Re: [gardeners] Our beautiful October garden
Carol J. Bova (gardeners@globalgarden.com)
Wed, 21 Nov 2001 22:37:11 -0800
Hi Folks...
I missed the start of this, so I hope it applies. Our local L.A. county ag
office told me the only way to get rid of the giant white flies attacking
about 50 of the cemetery's 40 year old hibiscus was to get rid of the
hibiscus. There is absolutely no chemical control for it they said. We
decided to try to hold onto them as long as possible, since the giant white
flies didn't attack anything else, so we cut back the worst of the infested
areas, gathering up every leaf and twig, then washed the remainder with
soap and water. (Boy, did the grounds crew love that job....not!) About a
month later, we handpicked as many additionally infested leaves as
possible. Then hit the leaves with a low level on our pressure washer with
water only. Result: two years later... only lost 2 plants, and impact on
the balance is negligible (as of a couple of months ago... haven't been out
to look at them since then!).
FWIW,
Carol
Sunland, CA
At 11:04 PM 10/19/2001 -0400, you wrote:
>Ron, the chief entomologist of the State of California (I believe I
>have given him his proper title) is named Baldo Villegas. It just
>so happens that he is a fine friend, and we are currently in conversation
>on the subject of how to rid a California garden of white flies.
>
>Baldo's answer is: get rid of the hibiscus.
>
>There are apparently a number of varieties of white flies, and each
>one would require a different chemical or you would be wasting
>your time. This entails bringing a leafy sample complete with
>tell-tale white flies in to your Cooperative Extension for identification
>(generally not free of charge), and from there they could try to
>suggest what to use, no promises.
>
>You will have to weigh your desire to keep the hibiscus against your
>despair of the white flies.
>
>Penny, NY