in Mexico City. I'll try systemics and evaluate the results.
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01-07-2018, 10:22 PM
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Join Date: Jun 2012
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*delete post*
__________________
Anon Y Mouse
"Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity." Hanlon’s Razor
I am not being argumentative. I am correcting you!
LoL Since when is science an opinion?
Last edited by AnonYMouse; 01-07-2018 at 10:26 PM..
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