spider mite prevention/eradication

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Genuine

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ive been reading tons of threads and articles about how these little stinkers can totally ruin your plants and i've read about a lot of commercial remedies as well as those home made solvents from all the helpful and friendly macguyvers in the world. i just want to get all my thoughts clarified in one go, so heres what i got for you all, a lot of questions:

1. I prefer organic, therefore I'm thinkng of getting neem oil. Does neem act as a preventative solution as well as reactive? is it safe to spray on a sprout? when do you stop spraying? How exactly do you apply it? does it really smell BAD, or is it something that a bit of incense can handle? Do you have to wash it off? aslo, who manufactures a reliable organic neem oil product? is it really just plain old neem oil and some water? if so, ive got a great hook in india for neem oil...my gramps haha.

2. I also read about ladybugs, and this got me smiling. I just imagine a room full of ladybugs fluttering about, getting stuck in my hair so that if i scratch my head instead of dandruff theres just ladybugs.... and just flying out my coat pockets everywhere go...well unfortunately, if they dont have something to eat, then they will die like most other living organisms. due to this, they tend to be more of a reactive solution. Still though, if i had an infestation id like the solution to be as natural as possible, and ladybugs seem ideal even moreso than compared to neem oil. I just wanna know if any of you have experience with ladybugs and if they are good for killing off the mites+eggs and also, where can you buy them cheap? I live in Southern Cali btw, so if you know of a retailer in the area that would be cool. Online distributorship is also good.

3. I read about CO2. this seems actually like a great idea. place a large plastic bag over the plant and fumigate it with co2 so that the pests suffocate. the great part is that plants love their co2, so it almost seems ideal as more co2=possibly better plant growth? what do you guys think?


these so far are the 3 methods of treatment for spider mites that i have no hesitation to execute as they contain no harmful chemicals (well, minus the co2) and are natural deterrents/eradicators that would not induce any toxicity to the plants or to users. sorry for all the questions. it aint easy being a newb
 
Hi again Genuine,
I havnt had to do battle with many bugs but I read this article a while ago about neem oil, hxxp://urbangardenmagazine.com/2010/11/neem-oil/ change the xx to tt. It should tell you all you need to know about how to use it.

Peace W
 
I have never had any success against mites without using chemicals and I think I have tried almost everything. I wouldn't do any preventive spraying as spider mites develop tolerances to treatments very fast. Neem oil really does not work well. Ladybugs are not good either. They will eat spider mites if there is no other food, but it is not their preferred food and they do fly away and they do die and you will find some dead ones in your bud. They also do not eat the eggs.

I have never tried CO2, but I believe that you need quite high concentrations (more than you can get with any DIY Co2 thing) and several treatments over several days.

I understand not liking chemicals, but when it comes to spider mites, if you want to eradicate them you need to hit them fast and hard with a serious miticide like Forbid, Avid,or Floramite. And even then, these treatments need to be switched up so the mites do not develop a tolerance to your miticide. I use Forbid and/or Floramite when I have mites.
 
:aok:... "co-signed"..:)
The Hemp Goddess said:
I have never had any success against mites without using chemicals and I think I have tried almost everything. I wouldn't do any preventive spraying as spider mites develop tolerances to treatments very fast. Neem oil really does not work well. Ladybugs are not good either. They will eat spider mites if there is no other food, but it is not their preferred food and they do fly away and they do die and you will find some dead ones in your bud. They also do not eat the eggs.

I have never tried CO2, but I believe that you need quite high concentrations (more than you can get with any DIY Co2 thing) and several treatments over several days.

I understand not liking chemicals, but when it comes to spider mites, if you want to eradicate them you need to hit them fast and hard with a serious miticide like Forbid, Avid,or Floramite. And even then, these treatments need to be switched up so the mites do not develop a tolerance to your miticide. I use Forbid and/or Floramite when I have mites.
 
I had good luck with beneficial mites. I don't want to brag or I will have them again.
 
Since we're talking about the little heathan devils........ do yall use any preventative measures to/on them or do yall just treat them as they show up?
 
allways use as a preventitive...allways.
 
NorCalHal said:
allways use as a preventitive...allways.

thanks for the heads up everyone. but what exactly should we be using as a preventative? Ive reads lots of good reviews about Hot Shot while the plant is vegging. one little strip in the closet, one near the window, one near the door, and i guess that should help as a little pre-emptive defense. Ive read that neem does kill the mites and eggs pretty effeciently actually..but i trust everyones advice...

idk hard decision because i this is my first grow so i want to grow as legit of a plant as i can without chemicals. plus chemicals are pretty expensive :/

well since im starting from a seed there wont be as much of a risk initially. hopefully some good cleaning prior to implanting the sprout would be a good enough start. but i have dogs. and i love my dogs. im gonna be growing in my room where my dogs always hang out with me :(

pot or dogs, pot or dogs....
 
Marijuana is expensive--more3 expensive than chemicals to keep it safe. I wouldn't count on Neem Oil eradicating an outbreak of mites.

The Hot Shot IS a chemical pesticide. IMO, it is probably more dangerous than Forbid or Floramite.
 
No. I buy Floramite and Forbid on E-bay from a reseller who splits it up into smaller quantities. Some of this stuff only takes a few drops per gallon.
 
I discovered Spider mites in my Lowryder.. She was close to harvest, so I just took her down.. However when I started manicuring I saw the problem was worse than first expected.. I think I got rid of most the egg sacs.. Is it true, that they will leave the plant, when it starts drying? I will try to smoke it anyways, as I guess no one ever died of a few bugs.. They have also been shiting in the buds, those nasty creatures.
 

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