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My Garden » Forums » General Gardening » Pests and Diseases » Lovely ladybirds
Last post 13-07-2008 6:38 AM by Foxnfirefly. 21 replies.
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A couple of days before my holiday, I noticed my runner beans were infested with blackfly. There was more black than green! One of the 'old boys' on our site saw me looking and offered to spray them. Nice of him to offer, so I was very polite and tactful as I explained that I prefer not to use insecticides. He said I'd get no beans, but not to worry - he'd sprayed his own plants and would get plenty and he'd let me have some of them! (Isn't it great that although we've got very different ideas we can still get along?)
I noticed some ladybird larvae and said I'd hope they'd save my beans. Two weeks later, I'm back from holiday and there are far more ladybirds and far less blackfly on my beans. The 'old boy' wasn't there, so I checked his beans - no ladybirds and lots of blackfly! If he doesn't get enough beans, I'll let him have some of mine. (I admit his brassicas all look much better than mine - and his carrots)
Anyone else have proven cases of the natural way being best?
Nature's way is best I have found. None of my veggies have ever had anything sprayed on them and I gave up using chemicals on the flower beds a few years ago. Since then there has been so much more wildlife in the garden and they do help in keeping the numbers of pests down.
This year I have grown Nasturtiums around the bean bed and they are doing a great job in attracting the blackfly and cabbage white butterfly eggs, as the leaves become infested I am snipping them off and new leaves are growing all the time and it's keeping the pests away from the beans and brassicas. I will definitely be doing the same again next year and will make sure I sow some in the brassica bed too.
I have found "nature" to be the single most destructive merciless ruthless and contemptible force on the planet, i am told that the best way to ensure that you suffer loads of aphids is to spray the aphids early in the season, because then the ladybugs arrive and leave because there is no food, then the second wave of aphids attack and hey presto no ladybugs! so they multiply to plague proportions. On the whole I have a deep mistrust of nature and treat it with the same dis respectful contempt that it treats me with. I have found the best method to grow plants/veg/fruit or flowers is to do so undercover where we can have some measure of control over the environment, that said polytunnels and greenhouse are not as pleasing to the eye as a cottage garden in full swing. So far in the last few days "mother nature" has treated us to four inches of rain,local flooding and turning any patch of ground that is not paved or concreted into a total mud bath, evn if paving tarmac and concrete are problems in urban areas the fact remains that they stay dry during our frequent heavy cloudbursts, the horse paddock next to the stables is still out of commission due to water logging, today we have hailstone propelled through the air with the force and velocity of bullets! Nature at least the climatic side of nature is an enemy to gardeners and should be treated as such.
...but when the ladybirds arrive, they will eat the pests and once they've eaten them they will lay their eggs for the next generation to grow and eat the next lot of pests that arrive.
Actually, I've just gone of nature! Yesterday, I thought I'd turn over the compost - I didn't know there was a wasps nest ...
I was stung several times on the face and head (I think they got trapped in my long hair) It's stopped hurting now, but I look like the elephant man.
Oh Phots poor you. And we thought gardening was a pleasant, relaxing pastime not dangerous. I would never have given a thought to wasps nesting in the compost.
How will you get rid of them?
Ouch Phot's ill bet that spoiled your day, You can take anti histamine tablets for stings something like piriton. wasps are devils for stinging you over and over, or try and get some savlon onto the sting areas. to get rid of the wasps get a gallon of paraffin pour it into the nest and light the blighters up!!
And a double ouch from met Phot's, I react badly to wasp stings too, hope the swelling soon goes down.
We had some wasps in the garden a couple of months ago and I saw some going in a small gap underneath the greenhouse and put some ant powder down that has been in the shed for years, since then I haven't seen any wasps.
I've taken some antihistimine - hopefully that will help. I called the doctors as it was still getting worse this morning and after a few questions they've decided I'm not in danger, but should go to my doctor for a steroid injection tomorrow if the swelling isn't improving. Luckily my mouth and nose are OK so I can eat and breath! I'm developng black eyes though and can't get my glasses on ... Feeling a bit sorry for myself.
Not sure what to do about the wasps - other than keep well away. They probably won't be a problem if I avoid sticking a big fork into their nest?
How are you feeling now Phot's?
I'm getting better thanks. My face is still swollen but it hasn't got any worse - it might be getting better, but that could be wishful thinking.
I don't know what to do about the tablets. The doctor said one every four hours, but the pack says one a day.
Phot's-Moll--take one a day. Doctors can be sued for malpractice, but you can't sue the manufacturer if you don't follow their package instructions!! I do hope you recover soon, that must be awful with swelling in the face. That sounds like a really bad brush with nature, though. Wasps are mean and incompatible with gardeners. You'd best burn the nest, the only way to avoid it if it's in the wrong place.
I'm with the organic way of gardening. No chemicals. If the plant is susceptible, I'll usually sacrifice the plant and find another one. I'm dealing with Japanese beetles, leaf miners, and some other unknowns that makes holes in leaves but don't seem to be hurting much. I let the praying mantises and ladybeetlees do their thing, and the birds are good at keeping some flying thugs under control, including mosquitoes, which are the biggest gardening nuisance in the summer here. Planting nastutiums, marigolds and garlic does help.
Phot's - the one a day on the packet is right, they sound similar to the ones I get on prescription from the docs and they are designed for one a day only as they are time-release tablets. When your docs said every four hours then they would have probably meant the Piriton which is a low dose and can be taken more often. With the daily ones if you take more than the one-a-day it can affect your heart rhythm.
We get a lot of mozzies here too Foxnfirefly, our winters are not cold enough these days to kill them off completely and they always make a beeline for me, so far this year I have been lucky but I don't want to speak too soon...
I've just done a quick search on Piriton and it seems there are two different packets, one is where you can take a tablet every 4 to 6 hours and the others are just one a day, both contain different ingredients and dosages, obviously the one a day are stronger.
Oh Phot's poor you! Can't you contact the local council to see if they will dispose of the nest? If not there are usually local "destroyers" in the telephone book - but at a cost!
