• Register  |
  • LoginLogin
Close
Login
 
 
Register
 Advanced search
  • Search
  • Register
  • Login
  • JOIN!
  • View unanswered posts
  • View active topics
  • Gardening
Gardening Forum   ORGANIC GARDENING FORUMS  Organic Insect and Plant Disease Control

is that a beneficial insect on my eggplant?!




Post a new topic
Post a reply
22 posts • Page 1 of 2 • 1, 2

is that a beneficial insect on my eggplant?!

Mon Jun 02, 2014 9:49 am

Hey guys,

alright this is dead serious, my eggplant is the only healthy plant for now well along with the peppers. When I just came back, I found this on my eggplant !! is that a beneficial or a predator ?! did he cause these holes ?! .... please help !!

Image
Pathfinder
Cool Member
 
Posts: 81
Joined: Feb 12 '14
Top

Re: is that a beneficial ?!

Mon Jun 02, 2014 9:57 am

It looks like some kind of a grasshopper -- maybe a katydid? Hmm the back legs don't look quite right -- so I doubt it is a beneficial predator.

Are those holes? I can't quite see. Is that top layer of the leaf peeled off?
Learning never ends because we can share what we've learned. And in sharing our collective experiences, we gain deeper understanding of what we learned.
User avatar
applestar
Mod
 
Posts: 26056
Joined: May 1 '08
Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M
Top

Re: is that a beneficial ?!

Mon Jun 02, 2014 10:02 am

click the picture, it is very clear, yeah these are holes ... did it make these holes ?! isn't it one of the protectors who eat bugs ?! ,,, if he wasn't a beneficial shouldn't he eat the leaf from the outside ?! .... the leaves are perfect, but I edited the image on my PC.
Pathfinder
Cool Member
 
Posts: 81
Joined: Feb 12 '14
Top

Re: is that a beneficial ?!

Mon Jun 02, 2014 10:05 am

I am gonna kill it .... waahahhahahahahahahhahahhhahahahaaaaaa

edit: .... and compost it ....... :twisted:
Pathfinder
Cool Member
 
Posts: 81
Joined: Feb 12 '14
Top

Re: is that a beneficial ?!

Mon Jun 02, 2014 10:21 am

Ah ha! I see now. I'm looking at the color of the container through the holes :idea:)
Learning never ends because we can share what we've learned. And in sharing our collective experiences, we gain deeper understanding of what we learned.
User avatar
applestar
Mod
 
Posts: 26056
Joined: May 1 '08
Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M
Top

Re: is that a beneficial ?!

Mon Jun 02, 2014 10:24 am

Wait! Don't kill it yet! Just found a reference to carnivorous katydid in Africa. Didn't you say you are in the Middle East? Close enough to get African species?

The African katydids of the subfamily Saginae are predators
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/top ... 86/katydid

If I could catch it, I would put it in a jar with holes in the lid or rubber banded cloth lid and try giving it a small piece of the eggplant leaf and an insect that the carnivorous katydid is supposed to eat. Or look for other ways to ID it.
Learning never ends because we can share what we've learned. And in sharing our collective experiences, we gain deeper understanding of what we learned.
User avatar
applestar
Mod
 
Posts: 26056
Joined: May 1 '08
Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M
Top

Re: is that a beneficial ?!

Mon Jun 02, 2014 12:06 pm

you were late ..too late ... he's in the compost bin !! hahahahahahaha..... he was eating my eggplant leaves ... those leaves have been fighting off white fly which are swarming my eggplant, my peppers and of course my wretched tomatoes !!

do you know of an organic fungicide to kill the white flies but not burn the leaves ?
Pathfinder
Cool Member
 
Posts: 81
Joined: Feb 12 '14
Top

Re: is that a beneficial insect on my eggplant?!

Mon Jun 02, 2014 12:47 pm

why would you want a fungicide to kill whiteflies, which are clearly not fungi? White flies are susceptible to being sprayed with soapy water. (Be sure to use real soap, not detergent which can burn your plants.)
Twitter account I manage for local Sierra Club: https://twitter.com/CherokeeGroupSC Facebook page I manage for them: https://www.facebook.com/groups/65310596576/ Come and find me and lots of great information, inspiration
User avatar
rainbowgardener
Super Green Thumb
 
Posts: 25127
Joined: Feb 15 '09
Location: TN/GA 7b
Top

Re: is that a beneficial insect on my eggplant?!

Wed Jun 04, 2014 6:50 am

@ rainbowgardener, LOL sorry I didn't even pay attention to the word fungicide, should've said pesticide. How do I know that the soapy water doesn't have detergent ?! ..... you mean like Fairy dish soap ?! what is the concentration so I don't burn out my leaves and will it dry from evening till the next morning.
Pathfinder
Cool Member
 
Posts: 81
Joined: Feb 12 '14
Top

Re: is that a beneficial insect on my eggplant?!

Wed Jun 04, 2014 10:13 am

I don't know what fairy dish soap is, but here in the US most dish "soap" is actually detergent. You need to look for something that says pure soap. In the US products include Dr. Brunners, Murphy's oil soap, Ivory.

