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Dr. uarewotueat
Peyote Farmer


Registered: 09/02/06
Posts: 16,545
Loc: Uk / Philippines
Last seen: 10 years, 6 months
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Biological Pest Control On Cacti.
#7571969 - 10/29/07 06:18 AM (16 years, 3 months ago) |
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in an indoor situation using artificial light, we all know that bugs can be an issue... for myself in particular: mealy bugs, thrips and fungs gnats are the main bugs i get on my cacti... recently ive been noticing them more frequently so its time to do something about them before they become a real problem... i dont like using sprays on my cacti so ive been doing some research into biological control before any of these little bastards take over... having alot of crested cacti and lophophora, its the mealy bugs that concern me the most! they are really good at getting into the crevices on my crests and hide down in the fluff of the lophs... killing them with sprays isnt easy at all due to their wooly coating, so when they have a good hiding place its damn near impossible...
so i have concluded that using a combination of "Cryptolaemus" beetles & "Hypoaspis" mites should pretty much fuck up everything in the soil and on the plants 
heres some info i have collected from various sources that i thought may be useful to others who dont like spraying their cacti or find it futile to do so...
so far as i can gather from the info ive posted these two predators have the following bugs covered... mealy bugs, thrips, fungus gnats, scale insects, aphids & sprintails 
cryptolaemus beetle pwning mealy bugs!

hypoaspis mite.

Quote:
Biological Control of Mealybugs The Mealybug is one the hardest pests to control. Its body is covered with white waxy threads, which often make a chemical pest control unsuccessful. The predatory beetle Cryptolaemus montrouzieri is a specialist in clearing mealybug populations.
Cryptolaemus montrouzieri is an Australian ladybird. Adult beetles can reach a length of 4 mm, and have black-brown wingcases. Its head, thorax an abdomen are orange-brown. The Cryptolaemus larva can reach a length of 13 mm and can be recognized by its white downy wax secretion. Due to this secretion, the larva and its prey are as like as two peas in a pod. However, the larva of Cryptolaemus is longer, more mobile and its wax threads are longer than those of mealybugs.
The development ture. It takes about 32 days at a temperature of 24°C. A female beetle lives approximately 2 months and lays 10 eggs a day in a mealy bug colony or in a group of mealybug eggs.
Cryptolaemus is most active when the weather is sunny. A temperature of 22-25°C and a relative humidity of 70-80% are optimal for egg laying. The beetle is not active when temperature drops to 16°C
Cryptolaemus is a very efficient predator for clearing mealybug populations. Adults and young larvae eat every stage. Cryptolaemus can also have aphids or scales for a meal as an alternative to mealy bugs, if only few of them are present.
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Cryptolaemus are introduced in a small glass tube from which they should be placed on the infected plants near the mealy bugs. Cryptolaemus requires both heat and light. The optimum temperature is 16°C/61°F and as the Cryptolaemus require long day lengths either introduce between May and September or use artificial light. The female cryptolaemus lays her eggs next to the Mealy bug eggs in the "white wool" egg pouches, from this the larval stage of the Cryptolaemus emerges and is very similar in appearance to the Mealy Bug although only the Cryptolaemus larvae is mobile. All stages of the Cryptolaemus eat Mealy Bugs and their eggs. Unlike the Mealy Bug the Cryptolaemus can fly and in very efficient in searching out the Mealy bugs.
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Hypoaspis is a tiny mite that feeds on a range of small insects and is particularly fond of Mealy Bug and will quickly destroy both adults and eggs. Hypoaspis should be used on plants up to 30cms / 1ft tall as Cryptolaemus flies to the top of taller plants and is not interested in smaller plants. It is often used to control Mealy Bug on smaller Cactus. Hypoaspis is delivered in vermiculite which should be sprinkled over the compost surface. Remember if the infected plants are between the two heights then raise the plants up by putting them on a bench etc. and introduce Cryptolaemus. Egg to adult takes about 34 days at 15ºC (60ºF) and 9 days at 28ºC. Hypoaspis adults and larvae both feed on sciarid larvae, but prefer the younger stages. Hypoaspis can live for several weeks without the presence of food, and therfore can be used as preventatively. Adults will remain active for 4 or 5 months with a ready food supply.
Quote:
Hypoaspis miles is a small (½ mm) light brown mite that lives in the top ½ in layer of soil. As a natural predator of fungus gnat pupae, it is used by gardeners for biological pest control. Hypoaspis miles and the similar species, H. aculiefer are soil-dwelling, predatory mites. Hypoaspis mites feed on fungus gnats, springtails, thrips pupae, and other small insects in the soil. The mite is 0.5 mm (1/50 inch) long and light-brown in color. It inhabits the top 1/2 inch layer of soil. Females lay eggs in the soil which hatch into nymphs in 1 to 2 days. Nymphs develop into adults in 5 to 6 days. The lifecycle takes approximately 7 to 11 days. Both nymphs and adults feed on soil-inhabiting pests, consuming up to 5 prey per day. They may survive by feeding on algae and/or plant debris when insects aren't available. Both males and females are present, but males are smaller and rarely seen.
hopefully that info will be of use to others too, not only cacti growers.
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Edited by uarewotueat (10/29/07 06:21 AM)
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cpw1971
Mr

