Slug and Snail Killer

I do not have much of a problem with snails or slugs anymore.  They are the bane of Hosta gardeners, and indeed, I have fought a few battles with them in the past.  Now whenever I find I have some, which is rare, I bring out my big guns.

What is my secret weapon?  Slug and snail killer with the active ingredient of iron phosphate.  The last I bought was made by Ortho and I found it in the lawn and garden section of a local store, but there are other brands such as Escar-Go! and Sluggo to name a couple.

How does it work?  The iron phosphate shuts down the snail or slug's digestive system and it starves to death.  You do not see them laying around dead, but you gradually see less damage, then eventually no more.

How do you use it?  Sprinkle it around affected plants and the snails are drawn to.  I recommend hiding it under the plants so that it does not become expensive bird feed.

What are its advantages?  It is organic and gradually reverts back to the soil.  It is fast and easy to use.  It is safe to use around pets and kids.  It lasts through rain and watering without needed to be reapplied.  It works better than anything else I have tried.  In the early days I went through quite a bit, but now that they are under control, one box has lasted several years and will likely last several more.

Why Organic Garden?

It is very easy for gardeners to not see their gardens as they truly are.  Some tend to see them as they imagine them to be, not looking beyond the limits of their own yard to see the vastness of the gardening world or the effect they have on it.  Others, like myself, tend to be full of next years. The garden is an ongoing process, maybe something did not turn out as planned, is in the process of filling in, or there is another plan waiting to commence.  I look in my garden and have to make a special effort to see what did well rather than what needs doing.  Working in others' gardens helps to keep things in perspective, but this year that has been limited.  The first half was spent caring for my dying Grandma, the second half mostly spent recovering.  Lots of heat, no rain, some things thrived, others not so much, lots of planning of what to do better and dreaming of next year. I knew the garden overall looked decent, but there was so much that did not meet my expectations, and like a pimple on your face, you assume that is all everyone else sees, too.

A glimpse of my garden in early October.

Then I went on one of the first jobs in months and perspective was regained. Despite the hard year and many things already being finished and cut back for the year, my garden is shifting into a fall display.  The garden I worked in, though well established, was shutting down for the season. Many of the plants we had in common were either finished blooming or were nowhere near as lush in her garden.  I came home, and seeing my garden in a different light, was amazed.  Why the difference?  She watered more than I did, fertilized and sprayed for insects and fungus and I did not.  What did I do that she did not?  Instead of focusing mainly on plant care, I also focus on soil care and organic gardening.  Healthy soil equals healthy plants.  Chemicals do not.  I have written on this before, but it is so important that I am going to do so again because I cannot stress it enough.

Think of it this way ... If you feed your kids a diet of candy bars and potato chips, they are going to get big, maybe even look healthy for awhile.  However, they will not be getting the nutrients they need to remain healthy and their bodies will struggle.  Eventually they will get sick with something that their body cannot handle and be given an antibiotic.  The antibiotic kills most of the bad bacteria, but the good bacteria are sacrificed as well and the system is thrown out of balance, creating the perfect environment for a fungal infection and health is still not obtained.  A healthy diet provides the nutrition needed for a strong immune system whereas overuse of antibiotics and antifungals lead to superbugs that everyone has to deal with.

The same is true in the garden.  Plants fed a diet of chemical fertilizers do not get the nutrients they need to be healthy, only to grow big fast.  New growth is attractive to insects who move in to feast and infect the plant with disease.  Fungal spores are introduced by various means.  Roots struggle to grow in compacted soil, using up more of the plant's energy reserve. The plant struggles and sprays are used, killing beneficial insects, further throwing off Nature's balance and creating superbugs that effect everything from the food we eat to the clothes we wear.  There has to be a better way.  Forests, jungles and grassy plains have remained for thousands of years without, or until man's involvement.

