DIY Soap spray for insect control

[MateoinLosAngeles]

Hey everyone!

I usually use the Potassium Salts of Fatty Acids products for pest control on orchids, such as the Safer Insecticidal Soap.

My experience is positive with this product. Seems to be both effective and harmless to the plants. However, 16 oz of this product, which requires to be mixed at 2.5 fl oz (5 tbsp) per gallon, costs about $10 on Amazon.

A product like Dr. Bronner's Peppermint Oil Castile Soap, which seems generally recommended by orchid growers, can cost anywhere from $5.99 to $12.99, depending on whether you buy it at the supermarket or online. But at least it's available at the supermarket, and it's labeled for many more uses than insecticidal soap, such as cleaning, showering, etc.

Finally, a product like Dawn dish soap costs about $5 for 32 oz. I've heard people having issues with dish soap, but I'm not clear on whether there's some basis for why one shouldn't use this or if it's just anecdotal evidence that can't rule out over-concentration of the mixture or mishandling of the application.

Do you have recommendations for DIY soap-based sprays? Do folks stick to insecticidal soaps or have you successfully ventured into DIY solutions, and does anyone mix water and alcohol in these solutions to make them more effective?

[Ray]

I have used Dawn as an emulsifier for pesticides and not seen an issue, but none of the insect infestations I have gotten - scale or mealy bugs - is adequately handled by soaps.

[estación seca]

isurus79 has posted in the last few weeks about using sodium vs potassium soaps for bugs. It would be worth looking up.

[Roberta]

One thing to consider with using any insecticidal soap (potassium or sodium soap) , if you have hard water. Dilute these products with RO water... otherwise you get a bit of chemistry going on, where the potassium(or sodium) which are soluble get replaced by calcium from the hard water creating a gunky mess of (insoluble) calcium soap.

[pdxtyler]

My DIY insecticide is as follows.
Mix in a 32 oz spray bottle:
- 1/2 water (16oz)
- 1/2 isopropyl alcohol (16oz)
- 1/2 tsp neem oil concentrate
- 1/2 tsp Dawn dish soap
*shake well before use

This seems effective against soft and hard scale when applied to Cattleya. If the hard scale is caked on, I use a soft toothbrush to loosen after spraying. Sometimes reapplication is necessary after 2 weeks or so.

[estación seca]

In an online lecture I heard an epiphytic cactus grower say not to dilute alcohol below 70% because that won't kill mealy bugs. Your mixture will work but is more mixing work than needed. Using any one of soap, 70% alcohol or neem oil is adequate for killing most living bugs (not the eggs, though.) Neem oil should not be used frequently on plants because it can plug up their pores.