Several questions about Safer Insect Killing Soap

[Cuke]

Has anyone used this brand before or know something about it? Cucumber beetles are eating at several of my plants and I want to know if this will stop them without harming other beneficials,mainly any bees.Also,would this harm anything else,including the soil or me?It is ORMI listed,but I still want to get more knowledge about it before buying it.

[Cuke]

I forgot to mention that Safer is the brand.

[cynthia_h]

I've used it before, esp. versus aphids. No harm to plants; no harm to me (and I'm chemical-sensitive to the point of getting migraines from exposure).

I'd go ahead and use it if you'd rather not prepare your own soap stuff! With the Safer (and other commercial) brands, the dilution is consistent; something I can't achieve perfectly at home....

Cynthia H.
El Cerrito, CA
USDA Zone 9, Sunset Zone 17

[Grandad]

Cynthia, what do you use to prepare your own soap solution?

[cynthia_h]

One standard recipe is 1 Tb. liquid dish SOAP to 1 gallon of water. Mix it up thoroughly and spray the bugs.

There are more complex preparations involving garlic etc., but these have the unfortunate result of killing beneficials as well as harmfuls.

An Internet search on the combination

organic gardening aphids soap

provided TONS of informative articles as well as home-made (I.e., inexpensive) sprays.

If I find the aphids soon enough after they arrive, I just squish 'em. I spray only when they have a truly advanced attack on my plants. I'm still using up my original Safer Insecticidal Soap, but sooner or later I'll need to buy liquid Ivory dish soap. My Dawn stuff is a dish detergent, not a soap, and might dehydrate the plants.

Cynthia H.
El Cerrito, CA
USDA Zone 9, Sunset Zone 17

[JennyC]

For whatever it's worth, my county extension agent suggested using Joy brand dish soap. She said it was more effective than other brands, though she didn't know why. I can't vouch for it one way or the other, as I think my peaches were a lost cause before I started my spraying routine.

[Grandad]

Cynthia, thanks for the response. After doing a web seardh I saw a recommendation to use a coconut shampoo which supposedly is a milder form of soap. It has a pearl tint. It worked OK but I wanted to try something a bit stronger so I tried a red detergent type liquid soap (on strawberry plants to control spider mites). I think it might have possibly burned my leaves a bit. After a re-do of my web research I did find one reference that indicated not using a colored soap (one having a dye). So I've since purchased, but have not tried, a pearl color dishwashing liquid. As a matter of fact, I think it was Joy, which is your suggestion, Jenny.

[doccat5]

Just test a spot before you do the whole bed, and try to spray so it dries before the plants are in full sun. You can get some burn on the leaves, which means you can dilute the mix a bit more for those particular plants.

Good stuff, I use it all the time for aphids among other pests.

[Cuke]

Thanks everyone.It's fairly cheap for a 32 oz bottle,only $6 not including tax,so it's worth a shot.Aphids aren't much of a problem due to the birds^^

One last question,will the safer brand soap work on cucumber beetles?