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All pest
controls and feeds have to go through stringent safety standards to
ensure they are both harmless to the environment and to the people
administering them. It is advisable to rummage through your potting shed
and safely remove and dispose of any old insecticides and fungicides to
ensure they cause no harm.
Many products have been withdrawn and replaced with safer alternatives
which use natural, biological enzymes and/or natural, safe chemicals.
Here are
a selection of products that, between them, will control most pests you
are likely to encounter:
Insecticides
Growing Success Winter Tree Wash
The natural, biological enzymes dissolve insect eggs that have been laid
in the bark and crevices of fruit trees, soft fruit and greenhouse
vines.
Apply monthly from December to February by spraying over the whole of
the dormant plant. If your fruit tree is permanently diseased, it may be
prudent to cut it down completely so it will not keep infecting fresh,
young shoots.
Growing Success Winter Moth Barrier Adhesive Spray
Apply October to December, and again in March, to prevent the wingless,
female Moth from climbing the tree and laying her eggs.
Apply April to September to deter Earwigs and Ants.
Growing Success Fruit and Vegetable Bug Killer
This is a contact insecticide with a unique formulation that ensures
that insect pests and eggs can not respire or move. Because it controls
all stages in the life cycle of Aphids, Thrips, Whitefly and Mites, its
use results in high levels of pest control. It is also organic and
biodegradable.
Apply at first sight of the pest.
There are
no systemic insecticides on the market that are suitable to use on fruit
and vegetable plants, apart from Provado Ultimate Bug Killer,
which can be used on Tomatoes, Peppers and Aubergines. However, the
contact insecticides control most of the major pests like Caterpillars,
Blackfly and Greenfly, and products with Derris are still available for
use on either edible or ornamental plants.
Provado have three systemic products to control ornamental plants
and lawns:
Ultimate Bug Killer
This product works both systemically and on contact, making it efficient
in controlling Greenfly, Blackfly, Whitefly, Woolly Aphids, Mealy Bug,
Scale Insect, Lily Beetle, Thrips and Red Spider Mite.
Apply when you notice the pest; it gives protection for up to eight
weeks.
Vine Weevil Killer 2
This is ideal for containerised, ornamental plants, either indoor or
outdoor. As well as controlling Vine Weevil, it also controls a wide
range of other pests by working inside the plant to prevent further
infestation.
It controls soil pests for up to four months, and Greenfly, Blackfly and
Whitefly for up to six weeks.
Lawn Grub Killer
 This
reduces lawn damage caused by Chafer Grubs and Leatherjackets.
For optimum control, apply in May or June for Chafer Grubs, and
mid-August to September for Leatherjackets.
Rose
Clear and Multi Rose are still on the market; their
formulations have been modified to comply with new regulations. Although
these products are marketed primarily for use on Roses, they are still a
suitable pest control for other ornamental plants, and are useful if you
have both an insecticidal and fungal problem on the same plant, like
Greenfly and Blackspot.
Fungicides
Fungicides can be either contact or systemic control like insecticides.
Again, the only systemic types on the market are only suitable for
ornamental plants.
Fungus Fighter
This is a systemic fungicide ideal for three major types of fungus:
Blackspot, Mildew and Rust.
For fruit
and vegetable plants, it is back to many traditional remedies which rely
on Copper or Sulphur compounds:
Dithane 945 controls Scab, Blackspot, Downy Mildew, Rust, Peach
leaf Curl and Potato Blight.
Traditional Copper Fungicide controls damping off of seedlings,
Bacterial Canker and Cone Spot, amongst other problems.
Bordeaux Mixture
This controls Potato and Tomato Blight, leaf moulds and Apple Canker.
Yellow
Sulphur controls powdery mildew and protects stored bulbs, corms and
tubers.
Always
read the label as some of these products are not suitable for certain
families of plants, e.g. Yellow Sulphur is not suitable to use on red
and white Currants, and certain varieties of Apple, Pear and Gooseberry. |
We stock a wide range
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