Back to the soil.  Beautiful, nutrient laden, soil.  Full of organic matter, maybe even a nice, sandy loam. It does not happen by accident and it must be maintained as organic matter breaks down, but when it is present, plants thrive.  Roots easily grow deep in the loose, moisture retentive soil, taking in the micronutrients needed for health and saving energy for fighting pathogens.  Less water is needed.  Weeds that compete with the plants are easily pulled.  Bugs will come, both good and bad, but the plants will be strong enough to hold their own until the good overpower the bad.  Fungus may appear, but a healthy plant can usually handle it.  Planting a wide variety of plants attracts different beneficial insects and prevents bad bugs, fungus and diseases from easily jumping from plant to susceptible plant.  Balance is maintained.  Of course, some plants have been highly hybridized into something that Nature never intended, something that would never survive in Nature, and no matter what the care, are so finicky they will struggle.  One must then make the decision to risk the balance of the entire garden for the one plant, or replace the plant for the good of the garden ... and Nature.

Also see Wait! Don't Grab That Spray!

Sclerotium rolfsii

A few years ago I noticed a few Hostas were not doing so well, but figured the weather was getting to them.  After a few days I went out and they were nearly all dead, leaves and stems just laying there.  I picked them up and at the base were what looked like little insect eggs that I assumed were some sort of spores.  After a little research, I discovered they were Sclerotium rolfsii.

With surgical precautions and precision, I cut the Hostas back, dug them and the surrounding soil out, disposed of the foliage and soil, soaked the rootstock and tools in a 10% bleach solution, poured the bleach water in the hole, rinsed, potted and placed the rootstocks in quarantine until I was sure they were safe to replant.  A lot of work, but it proved successful.

This year it came back and I found it in multiple gardens, perhaps imported in topsoil.  To begin with, I successfully treated it similarly to before.  I began finding it in more plants though and was getting discouraged.  Digging up plants is hard, bleaching soil destroys more than the spores, and it seemed never ending.  Fungicides are mostly ineffective except for a few which are not available without a license.  It was time to begin my own research and experimenting.

Since Neem oil is anti-fungal, I searched the internet to see if there was any information regarding it and Sclerotium rolfsii and found that it did show some promise.  I mixed 1 1/2 teaspoons of 70% Neem oil in a quart of water and sprayed Sclerotium rolfsii spores with little results.  I then had an idea - Oregano oil, which amongst other uses, is anti-fungal.  I could find nothing on the internet regarding its use in killing Sclerotium rolfsii, so I was on my own.

I dropped a few drops of Oregano oil directly on a few Sclerotium rolfsii spores.  They dried up immediately and never spread.  Using straight Oregano oil is not practical, so I experimented until I found a dilution that was effective.

This is the method that ultimately worked successfully for me.  I have not only used it on Hostas, but on Ajuga, Phlox and Siberian Iris.  Cut the plant back as far as possible and clean out all debris, carefully putting everything in a trash bag to be thrown away.  Sclerotium rolfsii spores can easily hide, so doing this makes inspection and spraying much easier and more thorough.  Fill a quart spray bottle with water and add one dropper full of Oregano oil.  Spray to the point of drenching the affected plant and surrounding soil, shaking the bottle frequently to assure the Oregano oil is thoroughly mixed.  Inspect and repeat daily as needed as the spores are so insidious that one missed spore can quickly re-infest when the conditions are right.  Individual crowns may be especially difficult, and at one point I poured a little of the mix into some of them to insure coverage.  It has been several weeks since I have found any spores, and as quickly as they spread, I am hopeful they are under control.

Not all Oregano oil is created equal.  Though I am sure there are other brands as good or better, what I used was California Natural Wild Oregano Oil with 70% Carvacrol.  I cannot guarantee results, but when all else has failed or the situation seems hopeless, it is certainly worth trying.

Prevention is important when it comes to Sclerotium rolfsii. Closely inspect, some even go so far as to sanitize, any plants you import or transplant.  Frequently sanitize tools as well.  Inspect your garden daily if possible, even the veggies.  If foliage is turning yellow or dying, check the base of the plant for spores.  Sclerotium rolfsii strikes fast, so finding it early is key.  Throw infected plant material away, do not compost it.  Do not mulch up against plants; leave an air space around them.  Monitor plants around newly disturbed soil as spores can live indefinitely underneath, waiting to be exposed.  It is the spores that are in the top few inches of soil that cause the damage.

