Re: [gardeners] Our beautiful October garden

Bargyla Rateaver (gardeners@globalgarden.com)
Thu, 25 Oct 2001 18:43:59 +0100 

a mechanical way---could have temporary good result just from the vigor of the
hard washing, but the REAl way is to i;mprove the soil so the plant does not have
the "taste" the insects want.

Alan Zelhart wrote:

> Carol,
>
> I've had a terrible time with white flies this year, worst than I've had
> in several years. Along the lines you are mentioning, I found the best
> way to keep them under control is with strong bursts of water on the
> underside leaves of the plant.  I almost lost some lantana to white
> flies, but by Spraying the undersides of the leaves withs strong jets of
> water, 3 or 4 times a week, I was able to rescue them and bring them
> back to good health.
>
> -----
> Alan        Chandler, Arizona        Sunset Zone: 13
>
> http://www.gizmoaz.com
> Over 200 Roses and 122 Different varieties! Never a dull moment!!
> Check out the Garden Cams on Saturday and Sunday!!
> --
> Delicious Autumn!
> My very soul is wedded to it,
> and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth
> seeking the successive autumns.
> ~George Eliot
>
> "Carol J. Bova" wrote:
> >
> > 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

--

Bargyla Rateaver
http://home.earthlink.net/~brateaver