"Gusrow" wrote (in response to Bob in NM, who asked about controlling
aphids, etc., without harming bees):

>I use a spray of made from a couple of tablespoons of dish soap to the
>gallon of water, applied with a pump sprayer.  Exact measurement isn't
>critical.  There are organic soaps sold for the purpose, but I just use
>whatever I have around.  I haven't seen any difference between soap and
>detergent.
>
>Spray the aphids or other small pests liberally.  This stuff works by
>gumming them to death. They aren't strong enough to get free of the
>solution. (The actual mechanism is asphyxiation.)   Bees, being larger and
>stronger, don't seem bothered by it.  If you want to be super careful you
>could spray late in the day. The liquid will dry before the bees show up for
>work the next day.  You could also wash the stuff off before the bees get to
>it. When I treat azaleas for lacebugs I sometimes mix a stronger solution,
>leave it on for several hours, and then hose it off so the plants wont burn.

   Soaps and detergents certainly work.  However, those substances also
kill the beneficial insects that prey on or parasitize the pest species.
By controlling the ants instead of spraying, I can enjoy watching those
beneficial insects at work on the aphids --- including ladybird beetle
adults and larvae, syrphid fly larvae, and braconid wasps.

   We covered that sort of information in our book:    1991  Klein, H.D.
and A.M. Wenner.  Tiny Game Hunting: Environmentally Healthy Ways to Trap
and Kill the Pests in Your House and Garden.  Bantam, New York.

   The bad news:  it sold out fast, and Bantam did not put out other print
runs.  However, your library may have a copy.

   The good news:  we just signed a contract with the University of
California Press to put out a second edition.  It should be out within two
years.

                                                Adrian

Adrian M. Wenner                    (805) 963-8508 (home phone)
967 Garcia Road                     (805) 893-8062  (UCSB FAX)
Santa Barbara, CA  93103

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*     "Nature only answers rightly when she is rightly questioned."

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*                                                      Goethe
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