Neem oil for insect and fungi control

Hi all,

I have a collection of various cacti that have been hit quite hard by insects. I've read on this forum that things like confidor and rogor work quite well. I went to the local nursery to get some stuff to control this. The lady at the nursery suggested that I try 'Neem Plant Spray'. Its an oil that comes from the seeds of the Neem tree that is grown in India and surrounding areas. From reading on the net this oil controls pests by altering their hormones and making plants taste bitter, and also can control various fungi.

Has anyone ever used Neem Oil on cacti??

Nod.

Hi Noddy,
I used a product called 'neem gold' for a while and it seemed to work quite well. I used it mainly on indoor grafted plants. I used a lot of it too so i think its quite safe for your plants. it was in my case.

I wanted to step up that level of protection so I now use confidor. but I think neem oil is a good organic alternative.

hello Noddy,
sorry i have not had any experience using neem oil on cacti. what specific insect pests are you having trouble with? different insecticides are more effective for certian types etc. i have always only used confidor as a systemic, use it eveything during the growing season regardless of whether pests are visible or not.. good for mealy bugs and root mealies in particular. doesn't do anything to spider mites though.

Hi , I read recently that the seed pod contains an oil that contains the ingredient called "Azadirachtin" and is available as a eco friendy spray called AZAMAX . How this spray works is when the plants are sprayed the insects ingest the spray sending a message to the brain fooling them into believing that they are continually full consequently in time they die of starvation . more info at the website of Organic crop protectants web site www.ocp.com .

Thanks everyone for your responses,

Watertrade, is there a specific reason that you went to confidor from neem gold (i.e. it stops more insects)?

Gracie, have you ever used AZAMAX? If so, did it work?

From reading about neem gold and Azamax there is alot of talk about neem for insects and mites. Is it also good for fungi?

Thanks, Noddy.

Hi noddy... well... I ran out of neem
gold... also I was
using a lot of it -spraying every couple of days - with confidor I don't
spray as often and I like the idea of a systemic
protection. Also the neem was advertised as 'disrupting
the breeding cycle' they used words like 'discourages' in the description
- I really want something that’s going to kill the pests

noddy wrote:

Thanks everyone for your responses,
Is it also good for fungi?

Thanks, Noddy.

I don't think so...

Hi Watertrade,
I think you make a good point about the neem. Instead of discouraging them its best to kill them.
Whats the best way to apply the confidor? Should I spray, water it in or soak the pot, or do something else?

Thanks
Noddy.

Hi Noddy,
do you know what kind of insects they are?
confidor is a systemic foliar spray from memory - I have
found a few applications at the lower strength works well. I usually
water the plants and follow it up with a good spray of confidor - I think
foliar sprays are not that effective on cacti compared to other plants because
the chemical has to enter the plant through the skin. So a few applications
seems to help - It can't hurt to give the sounding soil a spray
too.

Alternatively if you know specifically what the insects are you can
target them with a specific insecticide.

Good luck!

watertrade wrote:

confidor is a systemic foliar spray from memory

It is a proper systemic insecticide in that it is absorbed by the roots and works its way up to the plant body and makes the plant poisonous to whatever is going to eat it. i've found the best way to use it is to get some confidor concentrate, pour some into a bucket of water to dilute it and flood the soil of your pots. this is much more effective than spraying the plant body itself. Imidacloprid (confidor) does have contact action as well so you can spray it on infestations directly with good results but will only kill certain insects, particularly mealies but also bees, so don't spray flowering plants. imidacloprid has been banned in some countries overseas for its supposed involvement in CCD incidences (Colony Collapse Disorder) in bee hives. It is also used for termite control and flea control.

well! it seems my memory has failed me.
do what lewis said...

Looks like you are both kinda correct

Just to clarify:

http://www.yates.com.au/products/pest-control/insects-concentrates/bayer-confidor-garden-insecticide-sachets/

http://www.yates.com.au/products/pest-control/insects-ready-to-use/bayer-confidor-insecticide-ready-to-use/

and the MSDS for Confidor:

http://dkt.net.au/msdsfiles/confidor%20200.pdf

Oh and...noddy, it is usually much better to just use the nasty chemicals as they tend to be the most effective for your ornamental cacti, no need to go over the top, just use only what is required. I am all for organic solutions, sometimes they just don't quite cut it as far as pest control goes.

Also it also pays to remember that alot of these chemicals are residual and hang around in the soil etc. for quite a while and also within the cell tissue of your cacti, if the plan is to eat the fruits etc. of your cacti, it is best to avoid chemicals.

A bit of a double edged sword really.

Best stratedgy is try and buy uncontaminated plants where possible, keep the growing area nice and clean, good ventilation, keep plants healthy and always keep an eye out for pests and treat accordingly. If you go by that then you should have few worries in your collection.

oh im sure Confidor does also work as a foliar systemic, but as Wt says the thicker skin of cacti may make proper penetration and absorbtion a little more difficult than with non succulent plants, which is perhaps why i have had better results using it as a soil drench so it can be absorbed via the cactus roots. I do spray it on the body of any affected plant (with mealies) i see, moreso for the contact action rather than the systemic though.

for normal mealies soaking the whole plant, pot and all in confidor with a sprayer seems to very effective, and for particularly severe cases of root mealies you can take drastic action and half fill a bucket with water and add dilute confidor concentrate and place the affected potted plant in it sittting there for a while. in extremely severe cases mealies will actually float to the surface.

but obviously this chem can only work systemically when the affected plants are in active growth and are actually absorbing water, but this is not to say you cannot use it effectively during the dormant period because you can rely on the contact action.
oh and Confidor is not so much of a 'nasty' compared to most other potent widely used chemicals for the same purpose, such as Rogor. it has 'low mammal toxicity'.

another thing i would recommend to prevent recurring pest outbreaks is to treat your entire collection with a systemic at least once annually during the active growth period.

Awesome information you have shared about the Neem spray to control pests. Now a days, I have been hearing about this amazing spray and getting impressed.