The Rural Voice, 1993-01, Page 366 -
Gardening
Getting the bugs out
by Rhea Hamilton -Seeger
The snow is falling gently and I
am busy planning what fabulous
seeds to try this spring. To keep that
"green" mood I quietly fill my
watering jug and go for a watering
run along thc window sills. Watering
geraniums, ferns and violets, I nip off
some of those finished buds on the
Christmas cactus. And then I notice
a delicate white cloud rising from my
favourite scented geranium.
Those yellow leaves arc
not signs it hasn't recouped
from its move from the
garden to the window sill
last September. A closer
inspection reveals little
whitc flies that dip and
swirl among the leaves,
reproducing themselves
over and over and leaving
a sticky mess on the
leaves. 1 am plagued, or I
should say my window plants
arc plagued, with white flies
every year. I hope and pray that
they will make it 'til spring when I
can get them out into the garden
where natural predators, temperature
and rain can clean them up. Last
spring I took a more aggressive
approach. I mixed up a commercial,
insecticidal soap and armed with my
sprayer declared war.
I cleaned up any dead leaves or
flowers on the plant and any dead
leaves sitting on the top of the pot.
Next I pruned back any heavily
diseased parts and out the door that
went. The next step was a good
spraying, making sure to get thc
underside of the leaves. 1 let my
house plants get on the dry side
during the winter months but with
such a brutal cleanup you have to
remember not to treat a dry plant. Lo
and behold, a few new shoots later
and 1 knew they would make it until
spring.
In order to control these window-
sill infestations we have to under-
stand why and how we get to this
point. Whcn we bring in plants from
our gardens to winter over on our
windowsills we also bring in some of
the problems. We have to keep in
mind it is not one or two insects that
we have to consider. Many times we
bring in plants that have insects on
them and that don't bother us or
healthy plants. What we have to con-
sider is the whole insect population.
The greater the population, the great-
er the threat to the plant. If we can
alter the conditions or environment
and make it less desirable for the
pests then we can manage the
problem.
In our garden there is
fluctuating humidity, rainfall
to wash the leaves clean and
natural predators to keep
pests under control. Once a
plant is moved indoors it
becomes a haven or heaven
for insects like whiteflies.
Research shows that while
the white -fly population will
develop faster at a higher
temperature, it is the cooler
temperature that they prefer for
egg laying. They will lay as much as
10 times as many eggs at 64°F than at
81°F. Now take a look at your
windowsill. Most windowsills
obviously have lower temperatures
than what is recorded in the room. In
our home there is a heater which is
turned up when we work in that room
creating a higher temperature for a
short time, just lovely for maturing
whiteflies, and then the lowered
temperature allows for increased egg
laying. Since the best natural light is
also in that room we will have to
leave the plants there and there is
little we can do about the temperature
factor. Therefore we will look at
some of the other areas of control.
As whiteflies, aphids, and
mealybugs feed on the plant they
secrete what is called honeydew.
This attracts ants and wasps which
feed on that and in tum take the
aphids, whiteflies etc. to safe havens
to protect their source of honeydew.
Since you probably don't have these
natural travel agents in your home,
this honeydew builds up and provides
a basis for the growth of sooty mold.
This sooty mold blocks the pores of
32 THE RURAL VOICE
the plant and effectively starves the
plant for light. But you have to have
quite an infestation of whitefly or
pests to warrant sooty mold and
unless the plant is very precious to
you it would probably be wiser to
throw the plant out and start again.
Humidity around the plant is
another factor. Low humidity or
warm dry air will also dry out the
insects making it hard for them to
reproduce. On the other end of the
scale humidity of more than 80 per
cent provides an environment for
both bacterial and fungal growth
which also acts as a deterrent to
insects.
Here is a recipe for a natural
pesticide for indoor use.
Mix a solution of soap flakes
without detergent such as Ivory and
Octagon; it won't kill all the insects
on the plant but will reduce their
numbers. Use one or two table-
spoons of flakes in one gallon of
tepid (70 to 90°F) water. A proper
application means sponging
thoroughly, dipping or spraying
vigorously. Leave it on for one or
two hours and then rinse it off well
with lukewarm water. Don't use on
hairy plants such as African violets
and some begonias. If you use a
commercial soap mixture be sure to
rinse it off after an hour or two.
If there is a smoker in the house
make use of some of those butts. To
make "smokers special" soak 20 or
30 cigar butts, cigarette butts or an
equivalent mound of pipe tobacco in
one gallon of water for five days.
Strain and mix one teaspoon of
"smokers special" with two table-
spoons of soap flakes in one gallon of
water. Don't forget to rinse off since
the nicotine will burn the leaves. Be
ever vigilant and be prepared to spray
about every two to three weeks to
keep on top of the battle. Spring is
not that far off.0
Rhea Hamilton -Seeger, in addition to
working in advertising production
for The Rural Voice, raises two
children, and is a skilled cook and
gardener.