Registered: 10/07/06
Posts: 5,611
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theres an enzyme cleaner out that kicks ass too ya know. I am not sure you would want to spray it on your cacti but to clean the room around your cacti it is the best. It dissolves the insects exoskeleton and they die. It is popular as a safe lice treatment but mites are almost the same thing and they will die too. just do a google search for "enzyme cleaner lice"
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sherm
sherman


Registered: 10/02/03
Posts: 20,498
Loc: Euthanasia
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something to kill mealy bugs on my cactus would be nice i have been attacking them with a tooth brush
-------------------- shroomery. not even once.
    
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felixhigh
Scientist



Registered: 06/24/01
Posts: 7,557
Loc: Ly
Last seen: 1 month, 8 days
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I have already had lost a good part of my collection to mealybugs, in the past. They came in infested plants from a local nursery. I only found my way out of it through the use of Malathion in a special recipe. If anybody needs a nuke just PM me.
FH
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BaldCuban
scruffy-looking


Registered: 03/29/00
Posts: 337
Loc: here, there, everywhere
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Re: Biological Pest Control On Cacti. [Re: felixhigh]
#7573123 - 10/29/07 02:10 PM (16 years, 3 months ago) |
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Predatory nematodes are very effective against thrips and fungus gnats. I am using them to control both of these pests on my san pedros. They are a microscopic, predatory worm that live in the top 6 inches of soil. Since fungus gnats and thrips spend a good portion of their life as a soil inhabiting larvae, nematodes readily feed on them at this stage. I'm not sure how effective they are at controlling mealybugs since I have not tried using them for that purpose. However, they will feed on any organism who's flesh they can penetrate, and people have experimented with them on many pests with positive results. Beneficial nematodes are relatively inexpensive and easy to apply. I would suggest using them at least every 3 to 4 weeks.
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j_db69
Forever learning shaman


Registered: 02/09/04
Posts: 897
Last seen: 1 year, 7 months
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Re: Biological Pest Control On Cacti. [Re: BaldCuban]
#7573570 - 10/29/07 04:34 PM (16 years, 3 months ago) |
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Bacillus thuringiensis can also be applied to the soil when watered. It is effective against fruit flies, mosquitoes, and beetles. Not sure what else it works on. It is also environmentally safe.
I just don't like the idea of bringing in other insects if they are to be kept indoors. To each their own..
-------------------- One does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the dark conscious. --Jung
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Dr. uarewotueat
Peyote Farmer


Registered: 09/02/06
Posts: 16,545
Loc: Uk / Philippines
Last seen: 10 years, 6 months
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Re: Biological Pest Control On Cacti. [Re: j_db69]
#7579525 - 10/31/07 06:28 AM (16 years, 3 months ago) |
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the only reason i sugested the above critters is that they seem to be marketed here as control specifically for mealy bugs... not sure if im going to get them yet, but if things dont improve from using other methods i certainly shall give them a go!
thanks for the other suggestions
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royer
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Registered: 05/15/06
Posts: 4,801
Loc: anywhere but here
Last seen: 4 years, 10 months
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i like the insects because i have used many chemicals that have had very negative side affects on my cacti!!
most of this stuff works great on other plants but cacti are picky, they are also very sensitive to drastic change, i used a safer spray on my cacti soil once and the smallest bit got on the base of the cacti and the oil in the soap rotted the skin away(the skin breaths )
also some other sprays like listed above killed a very rare expensive jade tree that i had that was pretty old!!
most of you that are listing all these chemicals have not used them on very expensive/RARE cacti, i lost a 300dollars and a 80 dollars cactus last week due to pests, once the rot sets in a lophophora it is pretty hard to save it.
i am against sprays and chemicals 90% the only one i have used with good results is avid
i use it for spider mites on my mj and house plants!
i am going to order some predatory bugs by the end of the week
-------------------- ================================================= if you have any questions please feel free to pm me , thx :-)
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Dr. uarewotueat
Peyote Farmer


Registered: 09/02/06
Posts: 16,545
Loc: Uk / Philippines
Last seen: 10 years, 6 months
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Re: Biological Pest Control On Cacti. [Re: royer]
#7580543 - 10/31/07 12:18 PM (16 years, 3 months ago) |
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precisely royer, same reason i hate using sprays on my cacti
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royer
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Registered: 05/15/06
Posts: 4,801
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-------------------- ================================================= if you have any questions please feel free to pm me , thx :-)
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