Hey all,

I am a big believer in chemicals, but the majority of my plants are in living areas where the malathion smell is oppressive. Therefore, I ask you, are there any organic pesticides that actually work? Neem oil, for instance?

--Stephen

I have the same problem. It depends on what your pest is. Most of what I get indoors and in my atrium are mealies. I have had a few battles with spider mites and one battle with scale. The only thing that has worked for me is this horticultural oil called Volck Oil Spray by Ortho. I spray it all over the plant and it pretty much eliminates mealies and mites. But I do 3 treatments. One treatment a week for 3 weeks, so that I get any residual pests or hatched eggs.

For the one bout with scale I had, I did use alcohol to remove the scales first, and then I sprayed with oil.

For outside plants I do use pesticides, and if I ever have a problem getting rid of inside pests with the oil I will not hesitate to take it outside and spray it with pesticide. But I have not had to do this yet.

This is what works for me, it may not be the best solution for everyone. I have tried insecticidal soap and it did NOT work for me. Make sure if you use the oil spray that you have TONS of air movement to dry off the oil. An added benefit is that it makes the leaves nice and shiny when it dries. :D

i don't know if it's available to homeowner-types (or dwellers), but there is a product called botanigard which is a parasitic fungus which infects the exoskeleton of most insects, burrows inside and kills them. it is a contact pesticide, though, so thorough coverage is required, and getting into the little bracts where some bugs hide can be tough.
it's also fairly cheap, comparatively.
there are many products out there that are suppose to be great. some non-organic ones are not stinky and very effective, but then again, i don't know if they're available to people not in the industry.

I have had good results with Neem oil for scale and other insect pests. As with other oil sprays a couple applications is a good idea in case you miss something with the first. There has been a lot of hype about its effectiveness as antifungal and antibacterial, but have had no experience with those problems -so far- (knock on my wooden head).

found this site, don't know if it'll help.

http://www.pesticide.org/

Hrmmmm Botanigard is intriguing, but $70 a quart. I guess I will try one of the oil formulations. Thanks for all the advice!

--Stephen

Be sure to check out this thread:
http://www.slipperorchidforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4747