Summary of things to use?
 

Can someone give me a breakdown on things like when to use Cinnamon, brown Listerine, Neem oil, etc?

For instance, if I cut off a shedding leaf of a Phal, should I apply cinnamon? Or to a Den can that I remove for propagating?

Also, does anyone do a routine maintenance spray to keep things in check? I don't have any problems currently, but want to make sure I'm doing the best I can, and learning. ;)

I bought a spray from Hummert's called Flower Pharm. It's the Cinnamon Oil variety, says it treats Orchid pests, fungus and garden pests and is a miticide, insecticide & fungicide. Makeup is Cottonseed oil 1.5%, Cinnamon .10%, Rosemary .10% and inerts are food grade oleic acid, non-gmo canola oil, usp grade glycerin, carbonic acid monopotassium salt, grape juices 11.1%,, and water 87.2%. Thoughts?

Thanks to everyone in advance!
Jami

:biggrin: Great idea, Jami! I'd like to know too!

I know Ross is gonna say to go ahead and get the Physan 20 for your orchid care inventory. .. That's next on my personal list.

Flower Pharm sounds like good stuff! :):Tup:
Very natural! :nod:
I prefer going the organic, non toxic route.
For what I know, cinammon is to seal open wounds (bee's wax works good also as it has anti-bacterial and anti- fungal I believe anti-viral properties) works as a fungicide and helps to repels ants.
More on cinammon see this thread - http://www.orchidboard.com/community...-cinnamon.html
Brown Listerine - fungicide, bacteriacide - same thing it does for your mouth.
Neem oil - not sure.
Please anyone else care to comment - be my guest :)

:biggrin: How did you know? I prefer natural or envornmentally-friendly chemicals in general so I prefer Physan 20 and use it pretty regulaly in my terrarium because of such high humidity. Rot could start in a blink of the eye. White mold on the mounts is pretty common. It's pretty hard to keep these mounted minis at 90+% for weeks and not expect something in return. So I keep a spray bottle of Physan 20 on hand for when I see things.

But I do also use Thiomyl on occasion (thankfully it's rare) which is a systemic fungicide for rot that is not treatable from the surface. I spray the leaves and heavy soak the mount or basket (again, in the terrarium) when I see or suspect rot has occured or is starting. This is not for your light case of mold, etc. It is left (by me) strictly for hard cases.

I don't use cinnamon or things like that so have no direct knowledge.

Thanks for the replies! I have been reading posts in here topic by topic and kept seeing the cinnamon & listerine mentions too, so figured I'd better ask.

I truly appreciate the help! I like to only resort to stronger chemicals when necessary since I have 2 dogs, a hedgie and 2 teeny birds living inside- don't want anything "fume-y".

Ross, I'm sure your post regarding Physan 20 was intended for good purposes, but it is entirely incorrect. I've learned several things about message boards. One, they are the best source of misinformation ever invented by mankind. Secondly, it is best to ignore the misinformation because the originator or his friends will fight to the death to defend their misinformation and their right to believe it. However, I can't ignore misinformation regarding safety issues.

There is no doubt that Physan 20 is a useful broad spectrum biocide. Like most broad spectrum products it is probably less effective for most problems than a product intended to treat the specific problem at hand. However, I agree that one does not always know exactly what a problem is and a broad spectrum product is useful in such cases.

So far so good...problem is that you imply Physan 20 is organic (meaning naturally derived) and that it is safe to use. Neither assertion is even remotely factural. Read the label. Physan 20 carries the "Danger" label. This the strongest warning in the Danger, Warning, Caution hazard rating system. It is not to be used in a greenhouse containing edible products, it kills fish when put in waterways, and it is a danger to humans if not properly used. It is not even remotely "organic" if you mean naturally occuring or derived from nature when you use that term. Interestingly it is specifically against California law to use it on plants.

I am not an organic nut case. Actually just the opposite is true. I believe in determining the problem and using the most specific and least dangerous remedy available. I also acknowledge that broad spectrum products can be very useful. I have nothing against the use of Physan 20, but I hate to see it misrepresented to an entire message board as safe or organic. It is neither.

Let the hell begin!

Jim

My first aid kitt for orchids :biggrin:

Dish soap
Neem oil
Peroxide
Rubbing alcohol
Cinnamon
Sulphur

Good to see you again, Jim :biggrin:

Gloria - which dish soap do you use? I have read it works as a surfactant and lowers the surface tension of water to allow for better root absorption. I read it also works to repel insects.
Do you use peroxide and rubbing alcohol interchangeably?
Do you also, use the cinnamon and sulfur interchangeably?
Thanks :)

Hi D,
I spray Palmolive dish soap for insects, mainly when they first arrive - every 3 days for up to 2 weeks.
I also use peroxide before repotting, soaking down the roots, then place inside new media & pots. So these 2 are used together.One for roots and one for leaves.
I rarely use cinnamon, but in the past it has worked really well for me.

