Bug Bombs?

General Discussion
1

Has anyone tried using the in-door fogger type “bug bombs”?

I am thinking about trying it in my greenhouse, but am concerned:

  1. Will it hurt the seedlings?

  2. Will it damage the fiberglass shell?

  3. Does it work on spider mites???

Thanks for any feedback!

Jim

2

Hi Jim:

I don’t know what kind of ‘bomb’ you are planning to use, but a friend of ours used one recommended by Cornell for control of white fly in his greenhouse.

He was told that the material would only come up to the bottom of his benches.

He used it according to their recommendations and killed several hundred tomato plants standing on his 4 foot benches.

As I said, I don’t know what you are planning to use or what he used, so there may be differences in how it is spread and how it affects growing material.

I would ask Charlie, but he passed away several months ago.

Sorry I can’t be more specific.

Meg

3

Jim I wouldnot use it i would think that the perpellant would burn your roses…

4

In the greenhouses I have my research plants in periodically nicotine bombs are used. I’ve had roses in there before and it doesn’t seem to have hurt any of the plants. The nicotine bomb seemed to control aphids well, but thrips and mites less so.

Sincerely,

David

5

Thanks for the info. The specific product I am talking about is “NO-PEST INDOOR FOGGER”. It is intended for use in the home and according to the label, it is supposed to kill roaches, ticks, fleas, ants and spiders (and hopefully other bugs of interest in the greenhouse (mites and thrips!)

I am guessing that it would not harm plants as there is nothing on the label that says to clear your plants out of the room before discharging the “bomb”, but I don’t know for sure, and would also be concerned that it may harm the fiberglass shell of the greenhouse.

If anyone has other info, I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks!

Jim

6

Hi Jim,

I can’t answer from personal experience but when I bought some rooted rose cuttings from Almost Heaven (he has a web site) Roses in Iron Junction, North Carolina, the owner, Vernon Rickard, mentioned that he uses sulfur in a vapor form I believe. I don’t recall whether his green house was glass or plastic. His plants were certainly healthy. You can e-mail him from his website. He was very friendly and knows his roses (he exhibits).

Vernon Rickard

Tel:(704) 732-4787

e-mail: sales@almostheavenroses.com

web site: http://www.almostheavenroses.com

I’ve enjoyed your posts.

Good Luck,

Jim

7

I haven’t heard of any harm being done to roses or greenhouses by conventional indoor pesticide bombs, but I have heard people complaining that they aren’t completely effective. The bombs work by putting a cloud of small particles in the air which then settle on the surfaces in the greenhouse. The upper surface of the leaves gets better coverage than the lower surface which is where most of the spider mites are.

8

Thanks Jims for the words of wisdom.

My reason for trying an alternative to hand spraying is because I broke my leg and my mantis sprayer is not working. During the season so far, I have had to spray the greenhouse 3 times with a hand pump sprayer from a wheelchair and hopping around between the benches, requiring 10 to 12 gallons each time. Not any fun!

I think you are right about the particles settling out, but I may try the bug bombs during a cooler evening anyway and keep the inside circulating fans going to mix the air up real good. The spider mite population is really exploding right now. If it doesn’t work, I will use the hand pump…what a bummer.

Jim

9

Sorry to hear about your leg. Hope the bug bombs work for you. Please let us know…

10

Jim,

Your question is interesting. I have also looked into using the aerosol bombs because they are quite cost effective.

Carlin Horticultural Supplies (www.carlinsales.com) advertises (in my paper catalog from them) a total release aerosol item #16-090 2 oz can that covers 3000 sq. feet. It says it is effective for spider mites, thrips, whiteflies, and more. Effective ingredient is natural pyrethrins manufactured by "Whitmore Micro-Gen (www.wmmg.com). Price is $13.11/2oz can.

I checked ingredients of bombs at Walmart and their contents seem to be the same. Pyrethrin is a very common insecticide nowadays as I’m sure you are aware. The propellants or any other inert ingredients may have side effects though. I suggest a trial run on some test roses you wouldn’t mind sacrificing for the sake of science.

Good luck

Richard