potatoe bugs

StIsadore 6/3/2010, 8:05 pm

Does anyone know of any good natural remedy to keep potatoe bugs from eating all the leaves from my plants? I hate to use chemicals! Someone told me listerine works but I haven't tried it yet. I don't know if I am supposed to dilute it. Any ideas??

ander217 6/3/2010, 10:44 pm

I walk through my potato plants each day, wearing gloves and carrying a can of soapy water. I pick off every red larva and striped bug I find and plop them in the can. You'd be surprised how quickly you can thin them out just by handpicking. If you keep it up, after a few days you should only find a few newly-hatched larvae now and then.

Be sure to pull the plants back and look underneath the leaves, too.

StIsadore 6/5/2010, 1:02 pm

Thanks, but I don't think it's the potatoe bugs eating them this time. I can't see anything on the leaves at all but some of them are chewed up. I tried the pepper spray and the insecticide spray you can buy last year but it didn't seem to work. I ended up having to use the sevin powder or I wouldn't have had any potatoes at all!

MeyerLemon 6/8/2010, 2:01 am

Dear AlGore,

Use ander217's approach, or try something like Neem oil to spray. I have had really good results with that in my garden.

Ok, so I am being a little silly with the Al Gore comment, but he was made famous by his misspelling of the word "potato" - adding an "e" at the end as you have.

I'm a little bit of an English language nazi, so you'll have to forgive me Very Happy

Chopper 6/8/2010, 4:35 am

I can be very obnoxious about that too. But it was Dan Quayle, not Al Gore. I thought of that, too, when I saw it. I just laid down until the feeling to correct went away. potatoe bugs Icon_lol

**donnainzone5** 6/8/2010, 10:31 am

So, I'm not the only "grammar Nazi" out in SFG-land!

One of my (many) pet peeves is the misuse of apostrophes (NOT apostrophe's). But this is getting OT....

Chopper 6/8/2010, 1:28 pm

Sorry StIsadore! I should really be in a rehab group!

To answer your question in a very general way, I get a lot of my bug and remedy info at: http://www.ghorganics.com/. If those don't work I take it up a notch and see what Monsanto has to offer.

They had some very interesting info re: beneficial insects and how to attract them also.

StIsadore 6/8/2010, 3:36 pm

You guys are funny!! I never did memorize the grammar rule about those words that end with o's. Thanks for the advice, I'll try it. But PLEASE don't call me Al Gore!!!!! God bless.

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