Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Hi All

I have mealy bug on ,y tomatoes and i want to control it before it overtakes everything.
What is a fish friendly product i can use please?
Or happy to take advice on how to control.

Thanks Joe

I'm not 100% certain on this one. I'm going to try to give you some ideas.

First off look for ants - ants farm aphids and mealy bugs so control the ants to reduce the spread of these pests and to keep them from coming back after you've sprayed.

Some mealybugs get below the soil level and are tough to control without removing the plant to spray.

The way I've controlled them on orchids outside of AP is with a horticultural spray oil combined with water and detergent this combination coats them and smothers them. This sort of thing works with most soft bodied insects but the spray can also coat your lungs (use a mask, you won't notice it immediately). It will also coat the water surface and interfere with oxygen exchange so it's not particularly good for the fish either. This is dependent on contact so if you miss any.... .

I think some people might use neem oil to control whiteflies and some other pests. It should work on mealybugs but check to make certain and don't take my word on this. I think CoachChris may have used it and possibly MWDesign (Felix) more recently. Spray only the plants, not the beds or the fish tank - it's slightly toxic to the fish - http://npic.orst.edu/factsheets/neemgen.html

I'd look into beneficial predators if these are available but once an infestation is out of control I don't think these will work as well.

thanks Scotty

Sure thing. Let us know what works for you or if you have questions about something you're not sure of.

Hey Aqua1 - I am a bug fan and prefer not to use any chemicals and pesticides or oils - one option that I have used is to order your bugs and let them do the work for you - there is such a thing as ladybirds that target mealy bugs for food - here is a link https://bugsforbugs.com.au/product/cryptolaemus/

I have a stack of green cut wood lengths under a couple of growbeds ,green cut means still has bark on which drys splits and lifts a bit providing perfect habitat for small lizards and spiders.

I have caught and released lots of lizards and spiders into this wood stack they wont all stay but some certainly have , they work all night for free eating bugs . Frogs are great also but they jump into fish tanks and don't last long , more suited to soil gardens.

Plant habitat in the ground or in large pots that host ladybirds , the more irons you have in the fire the better , humans have been trying to control insects with sprays for a long time with only limited short term success , I lived and worked farms for all my adult life I'm now 57yrs and have battled insects all my life .

If you buy predator insects don't kill them with bug zappers or surface sprays on your house , they will be attracted to light .

Good to know, thanks Faye.

For those on this side of the ocean, Cryptolaemus are apparently available in the USA if you need them - http://www.arbico-organics.com/product/mealybug-destroyer-cryptolaemus-montrouzieri-ladybug/beneficial-insects-predators-parasites

Anyone use fungal control? I came across verticillium lecanii and was wondering about fish safety.
http://www.agrilife.in/biopesti_microrigin_mealikil.htm

Also, the only places that I have seen that sell it are in India.

I wondered about this because many types of Verticilium are plant pathogens (Verticilium wilt is one result of plant infection). Apparently the insect pathogens in this group have been moved and are in a new group called Lecanicillium so this one would now be called Lecanicillium lecanii and you might be able to find it under it's new name. Other members of Lecanicillium might also be worth looking for in the future.

A few that may be worth watching but wikipedia lists more - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lecanicillium
Lecanicillium muscarium
Lecanicillium longisporum
Lecanicillium lecanii

There are suppliers in the US but you have to add in the term "biopesticide" to really get them and I'm not certain that the fungus is the only ingredient, I haven't looked that closely at this point.

https://www.google.com/search?q=Lecanicillium&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8#q=verticillium+lecanii+biopesticide&*

Thanks for the info !!

So are regular ladybeatles beneficial, because i though they did damage ?

I consider them to be helpful. Asian Lady Beetles are a problem in some areas though.

26-spotted ladybugs eat plant leaves and are a pest. There's also a type of ladybug that eats powdery mildew, and opinions are divided on whether that one's beneficial or a pest, since it eats something you don't want (yay) but doesn't seem to eat much at a time (eh) and may spread it to healthy leaves (boo!). Other than that ladybugs are generally good guys!

https://aussieorganicgardening.com/2010 ... -ladybird/