New and exclusive biological pest control for April and May
Soil temperatures should be warming up nicely by now and crops like Carrots may already have been sown. The traditional advice for avoiding carrot root fly damage is to delay sowing seeds so that you avoid the overwintering carrot root fly or that you cover carrots with fleece to prevent the carrot root fly from finding the carrots. There are some risks with this approach, what if you are trapping the carrot root fly in by covering the carrots with fleece?
For some time there have been no products available to gardeners that will actually kill Carrot root fly. New and Exclusive to Harrod Horticultural for 2010 is a nematode based product that will kill the Carrot root fly larvae, which is the really damaging part of the Carrot root fly life cycle, as it is the larvae that tunnel into the carrots and eat the roots. The Exclusive New Carrot Root Fly Killer from Harrod Horticultural contains a nematode that can be watered into the soil around the emerging or emerged carrot seedlings. The nematodes enter and kill the carrot root fly larvae. These tiny microscopic worms will stay active for about six weeks killing any carrot root fly larvae they find.
The treatment is safe, natural and poses no risk to the environment or surrounding wildlife. The treatment can be repeated for later sowings of carrots and can be combined with other anti-carrot root fly measures such as the new Carrot root fly trap to catch adult Carrot root flies and barriers to prevent Carrot root fly from finding the carrots. One pack of Carrot Root Fly Killer will treat an area of up to 12 square metres and is ideal for use in raised beds. Carrot Root fly Killer GPC-136 RRP £9.95 per pack from Harrod Horticultural.
Also remember that other beneficial nematode applications are important at this time of year and that new Slug and Vine Weevil Killer programmes are available from Harrod Horticultural to combat these pests effectively and economically.
New early season predators for tackling spider mites
Spider mite control with predators in warm summer months has been possible with tiny spider mite predators called Phytoseiulus persimilis for some years. However these predators need quite high temperatures to be active and only establish when spider mites are already present on plants. Many gardeners don’t spot spider mite activity until it is already well advanced. Late application of predators often leads to control too late. Now there are new predators available from Harrod Horticultural for control of spider mites earlier in the year. These new predators are supplied in slow release sachet bags. These sachets release predators over several weeks. They then travel over leaves consuming early spider mite infestations.
The new Spider mite killer sachets can be applied much earlier in the season for several reasons; 1] they tolerate lower humidity and temperature 2] they can eat other small mites and pollen to survive. There are also two versions; one for indoor use and one for outdoor use. The indoor sachets can be hung on plants like Cucumbers, Tomatoes, Aubergines and ornamental plants. The outdoor sachets are supplied in water proof bags and can be used on soft fruit and ornamentals outdoors. Spider mite killer sachets are available in 15 (GPC-144) or 25 (GPC-146) indoor sachets for £9.95 or £14.95 respectively or 15 (GPC-143) or 25 outdoor (GPC-145) sachets for £14.95 or £22.95 respectively, from Harrod Horticultural.
For more information, visit harrodhorticultural.com.
