Should we spray on a schedule proactively to stop things like Bud worm? I had them bad last season and didn't spray until I noticed their damage and ended up losing half my crop.
Yes, spray either BT or spinosad now every couple weels and it should help keep the population down. Also get bug zappers and it will kill the mothers before they lay eggs.
Thanks mjmama. I have Safer Caterpillar spray which contains BT. I was thinking of making a screened type of box that I could sit over them at night or move them into the garage each night but I am not sure if that would stop the moths unless they don't come out until night time. Any time of day that is best for spraying BT? I would assume early morning is best?
[quote name='"MotaMike"']Thanks mjmama. I have Safer Caterpillar spray which contains BT. I was thinking of making a screened type of box that I could sit over them at night or move them into the garage each night but I am not sure if that would stop the moths unless they don't come out until night time. Any time of day that is best for spraying BT? I would assume early morning is best?[/quote] I would spray at night since that's why the moths are out laying eggs. It's also safer to spray anything when the sun is down so you don't burn the leaves. I usually use my BT with neem as well to be a more full spectrum bug spray. The safer brand is exactly what I use. You can also get netting for over your plants. That's supposed to help but I haven't tried it myself.
Thanks mjmama. I sprayed some neem oil lightly a few days back because I saw a little aphid damage on my peppers and one or two top leaves on one weed plant. The only thing bad about BT is that they have to ingest it to kill them, it doesn't kill on contact. The reason I am cautious about spraying anything on them at night is that I am afraid a fungus could start since the leaves are left wet without daylight temps to dry them. Maybe that is just me being overly cautious.
[quote name='"MotaMike"']Thanks mjmama. I sprayed some neem oil lightly a few days back because I saw a little aphid damage on my peppers and one or two top leaves on one weed plant. The only thing bad about BT is that they have to ingest it to kill them, it doesn't kill on contact. The reason I am cautious about spraying anything on them at night is that I am afraid a fungus could start since the leaves are left wet without daylight temps to dry them. Maybe that is just me being overly cautious. [/quote] I wouldn't worry about it in veg outdoors where there is plenty of airflow. It's just like how they get rained on at night. Even when the sun is low, like at 7 or 8 so they have some time to dry. I just would t spray I direct sun or right before the sun hits.
You are correct mjmama as I forgot something....BT breaks down in UV light so night is the only good time to spray it.
Neem also helps prevent molds, I use green light neem concentrate found at lowes, I find its way cheaper to buy the concentrates than the pre mixed in the long run.
While checking my plants today I saw a long cut in the center of one leaf on the Lavander clone and upon close inspection it turned out to be a bud worm. So all the plants received a thorough wetting top and bottom of leaves with BT.
...just made that rookie mistake. Burning the second set of leaves on my week old sprouts because I sprayed em during the afternoon sun. They are a little brown, but still look healthy. Lesson learned...spray at night!
Only if it breaks down from UV light will you need to spray late evening near dark. If it's for anything else I would spray early morning as the day will dry the spray and lessen the chances of mold from being wet into the night. BT is the only thing I spray in the late evening.
I looked up that fine mesh nursery netitng and it can be pricey. I didnt know that the moths lay their eggs at night. I see the white ones flying around during the day. As for a bug zapper I got one that we had in high schooland the problem I see with that one is the wire mesh around the zapper part is to small for a moth to get through and get zapped. I`m just curious how close it would nee to be to the plants to attract the moths and would the light from it cause problems with the plants at night. Safer Caterpillar Killer is that the same shit?
Ok, thanks. Couldnt find a magnifying glass to read the fine print of whats in it didnt look it up online yet.
Safer® Brand Caterpillar Killer Concentrate | Safer Brand ?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????