Look who's coming to dinner.

[cushman350]

Spider mites are a yearly problem and I've tried malathon, horticultural oils and soaps. I don't
like their results. I researched the SM and found that you can disrupt their happy hot and
dry home by humidifing it. I have misters left over from a yard umbrella than was used in
cooling experiments that failed but, misting is very effect for womeone who is home and has the time to mount a blitz of misting every hour for 5 or 10 minutes to get a good coating of dew, top and bottom on all plants, then an hour or two later again, all day untila few hours before
sunset to give the water time to evaporate before nightfall. It's working. The mites are
completely bamboozled. This is only good if you are early in detecting the little buggers.
If they have gotten their second hatch accomplished, it's too late for green measures.
You may have to get out the big guns. But for the last two years I have been successful with early detection and wrecking their party.

Anyone else here into biological environmental warfare with the buggers? Spider mites are getting more resistant to poisons, I don't want to help them.

[cushman350]

On this small scale it is working great. Todays inspection show no new yellowing, no further spread of the mites. I need to add triangles of shade cloth to the ends of my existing cloth to close the tunnel and make the mist more effective. The main thing is no chemicals, no oils or soaps are needed, just mist. Wichita Falls, TX has a big spider mite problem that adds to the reason I call it Tomato Hell. Multiple challenges face us not mention the complete ignoring of Spring by Mother Nature, we set new record highs5 days ago, 100°, 1953 record. Everyone who suffers with spide mites, feel free to ask me about this.

[Suze]

Hi, cushman-

I used to have a fair amount of problems with spider mites when I lived in the Metroplex, but since I moved to Bastrop county in late '06 not nearly as bad for whatever reason.

However, this year and rather early too, I have already seen a few crawling around on the undersides of the leaves. It has been unseasonably hot and dry here - maybe that is why.

Anyway, the best defense I have found against them (that is available to the home gardener) is pyrethrins. I use a product called Pyganic. The quick knockdown effect is excellent. Edit/add - while it is "organic" you still want to be careful when you spray it so as to not get it on your skin or breathe it in. I have tried misting in the past but it did not seem to work that well. It also significantly increased foliar fungal disease. Glad it is working for you though.

Edit/add x 2 - agreed about that second hatch and how bad it can be if you don't manage to get them under control rather early.

[cushman350]

I'll check this Pyganic out. If it will knockdown populations immediately, that's better than the mist although not by much. I removed and affected leaves and after 2 days they are gone. For now, but I'm ready. I considered the fungal issue but it's drier here than the Metroplex and especially Bastrop. Hence, the spider mites are more vicious here and I don't have to worry about fungal issues because when I stop misting, humidity falls immediately and fungal does have a chance. This treatment seems to be designed for the drier areas which spidermites are the worst within. These tomato farms with the row covers could use this method with pvc pipes equiped with screw-in misters nozzles mounted every foot or so and fight the little devils. This misting works excellent on the small scale, which is what we are isn't it?

I'm just delighted to have put 2 and 2 together and found a new tool against those devils that would have our plants for themselves.

[creister]

I have tried many things to stop/reduce/kill, and not much success. When it is early in the season I will resort the the nuclear option: Kelthane. Works great, but I do not like using it. Nasty stuff to kill nasty mites. Usually, mites don't get bad until mid to late June, which by then fruit set has stopped, and I just spray plants down with water to allow them to ripen fruit.

If I want fall crop, I just start over with new transplants.

[cushman350]

Update: Day 7.

Still no return of the mites. I'll have to mount another string of nozzles higher up for when the summer really gets started as creister knows about being in Abilene just south of Wichita Falls. I'll be ready and let ya'll know if it works or not, without chemicals. So far, so good.

[cushman350]

Originally Posted by creister

If I want fall crop, I just start over with new transplants.

Tell me about your fall toms. I just about give up on growing new plants for fall. Tried cloning and revitalizing spring left overs and the leftovers won. The clones needed more time to finish and I tried plastic covering around a frame and heat but just too much for less than great taste.

[sfmathews]

Creister, where are you buying Kelthane? I understood it was pulled off the market several years ago? I didn't like using it either, but when I did, I only had to treat about 3 times the entire summer. There's nothing else that works as well that Kelthane in my experience.

[creister]

I bought a small container about a year before it went off the market, and have used it sparingly since. Still works too.

Cushman,

I usually start my plants for fall in early May. I use the same methods I would for spring plants, except I just leave them outside. I moniter their sunlight exposure, putting them into the shade about 100 pm. I also use an extra cage to cover with shadecloth and set them in that.

I plant out around July 10th. Just have to fight mites and heat.

[coronabarb]

So glad I found this thread. I HATE spider mites. I usually get them here around August when it's been in the 100's for several weeks. It's difficult to pull the tomatoes through to fall to get a second batch of tomatoes. (or first batch if I a) get them in the ground late or b) we get a bad heat spell early that thwarts pollination) I will have to try the increased humidity trick. Let us know how the stuff Suze recommended works out.

[Worth1]

I have stink bugs everywhere in the yard and in the house they be.
The climate dictates what the critter invasion will be from year to year.
I liked the rainy years when we have millions of spiders.

Just a short drive down the road around here and you will see a change in the bugs.

A friend of mine gave me a cutting and unbeknown to me it had orange aphids on it.
It took 2 years of pruning and burning to get rid of them.

Worth

[rnewste]

cushman,

I had to deal with Russet Mites last Season, and the only product I found effective against them was Take Down Garden Spray:



It seems to be widely distributed. About $15.00 for the above bottle.

Raybo

[creister]

I think I have seen that in my local feed store. I will have to give it a try when the mite show up.

[rnewste]

Originally Posted by creister

I think I have seen that in my local feed store. I will have to give it a try when the mite show up.

Trust me my friend, if you wait until you SEE them - - it's too late!

I waited until I saw them last year, and I got burned. They wiped out half of my tomato plants - even with then DAILY sprayings. You need to do a pre-emptive strike against Mites.

Raybo

[creister]

Raybo,

From your last post, you suggest then starting before you see? Well do, as I have yet to stop the filthy buggers after they are seen.