For more information on Sclerotium rolfsii ...
http://www.hostalibrary.org/articles/SBarticle.htm (Important information regarding its lifecycle.)
http://www.apsnet.org/edcenter/intropp/lessons/fungi/Basidiomycetes/Pages/SouthernBlight.aspx
http://www.extension.iastate.edu/Publications/SUL8.pdf
http://www.cbwinfo.com/Biological/PlantPath/SR.html
http://www.sweetbeet.com/growernet/Resources/pests/diseases/sclerotium.htm

UPDATE:  I hoped that an exceptionally cold winter had killed any potentially remaining spores, but on June 15, 2014 I found a few on one Hosta.  I had about half a quart of last year's mixture in the garage, so after carefully disposing of the affected leaves, I shook it up and poured it straight on the area.  I carefully inspect daily, and despite perfect conditions for Sclerotium rolfsii, I have not found any more.

Beneficial Insects

This began as an update to Thrips :(, but then I thought it might go better as a continuation of Wait! Don't Grab That Spray!.  In the end, I decided to make it its own entry.

It has been a beautiful spring with plenty of rain and the plants are thriving.  One thing plant pests love is new growth, and this year they have it.  I have been finding aphids everywhere, and though I was hoping with all the rain and the virtual flood we had the thrips would have disappeared, they are back, though as yet, damage is minimal.  I have also discovered that they are the reason why my Clematis have done so poorly the past couple of years.

I sprayed some plants with Neem oil, but on most plants it is pointless.  Where do you begin?  Or end? Most everything seems useless with thrips anyway.  My thoughts turned to beneficial insects, particularly for the thrips.  A quick search showed that minute pirate bugs, big eyed bugs, predatory mites and even some nematodes eat thrips.  They cost a pretty penny though, but since there are no assurances that you will get what you are paying for, or that it will be successful if you do, I decided I will try to attract some to my garden.  I have their food source, so all I need are plants that attract them.  Yarrow and shasta daisies are a couple that I already have and are attractive to several of them.  Fennel and Cosmos are a couple of others, so I bought seed and scattered it around the garden.  As I researched beneficial insects, I saw that there are many more that eat thrips, they just are not necessarily ones that are sold.  The best part is, I already have a lot of them in the yard.

The next thing was to hope that lady bugs would discover the feast of aphids in the garden.  Of course, there have to be enough aphids to be an attractive food source for the lady bugs.  In looking in the curled up leaves of an aphid infested plant I saw something amazing.  Tiny lady bug larva.  A few days later in the curled up leaves of another aphid infested plant, the dried up remains of aphids and the skins of lady bug larva that had molted.

A well fed praying mantis.

The closer I look, the more I see a wonderful array of beneficials in the garden.  I discover new ones every day, some insects I have never seen before. As I look them up, I discover others that I have seen for years, but never knew they were beneficials.  There appears to be a wonderful balance in the garden, and though there may be some insect damage, it is minimal compared to the damage that would be caused if I tried to fight the battle on my own with pesticides.

October 6, 2013 update:  I keep check for thrips, and the other day I saw one, the only one since soon after this was posted.  There are also countless beneficials, including minute pirate bugs. Unfortunately cucumber beetles have discovered the roses, but I am sure beneficials insects will reduce their numbers as well.

Also see Why Organic Garden?

Midwinter Houseplant Care

When it comes to houseplants, I am happy to have them survive the winter.  Though I only bring in a small start of each at the end of each summer, about this time some are taking over.  Not thick, lush growth, mind you, but a lot of trying to get to the light growth.  Even plants that are holding their own sometimes have some bug issues going on.  Sometime midwinter I get the time and incentive to get things under control.

One by one I bring a plant to the kitchen sink, cut back what needs controlling, clean out dead leaves, spray the remaining leaves to clean them, thoroughly water the plant, flush the soil with weak dish soap water, spray with neem as needed, allow access water and spray to dry for a few minutes, then return the plant to where it belongs.

Before:

What began as a very small start of Oxalis

took over two varieties of Arrowhead Plant

and several varieties of Wandering Jew.

After:

Oxalis thinned and cut back hard

and Wandering Jew trimmed

to make room for the Arrowhead Plant.

All cleaned, watered, treated with neem

and ready to return home.

