FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

where are those black wasps when you need them?!

I have found on one website that they use house detergent to kill aphids but I am not sure how VFT would react to that

alex2751 wrote:I have found on one website that they use house detergent to kill aphids but I am not sure how VFT would react to that

that's murder!

Ok I have saw one guy explaining how to treat Venus and he is using Orthene powder. Here is link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7TjQ-rs9lY

Good video clip. Apperently they have experience using ornithine and captane successfully on Venus flytraps. I was just reading a FAQ article at http://www.sarracenia.com/faq/faq3660.htm The use of chemical insecticides is not recomended. I would prefer not to use an insecticide if possible. Would milled diatomaceous earth be effective against aphids without harming the plants? Crushed diatoms are supposed to be like broken glass to soft bodied insects. Does anyone see a problem with dusting the plants with it?

Water based Insecticide is ideal

They might benefit from a good spray them down with a systemic insecticide. Anything that contains acephate is good. I use Ortho Orthenex (provides protection against a lot of pests) and Steve uses acephate 75.

Jack and Jeanie (from Hawaiian Botanicals) gave me some dark green crystals that they use. I'll try it out once I see more aphids. They use it on all their plants with no harm. It's not available from stores to the public.

What are those green crystals, Kryptonite?

lol.. ya.. no you dissolve them in water

I had started my first tray of VFTs over a year ago. I used a long leaf sphagnum top dressing on each of those pots. Since then then the moss has started to grow. Of the three trays of potted flytraps, the tray with pots that have the top dressing and live moss is the least affected by aphids. I suspect that the moss dressing provides habitat for predatory insects. I have seen several different tiny critters moving around in the moss. I was able to capture an image of a tiny spider hunting on a dead trap (about center of the upper right quadrent). Click on thumbnail to view high res image

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Through a 20X loupe, the moss looks like a primeval forest

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My collection is still small enough to controll the aphids manually. I plan to dress all the rest of my pots with sphagnum top dressing. Nature knows best

Cool photos!

Nice shots!