Organic Gardening will upgrade its login and registration system on
December 11. The new system is needed to support some of the major site
enhancements that we are currently developing. The new system is shared with
other Rodale sites, including Prevention, Men's Health, Runner's World and Women's Health.
Click here for answers to the most frequently
asked questions related to the new system.
I'm growing my vegetables organically for the first time this year. I amended the soil with compost I made and all the good stuff recommended and my plants look great. However, I realized too late that my squash was infested with pickleworms. I now know to treat larvae with Bt. My question is whether I should pre-treat my other veggies with soaps or such to prevent potential problems, or do i simply wait for evidence of a problem, diagnose and then treat? I'm a novice so I need what help I can get? thanks.
I'm a novice myself so I'm just going from a few things i've read related to your question. If you were to spray without identifying the problematic bug you may effect other insects that are harmless or benefical. I really don't know much about what kind of sprays does what including bt so i don't know if it would target only the bugs you want, or if it would harm ones that you may want to leave alone. don't know if that helps much, but i think there might be some questions posted in new gardener or over the fence that might have more info about what and when to use sprays.
Welcome to the "continuing education class" of organic gardening; we're all still learning! This is a good question; it will be interesting to see what gets posted. Here is my 2 cents worth. I know, from experience, that I will have pickle worms and tomato fruit worms. They attack all my nightshades (tomato, pepper, eggplant), all the brassica (broccoli,turnip,kale,collard etc.), cucumbers and squash. So, as soom as I see any of them in the garden I start spraying all the above mentioned with bt, every 3-5 days (in a perfect world). Sometimes I add seaweed and or fish powder and the plants don't seem bothered. Now soap sprays are another story. I don't use them unless I have a specific problem on a specific plant as they can cause leaf damage to some plants. The advice about spraying a soap solution on a few plants, then waiting a few days to observe results, before spraying the entire crop is good advice. Some plants tolerate soap well, while others are sensative to it. I guess with good record keeping and careful measuring you (I) could have more confidence with soap sprays. Hope that helped.
Zone 9 Melbourne, Fl. Gardening is a class in continuing education. Enjoy!
I'm new here and just catching on to the lingo. I've seen the term "Bt" in the above posts. What is Bt? I think I have some of the same insects and need to get rid of them. Can someone tell me what Bt is? Terri S. Zone 5 Mid-Michigan
As for dealing with pests ahead of time.... that can get expensive as most products will wash off the leaves and you must reapply... and other products are contact poisons (like pyrethrins).
you might check out this catalog, get on their mailing list as they include all sorts of interesting tidbits about pests and dealing with them.... http://www.gardensalive.com
Remember too that every time you treat a plant for insect pests, you're also killing the insects that eat the pests. So keep your spraying to a minimum, going after only the infestations that threaten a crop, not those that just leave sundry holes in a few leaves.
Recognize that simply because there are bugs on your plants you need not spray or dust, but you do need to pay attention and if those bugs are harming the plants you need to make some decisions. 1) Is this insect causing harm to the plant and is the harm more than I can tolerate? 2) What is this insect? 3) What is the least toxic means of control, if that is necessary? 4 Apply that control. 5) Did that work? Return to step 1. What is not in this is; Are there any beneficial insects present or nearby that could control this if it is a pest?
