Turning to Organic Sprays and Dusts in .NET framework

Drawing EAN13 in .NET framework Turning to Organic Sprays and Dusts

We hope you won t have to use this section of the book that all the precautions we recommend have meant that your herbs have been untroubled by pests or diseases Using sprays and dusts in the garden, with a couple of exceptions, is never completely safe Organic controls the kind we re listing kill beneficial as well as predatory insects At the same time, they are safer than most synthetic products and break down quickly into harmless substances

This section shows you the safest, most common insect pest controls used by home gardeners Many of these controls are contact poisons they paralyze or kill pests when they encounter the substance; others are systemic poisons, which take effect when pests eat treated plants All are widely available from garden centers or mail-order and online sources Follow label directions exactly Try these organic controls for insect pests: Horticultural oils are used to kill immature insects and insect eggs The two main types are dormant oils, which you spray on woody plants in winter to control eggs or overwintering pests, and summer, or light, oils, which you can use during the growing season to control aphids, mealybugs, scales, spider mites, whiteflies, and some caterpillars Use a sprayer to cover the entire plant Summer oils can damage fuzzy-leaved plants, such as betony, borage, and sunflower; use them only on herbs with shiny foliage and when the temperature is below 80 degrees Fahrenheit Insecticidal soaps contain fatty acids that paralyze soft-bodied pests, such as aphids, mites, and whiteflies You must spray insects directly for insecticidal soaps to work Neem oil, a spray made from azadirachtin compounds extracted from neem trees, is both a contact and systemic poison Neem oil controls a wide range of pests, including beetles, flies, and caterpillars, and it s most effective against immature insects Neem oil may also act as a repellent It appears not to be harmful to bees or most beneficials and breaks down quickly after it s applied Some formerly popular organic pesticides are now considered too toxic to be used safely Avoid using rotenone, ryania, pyrethrin or pyrethrum, sabadilla, and nicotine sulfate

Curing plant diseases isn t easy for environmentally sensitive gardeners because only a few organic products control diseases Many fungal diseases powdery mildew is one are more of a cosmetic concern than a life-or-death matter Bacterial and viral diseases are more serious Once plants are infected, you can do little except remove and destroy them Before you reach for disease-curing sprays and dusts, remember that the antibiotics produced in organically rich soil help your herbs ward off disease organisms; compost tea also appears to have some disease-fighting properties

The most common organic controls for plant disease that appear in the following list are in the order from least to most potent Again, organic doesn t mean nontoxic We hope you never use any of them Sulfur-based fungicides: These are the safest of the fungal controls, but they re still toxic to many beneficial organisms Don t use sulfur in temperatures over 80 degrees Fahrenheit, or you ll burn the leaves of your herbs Copper mixtures: Copper-based fungicides are effective but nonspecific they kill the good with the bad Used repeatedly, copper fungicides will stunt plants They could stunt yours, too, if not used cautiously A mixture of copper sulfate and hydrated lime, Bordeaux mixture has been used by gardeners since the 1870s (Its fungicidal powers were serendipitously discovered by French viticulturists who reputedly sprayed their vines to keep people from stealing their grapes) Timing is important to keep from damaging your plants, so read instructions carefully Use at half the recommended rate on culinary herbs