Quote:
Originally Posted by HoustonHeat
I took me a while to get the 10% Perm and DE. To hold me over I sprayed with Spinosad last weekend. Yesterday evening I sprayed with DE-Permethrin mix.
The dawn really helped it stick as all plants looked to be covered in a white frost.
Sunday evening I am going to add Copper to the mix and reapply it again. I have destroyed several plants beyond help. I also sprayed a few cucumber plants that were infected. The bugs are definitely assassin long pipes (see pic) but unfortunately the mites were winning the war so all in the path may be casualties.
Bill when do these pests stop reproducing? October?
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I had one season of Assassin bugs galore and had a virtual pest free season that year and never had to spray but haven't seen more than an occasional one since then. I have no idea why I had so many of them that year but I would see hundreds of them some days. Now the only bug that looks similar that shows up in numbers are leaf footed bugs and stink bugs. I did have a couple of assassin bugs on my squash this year but that was all I have seen.
As to mites stopping in October it all depends on the heat and whether it stays hot and dry. Last year I was still having mites show up in October but not as bad as earlier but last year was extremely hot and dry right up until mid November here.
You should see a real decline in mite activity if the DE doesn't get rained off the plants.
I lost several plants last year because I allowed them to get too bad on the plants before spraying but most survived and thrived until they froze. Some of them looked pretty bad after I clipped all the badly damaged foliage off of them but with a big dose of TTF and good watering they recovered well.
I found a half dozen plants with mites a few days ago and sprayed everything with Permethrin, DE, Dawn and Copper. My plants are nice and hazy looking now but the mites seem to be stopped for now despite the 100 degree heat. I had to go out and water them all yesterday and there is a 50% chance of rain for the next few days.
I also give my plants a good feeding of TTF and pruned them just before watering and fertilizing.
Good luck.
Bill