The alcohol is used for any mealy or scale I may find with new plants. It also helps dry up any fungus or black spots I may find on my Oncids.
The sulphur is used mainy during the winter months as the air quality is not always the best, it keeps the plants very clean looking and lowers any risk of fungus or bacteria build up - again mainly on my oncids. I probably whip this out 3 or 4 times during the colder months.
I have used the alcohol and sulphur together .... works well.

:D

Thanks Gloria! - :)
I will write it down it in my Orchid notes. :nod:

I use Ivory dish soap and have even washed whole potted plants upsidedown in a sink of warm soapy water to clean them and de-bug. No ill effects.

I've heard of people using Listerine... Does anyone have any good/bad effects to report using this? Also, do you spray it on the leaves or on the roots? I have a sickly rescue that I have no idea what to do with because I can't find where to buy Physan 20 in Ottawa... although I probably haven't looked hard enough yet! :biggrin:

:D Your welcome D, and don't forget the Ivory too .
Everything in my area has been taken off the store shelves :(
Good luck, I hope you find some :)

dish soap & peroxide prior to soaking
 

Hi Gloria, how much dish soap and peroxide do you mix in together with water when soaking the roots? How do you apply sulpher? Doesn't sulpher have a smell?
Regards, mary

I second that question. Please answer because I'm sure many of us want to know that same thing.

Mary and Grand, I use a 3% straight peroxide and soak for about 5 mins. Then , the 'chids get placed inside damp sphag. moss - I do not water for a few days, this gives the roots time to heal and close up.

Some sulpher prducts smell more then others, I suppose it has some to do with the strength. I use the safers sulpher, sure it does have some smell, but you might be surprised it's really not bad at all. Neem has much more of a smell and seems to last longer aswell. I dislike the scent of neem alot - but it does work very well.

Safers does have an already to use spray bottle, just shake and spray on. There is a consentrated bottle aswell, more money too - just add water. You may wanna try out the the ready mixed first.

The dish soap is used for spray down the leaves - 1/2 or 1 teaspoon per liter. Try to keep the soap off the roots as they can burn if the roots are not covered up well. Pretty much fried out my B.nodosa :roll:

Just wanted to clairfy the sulpher & alcohol - I do not mix these 2 as a solution together, they are used seperately. I don't want anyone building bombs, LOL!

Something new -- I've been recently be trying out something new with my 'chids - I'm excited about this one. Using fall planting bulb dusts - a mix of captain 5% (fungicide) and carbaryl 5% (pesticide) Great for leaf spots that have mealy or scale. It goes on like milky chalk stays put, smothers, dries up the insects. Cruel yet fun :banana:

Fanstastic for those deep quick spreading black marks you see on phals and for the use of crown rot ... it's so easy to use, mix with alittle water & just apply were it's needed I'm now using this paste mix on oncid bulbs that had soft rot - it's working great and the bulbs are slowly healing up. So far I haven't noticed any damage to the orchids - no burning on the leaves, bulbs or outside crown areas'.

:D

:cheer: Thank you, Gloria. It's very useful to have something concise like this.

Shirley

new_orchid_rescuer

It's my understanding that Physan is not available in Canada. :_( If you do find some I'd be very interested to know where.

Shirley

I really had to hunt to find some and guess what? Ray has it!

Ross,

Thanks very much for your trouble but Ray is in Pennsylvania! Are you implying that he could ship it to Canada? I thought that, if it wasn't allowed here, that would not be possible. :scratchhead:

Don't know the answer to that - only Ray does :biggrin:

Oooh not always -Ask Ray :biggrin:

clicky there ---> Welcome to First Rays Orchids

captan & carbaryl paste
 

Your captan & carbaryl mixture sounds interesting. Doe it wash off when the plant is healed, or leave a residue like greenhouse whitewash?

Ed

Hi Ed,

You have to wash it off, it sticks kinda like chalk. It comes off very easy with a damped paper towel. I put it on then waited 3 days, removed it. Alot of healing took place, but I thought a few more days would be better. So I reapplied, I will take it off monday and post a photo, to give you an idea what has taken place. Hopefully all the nasty stuff is gone :evil:

BTW - I've got 2 spikes comming up from this orchid, I need it to live :biggrin:

goodgollymissmolly, you seem to be spreading more than your fair share of misinformation. I am still laughing about your breathless warnings of an explosive reaction between permanganate and hypochlorite that exists only in your fevered imagination and now I stumble across this misinformation you posted about Physan 20.

Are you suggesting that Physan 20 is organic, or almost so? My understanding is that it's pretty potent stuff so I could see where GGMM was coming from. Please expand on your thoughts on this if you get a minute,,I'm curious now. Thanks.

Only GGMM used the word organic. He misread what Ross said and then leapt to the conclusion that Ross had claimed it was organic. Or, perhaps GGMM did not misread what Ross said but was instead setting up a paper tiger via an indirection. Nevertheless, only GGMM used the word organic.

On the Physan website they make the statements that Physan 20 is "Enviromentally friendly", "Biodegradable" and "Use of gloves not required with diluted solution".

Ok, thanks....I think I will still use sparingly as required as I don't like the smell!!!