Put 1 -2 tablespoons of soap in a gallon of water, or 1-2 teaspoons in a quart/liter of water. Maybe add a few drops of salad oil to help it stick.
Twitter account I manage for local Sierra Club: https://twitter.com/CherokeeGroupSC Facebook page I manage for them: https://www.facebook.com/groups/65310596576/ Come and find me and lots of great information, inspiration
User avatar
rainbowgardener
Super Green Thumb
 
Posts: 25127
Joined: Feb 15 '09
Location: TN/GA 7b
Top

Re: is that a beneficial insect on my eggplant?!

Wed Jun 04, 2014 11:28 am

Image

besides a gallon of water is more than a liter, also do you mean olive oil ? usually oil resides on the top, it doesn't mix.

So it should be mentioned that this soap doesn't contain detergents. right ?

would natural olive soap work ??

Image
Pathfinder
Cool Member
 
Posts: 81
Joined: Feb 12 '14
Top

Re: is that a beneficial insect on my eggplant?!

Wed Jun 04, 2014 12:43 pm

Yes a gallon is more like 4 liters. That's why it says TABLE spoons for gallons and TEA spoons for quarts/liters.

Shavings from the olive soap should work.

Olive oil would be fine. Shake it up to emulsify.
Twitter account I manage for local Sierra Club: https://twitter.com/CherokeeGroupSC Facebook page I manage for them: https://www.facebook.com/groups/65310596576/ Come and find me and lots of great information, inspiration
User avatar
rainbowgardener
Super Green Thumb
 
Posts: 25127
Joined: Feb 15 '09
Location: TN/GA 7b
Top

Re: is that a beneficial insect on my eggplant?!

Wed Jun 04, 2014 1:04 pm

thanks for the info, some people are trying a yellow paper with petroleum jelly on it, they say white flies are attracted to the yellow color and will stick and die.
how effective is that ?!
Pathfinder
Cool Member
 
Posts: 81
Joined: Feb 12 '14
Top

Re: is that a beneficial insect on my eggplant?!

Thu Jun 05, 2014 5:38 pm

alright the olive soap didn't cut it, I applied fairy dish soap, quite frankly I have no idea if it contains detergents or not, applied 1 tablespoon to 1 and a half liter of water ... it did it for the period of the night, the next day, there were white fly but not at the same numbers.

My third tomato plant has 2 small tomatoes on it, one that has been this size for about a month and the other only 1 week old and they're still small. actually this is the only tomato producing something. My guess is that the whitefly infestation can stun tomatoes and most night shades ... anyway I went berserk today and said what the heck they're not doing good anyway, so I put 3 table spoons of Fairy dishsoap diluted to 1 and half liter of water in my sprayer and sprayed everything I have from tomato to eggplants to peppers.

well as a best case scenario I would expect an irradication of white flies and their eggs !! but if this dish soap had detergent ... what is the worst case scenario what effects I would notice ?!
Pathfinder
Cool Member
 
Posts: 81
Joined: Feb 12 '14
Top

Re: is that a beneficial insect on my eggplant?!

Thu Jun 05, 2014 6:34 pm

Worst case --The leaves will turn black and die. Peppers especially are sensitive and droplets of the soapy water lingering on the leaf tips will dry, get concentrated and make them turn black from leaf tip first.

I would now go and rinse everything off with water. Soapy water works within 10-15 minute or they don't. Leaving them on won't help any. In addition, the soapy water will also kill beneficial insects. Then you won't have any to help with the resurgence of the pests.

If you have cordless vacuum cleaner, you could suck up white flies.

I also run sudsy hands over the plants rather than spray -- whiteflies fly up when disturbed and stick to the bubbles. I rinse the plants off afterwards.

-- I posted this once before -- I was going to do this with a bed of potatoes because I noticed a cloud of whiteflies when I disturbed the leaves, then on the next plant, several tiny praying mantis babies scuttled off. So. I DIDN'T treat the plants since the Jr. Garden Patrol was already on the job. :wink:
Learning never ends because we can share what we've learned. And in sharing our collective experiences, we gain deeper understanding of what we learned.
User avatar
applestar
Mod
 
Posts: 26056
Joined: May 1 '08
Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M
Top

Please Share. Thank you!

 
 
Top

Next

Post a reply
22 posts • Page 1 of 2 • 1, 2

 

 

  •   Similar Topics
    Replies
    Views
    Last post
  • My First Beneficial Insect!
    in Vegetable Gardening Forum
    11
    1722
    by tedly View the latest post
  • Is this insect beneficial, harmful, or just a passer-by? pic
    in Herb Gardening Forum
    4
    1223
    by madonnaswimmer View the latest post
  • EggPlant insect egg or something
    in Organic Insect and Plant Disease Control
    1
    814
    by nedwina View the latest post
  • Insect boring into my eggplant
    in Vegetable Gardening Forum
    1
    871
    by gardenbean View the latest post
Return to Organic Insect and Plant Disease Control
  • Delete all board cookies • All times are UTC
Privacy Policy | Contact Us
Copyright HelpfulGardener.com 2003-2018 all rights reserved.
All trademarks and copyrights held by respective owners.