Re: SVB thinkings
That sounds like a great strategy. Much less invasive than cutting the vine
to try and find the borer. If I see wilt/damage that seems to be caused by
a borer, but can find no visible entry because the vines are buried, I might
try this method. At that point, it seems better than opening up a vine with
an exact-o knife.
I have so many SVB's flying around, I might inject myself with Bt in case
they start looking for the pumpkin grower instead of the pumpkin plant when
I am working in my patch :o)
John Pritchard
Canal Winchester, OH
-----Original Message-----
From: Larry Checkon <telcom@csrlink.net>
To: pumpkins@mallorn.com <pumpkins@mallorn.com>
Date: Sunday, July 02, 2000 12:50 PM
Subject: Re: SVB thinkings
John and all. Several years ago I did some experimenting with injecting
Bt into the vines with a syringe. I tested this on acorn squash but now
use it on the pumpkin vines when a see a hole with sawdust. Mix about a
teaspoon of Bt into a pint of water. I sometimes add a little Malathion
also if using only on pumpkins. I inject into the vine at about 12"
intervals, directly into the hollow center,then repeat in about 3 days.
This does not harm the plant and will kill the borers. Bt will cause an
insect to stop eating immediately, but it takes a few days until it is
dead. Bt is not toxic to humans and is used by the state forestry dept.
to kill Gypsy moth caterpillars.
Vine borers seem worse than usual here in PA this year.
Larry
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Pumpkin-growing FAQ: http://www.mallorn.com/lists/pumpkins/search.cgi
To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@mallorn.com with the
message text UNSUBSCRIBE PUMPKINS
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Pumpkin-growing FAQ: http://www.mallorn.com/lists/pumpkins/search.cgi
To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@mallorn.com with the
message text UNSUBSCRIBE PUMPKINS
