05-31-2010, 02:17 AM
It's pretty much the only pesticide I use, and it's mostly to keep ants from using the crawlspace vents to gain access to the crawlspace and house. I also spray it around the bases of a scale-prone eugenia and berry vines to keep ants from farming the scale. It does last 3 or 4 months. Makes my nose run, though. The next step up might be deltamethrin. Most people would trade a little risk of toxicity to have a house free of creepy bugs.
The previous owners of this house left me a shed full of herbicides, miticides, fungicides, and pesticides. I tried to keep up with their regimen because if I didn't, the insects got out of control. When we had a baby, I stopped using them, and it took a year and a half but now the pests are kept in check by beneficials. Whiteflies and mealybugs are nearly gone. I have aphids on the roses, but not as many, because there are plenty of ladybug larvae too. I've got lizards and frogs in the yard now.
As for aphids on dill, I would think maybe the plants are getting too much nitrogen. I'd go hunt down some ladybug larvae and move them onto the plants (adults aren't much help). If that didn't work, I'd try some neem oil or soap. I'd be wary of using any pesticide that provides long-lasting protection on anything I planned to harvest and eat.
The previous owners of this house left me a shed full of herbicides, miticides, fungicides, and pesticides. I tried to keep up with their regimen because if I didn't, the insects got out of control. When we had a baby, I stopped using them, and it took a year and a half but now the pests are kept in check by beneficials. Whiteflies and mealybugs are nearly gone. I have aphids on the roses, but not as many, because there are plenty of ladybug larvae too. I've got lizards and frogs in the yard now.
As for aphids on dill, I would think maybe the plants are getting too much nitrogen. I'd go hunt down some ladybug larvae and move them onto the plants (adults aren't much help). If that didn't work, I'd try some neem oil or soap. I'd be wary of using any pesticide that provides long-lasting protection on anything I planned to harvest and eat.