Wait! Don't Grab That Spray!

Some of my Clematis have been looking a bit chewed on lately.  The other day I was looking closely to find the culprit and I saw an odd looking bug.  A lot of people's first response would be to grab the spray, and the thought did cross my mind, but I chose otherwise.  I observed it for awhile and noticed it was looking for something.  If it was the bug who had been chewing on my plant, it would need to look no farther to chomp down.  There was only one of them and bad bugs are rarely alone, so I thought the odds were good that it was a beneficial insect looking for a meal. Examining it closer, it looked like the larva of a lady bug, though it was a different color than I was familiar with.  I had seen a feast of aphids on another plant earlier, and knowing that is a favorite meal of lady bugs and their larva, I took it to them.  Sure enough, it quit searching and munched down.  Had I jumped my guns and sprayed him, I would have been killing my ally and helped the bad guys to grow in their numbers.  That was a lesson learned the hard way.

Lady bug larva on an aphid infested Asclepias.

When I first started gardening, I decided I was going to have the "perfect" garden.  I went to the store and bought a bunch of herbicides and insecticides to kill everything that did not belong in my garden.  The clerk told me that was not a good idea, but what did he know ... he was a chain store checker.  Every day I went outside and diligently sprayed every cucumber beetle and squash bug I could find.  I was going to win this war and have all kinds of veggies, and it seemed to work for awhile.  Key words, "seemed to" and " for awhile."  I went out one day to find pitiful looking plants covered in what I learned to be aphids.  At that point, the battle was over, the bugs won, so I backed off on spraying.  A short time later I was looking and saw a bunch of terrible looking bugs I had never seen before.  These little alligatorish looking bugs had to be bad and I just about grabbed my spray, but my curiosity was stronger than my desire to kill them.  I looked page by page through an old insect book until I found a drawing of what I had seen.  It was lady bug larva. I read a little bit about them and found that they were there to eat the aphids.  They were my allies!

At that point I began diligently going out daily to flick squash bugs into soapy water and crush any of their eggs I could find.  I learned about beneficial nematodes and bought them to eat the larva of cucumber beetles.  I hardly have a problem with either any more.  I have traps for the Japanese beetles and flies; not only do the the ones I trap die, but the more I trap, the fewer there are to reproduce.  I have not found another way to get rid of flea beetles on the eggplants, but I only spray when they are doing extensive damage.  Likewise, I minimally spray the iris for borers.  I have decided to let nature take its course with thrips on the roses because it seems to be a losing battle regardless.

Whenever you spray any pesticide (fungicide, herbicide or insecticide), it kills most of what you are after. Key word, "most."  Those who survive are resistant and spread, creating super weeds or bugs, etc.  In the case of insects, the spray kills both the pests and the beneficials who feed upon them.  Since there has to be a greater ratio of pests for beneficials to survive, not only do more pests survive the insecticide, they also reproduce faster than the beneficials.  Unless there is great destruction, it is best to leave pest insects alone so the beneficial insects can move in and do their job.

Instead of herbicides, be diligent about weeding and use mulch freely.  One year's seeds is seven years' weeds.  Only use herbicides on the most difficult weeds that cannot be pulled or dug. Remember that not all uninvited plants are bad and biodiversity is a good thing.

When pesticides are needed, they should only be sprayed in the early morning or late evening when beneficials, including honey bees, are least active.  Even organic sprays can be toxic to beneficials.  Avoid spraying when there is a breeze to help prevent overspray.  Always make sure what you are spraying, insect or plant, is really an enemy.  Do not necessarily go for the most toxic spray and ALWAYS USE ACCORDING TO THE DIRECTIONS.  More or more often is not better. In fact, it is worse because it adds to the resistance problem which effects everyone and everything.

Update: July 5, 2012 ... Another unidentified insect that turned out to be an ally.  It looked vicious, but there was only one, so before killing it, I took the time to find out what it was.  While it can inflict a painful bite to humans, the wheel bug (Arilus cristatus) is also a beneficial insect that among other things eats Japanese beetles.

Arilus cristatus - wheel bug nymph

Also see Beneficial Insects and Why Organic Garden?