Hi all, about to start setting up my new grow and as im gonna be growing in no-till living soil i'm expecting that i'm probably going to have some kind of pest problem at some point. So i'm thinking about what pests to bring in and when to introduce them into the garden. This is where i'm coming a bit unstuck there are a few options of nematodes and mites all doing different jobs. So i was wondering who is using mites and nematodes and which ones are you using? should i be introducing them as i'm setting up or when the cover crop and young plants are established? can i have too many nematodes and mites or does the population control it self? Been reading up lots on this and think i've just confused myself (doesn't take much).
So i'm thinking about what pests to bring in and when to introduce them into the garden
Please don’t do this !! Lmao sorry buddy couldn’t resist! I get what you mean ‘what predators’ to bring in!
Predators can be used as a preventative but if there’s no prey (pests) for them to eat they may not survive long..
id be tempted to see how far you can get before pests may become an issue... if they don’t arrive you’ve no issue to fix..
In organic practise neem meal is commonly used as a soil amendment which helps keep many pests at away..
Neem oil can also be used as a treatment as well as preventative (it’s in the pests section here how to mix neem spray)
Leaf coat from bio bizz can help give leaves more waxy coating which deters sucking pests like mites and thrips.
Adding a source of silicon also helps the plants develop thicker (cells) more waxy leaves again a deterrent to pests
The grow guides here at Percys give excellent easy to follow info so check these first.
if you wanna dive really deep into IPM (integrated pest management) I’d recommend checking out Matthew Gates of Zenthanol (on utube).. I think he may be one of the worlds leading experts in micro-biology and managing pests in agriculture (including growing weed). He does give recommendations for every kind of organic pest prevention and treatment.
I have regular battles with fungus gnats of late (I’m winning atm lol) also have spotted the emergence of a couple of 2-spotted spider mites (I think that’s what they are).
I’ve just applied nematodes (for the gnats) and I’m defoliating leaves with mites (or mite eggs) while I’m awaiting delivery of predator mites.
Room cleanliness and not bringing pests in on your clothes etc is best way to prevent issues in my opinion.
you can see I’m still got room for improvements 😉
Hope this helps
@chillbert yeah didn't mean pests lol, been following mr gates for a few years now on you tube blows my mind what he knows! been reading up on the mites and other than prey they can also feed on pollen and sap but i'm wondering if this brings its own problems? i also have different clothes for the garden too lol Used leaf coat from biobizz too not a fan and i'm hoping i wont need to add any silica and my medium has neem cake in it. don't use neem as a spray anymore because of some of the articles i've read on it, but i am planning on using aloe vera as a weekly foliar heard it has lots of good minerals and micro nutrients also helps prevent disease as it contains high levels of acemannan which has a lot of good anti viral properties. It also contains saponins among one of its great things is its toxic to insects and pests as well as detrimental microbes,fungi and mold. I think you could be right tho and perhaps i should hang fire. 
@3plantspete nice bro we got some common interest 👊
Neem good source of silica too so youve got that covered anyways 👍
For extra silica diatomaceous earth can be used rather than bottled (don’t like bottled stuff makes the pH spike ridiculously!) but I’ve only used this to help stop fungus gnats.
I’m starting to play with aloe (grown em years lol) so far just used for cloning 👌
many other benefits too so be great seeing how you find it bro 👍
sound like your weed is gonna be tasty 👍
keep up the good work man 😁
@3plantspete I used beneficial nematodes (Sc, Sf, and Hb) and also use Gnatrol ( Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis (Bti) ) Mosquito dunks work well also (BTi)
The Gnatrol is doing a good job with the fungus gnats last night i didnt see anything moving but still need to do a couple more treatments to make sure.
I also used the nematodes as a preventative, and have more if needed.
The nematode population will decrease with the pest population so will need to be reintroduced if problems arise later-
So far in my indoor grows the only pests ive had was thrips (which are no longer seen) and Gnats ill probably release more nematodes this spring since thats when they seem to have shown last year. Good luck with your grow
Sativa to change the things I can, Indica to accept the things I can’t.
@twisted1 thanks twisted i have my fingers crossed. so using nematodes as a preventative is a good idea?
@3plantspete it is in my mind lol. My way of thinking is to get ahead of them and then take precautions not to reintroduce them. but my soil has gnats from the store so i keep it stored outside in a shed but worry it may have picked up some nasties out there. adding the nematodes is a cheap way to ease my mind and hopefully prevent issues from beginning.
Im also trying not to spray anything like neem, I do use neem meal in my soil and have sprinkled it on top of the soil.
Sativa to change the things I can, Indica to accept the things I can’t.
@twisted1 nice one mate in my mind thats what IPM is getting ahead of them, more food for thought cheers
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