Re: Neem Oil

Hi all, 

I haven't posted in years, but I'm still here and while I have some time I 
thought I'd chime in.

I try to take a common sense approach to what I do in the garden. I use things 
that work and get rid of stuff that doesn't. Keep in mind that your environment 
may be different than mine, and so the things that work well for me might not 
work for you, etc.

Birds do a great job of keeping bugs under control. If you have trees, you will 
have birds. Sometimes I let my neighbor's chickens forage through the garden. 
They convert bugs into fertilizer. But, I don't have many bugs...

Some of you sound like you have plagues of bugs. I can't imagine spraying every 
week or every other week. Let me tell you what works for me... Sevin does not 
work. Dispose of it properly. I also tried Neem. It did not work, but it did 
give my plants a nice nutty smell. In fact, when I used Neem my plants seemed to 
"lose energy", but I have no evidence that the Neem caused that. The one product 
that works VERY WELL is Triazicide. You can find it at Lowe's or Home Depot and 
it's very inexpensive. Now, here is the secret... I use it only once at first 
outbreak and that wipes out those bugs for the entire year. In fact I use it 
only on the potatoes, because that is always where they attack first. Take care 
of them early (not often) and you stop the problem before it starts. In fact, I 
use only a small hand held sprayer and that is all that appears to be needed. At 
the rate that I use this product, the $10 bottle might last me 10 years.

An excellent book is, "The Truth About Garden Remedies, What Works, What 
Doesn't, and Why", by Jeff Gillman. In it he talks about products that he has 
actually tried. I think that is the way to go about it... try things, and see if 
they work. 


As for "organic", I dare say that a little too much importance gets assigned to 
the term "organic". Just because something is organic, that doesn't mean that it 
isn't harmful or poisonous to you or other organisms that you care about. And 
something non-organic might be just the thing to stopping a plague before it 
gets started. It's also important to have a holistic approach... The vacuum 
cleaner, the soapy water, the birds, the general cleanliness of the area, all 
good things contribute to a healthy environment for your plants. If you spray 
too much you'll kill the beneficial insects (spiders, bees, ladybugs...) and 
that makes the problem worse. 


I realize that some of you live shoulder to shoulder with neighbors who have 
different habits. I'm glad that I have a big enough space to actually control 
the environment a little bit. 


As for herbicides, do not even make eye contact with a bottle of 2-4D or 
anything similar. If you have to use these products, use them in the fall or 
very early spring, use sparingly, (no hose end sprayers!) and don't even think 
of going near your plants until you wash everything and give it a week to begin 
to break down. If your dog walks on your 2-4D'ed lawn and then walks in the 
garden, kiss it goodbye. Likewise, if you want to put lawn clippings in the 
garden, do so only if you haven't used that stuff in the last 90 days or so.

Just letting you know what works for me...

Best regards, Cliff in Pocatello





________________________________
From: Jason Thomas <j.endlesstrail@gmail.com>
To: pumpkins@hort.net
Sent: Tue, July 27, 2010 12:33:31 AM
Subject: Re: Neem Oil

Steve is so right! I thought I could prevent powdery mildew with Neem Oil,
Milk and Compost Tea. I get home today and what was a healthy plant this
morning has powdery mildew. Now I am scrambling to find a way to keep my
plant alive for the next month so I can get my first decent pumpkin.

On Mon, Jul 26, 2010 at 1:27 PM, Steve Haberman <shaberman@insmgt.com>wrote:

> Unless you use Neem Oil for your hair, throw it away. AG's are not
> typically
> eaten, so spray the stuff from Dupont Chemical CO. et all. Just my
> experience and opinion.
>
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------
> Pumpkin-growing archives: http://www.hort.net/lists/pumpkins/
> To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@hort.net with the
> message text UNSUBSCRIBE PUMPKINS

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Pumpkin-growing archives: http://www.hort.net/lists/pumpkins/
To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@hort.net with the
message text UNSUBSCRIBE PUMPKINS

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Pumpkin-growing archives: http://www.hort.net/lists/pumpkins/
To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@hort.net with the
message text UNSUBSCRIBE PUMPKINS
Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index