Pests & diseases Preventive care. what do you do ?

[sunkisd]

Tobacco can also lead to the Mosaic virus in orchids and many plants. Caution. I smoke so trust me I know.

No kidding! ...I see lots of disposable gloves in my future.

Per the post from lijun, if neem oil "...protects your orchid from fungal infection and root rot..." and suffocates pests there any difference in neem oil and physan, except for one being chemical and the other being natural?

[ksriramkumar]

from what i know, neem oil is more preventive care than curative. physan is both. the suffocating action of neem oil is for pests.

[lijun]

yes, but if its hard to find , and dont know where to look and dont know when im gonna get it, gotta find alternatives rather than not doing anything at all because it has to be neem oil..

but there is this very interesting recipes i found online, seems really good,....

Insecticides

Soft bodied insects, such as mealy bugs, aphids, and thrips
1. Straight 70% isopropyl rubbing alcohol –touch insects with a soaked cotton swab or
spray entire affected area of plant. Repeat every two to three days. Apply in the early
morning or late afternoon, when cool. A typical sprayer top can be put on to the
alcohol bottle.
2. Garlic/Pepper Spray –liquefy 2 bulbs of garlic and 2 hot peppers in a blender ½ to 2/3
full of water. Strain and add water to make 1 gallon of concentrate. Use ¼ cup
concentrate per gallon of water.

Hard shell insects such as scale, also for spider mites
1. Mix 1 to 3 teaspoons of cooking oil and 1 teaspoon of liquid dishwashing soap
into a quart of water. Shake well and spray plant thoroughly wetting the affected
surfaces. Repeat every 2 to 3 days. The soap will breakdown the waterproof
coating of the insects’ shell and the oil will smother them. Apply only when cool.
2. Neem Oil –acts as an insect repellent, as well as a fungicide, nematacide, and
even molluscicide!
2. Fantastik or Formula 409 –Add 1 cup of the household cleaner/degreaser, with 1
cup of rubbing alcohol, and mix with 2 cups of water. This solution can be
sprayed directly on all affected areas.
4. Orange Plus household cleaner –can be sprayed undiluted.

Ant eliminator
1. Melt ¼ pound of candle wax, then slowly stir ¼ cup sugar and 4 ounces of Boric
Acid Powder. When thoroughly mixed, pour into a pan, creating a ¼ to ½” slab.
Cut into chunks and distribute around the greenhouse. Keep away from children
and pets.

Fungicides
Cinnamon Powder –has many medicinal uses and is a known natural fungicide.
1. Powder –can be applied directly onto the affected part of the plant by dusting
heavily.
2. Paste –mix powder with cooking oil to form a thick paste that can be put directly
onto the cut parts of the orchid.
3. Spray –combine 2 tablespoons of cinnamon powder into a pint of isopropyl
alcohol, shake well and let stand overnight. Filter solution through a coffee filter
and use the brown liquid as an all purpose fungicide spray. It is even good for
damping off of deflasked seedlings. For a combination fungicide/insecticide –put
1 cup of the cinnamon/alcohol extract into a pint bottle, add 2 tablespoons of
dishwashing detergent and top off with water. Use as a spray.

All Purpose Disinfectants
1. Listerine or Hydrogen Peroxide –For crown rot or other infected areas, pour directly
onto the infected area and let stand for 5 minutes. Tilt the plant to remove the excess
liquid.
2. Chlorine Bleach –add 1 once of household bleach into a gallon of water. Spray the
solution directly onto cutting tools, benches, walkways, and even onto the plants.
Bleach will help to control fungus, bacteria, and algae.
A. Sterilize used pots with a 10-15% bleach solution, let stand overnight. Make
sure that all white roots are removed with a scouring pad, as they may contain
viruses.

Slug and Snail Treatments
1. Traps –put a plate or saucer full of fresh beer on the floor, snails and slugs will
be attracted to it, fall into it and drown.
2. Spray –Mix left over coffee 50/50 with water or stronger and spray. It seems to work
well on the tiny bush snails.
3. Baits –put slices of raw potatoes near the plants. Slugs and snail can be collected in
the morning.
4. Barriers –create barriers in your growing areas to prevent slugs and snail from
crawling onto the benches. You can put sandpaper, copper foil, Tree Tanglefoot, or
even Diatomaceous Earth, onto the legs and tops of benches.

Weed Herbicide
1. Spray full strength household vinegar on weeds, repeat daily as needed. This is
not to be used for weeds growing in the pots of the orchids. Use only on the
greenhouse floor, surrounding areas, walkways, driveways, etc.

---------- Post Merged at 09:18 PM ----------

sunkist,..
i'm not that sure, but it seems chemical ones are stronger.

[sunkisd]

Thanks for sharing that lijun, I'd be interested to hear of anyone who's used any of these with success. For instance does the cinnamon powder being dusted heavily on roots affected with fungus suffocate them?

[lijun]

sunkisd,.. thats the thing that confuses me,... recommendations could be contrary to each other, but the ones giving the recommendations has good orchids.

[Wade's Orchids]

Harvey is right. If you allow a plant that's enclosed in a plastic bag to get any sun, it will cook.