[bashful_badger]

I've just sprayed my 3 fruit trees with fairy and water as they are covered in aphids and ants.  Does this actually work does anyone know or am I wasting my time?

It won't make my fruit taste funny will it?

Thank you!

[Livinhope]

You'll have the cleanest fruit around. .  No it shouldn't make any difference.

Seriously, some say it does some say the opposite but I sprayed my runners which seem to have attracted the blackfly and it has made a difference.  Not cleared them completely but got rid of a lot.  Worth a try.

[mjpalin]

Like Livinhope I have had reasonable success with the w/up liquid solution. Blackfly not completely gone, but a darn site better. I have found that i need to spray every other day or so to keep them under control, but figure this is better than having to use chemicals.
Just make sure the w/up liquid solution isn't too strong though.

[TheSpartacat]

Yup, it works for me, but have to reapply v regularly!

A good hosing down to knock them off first of course!

A friend of mine was telling me to try a fermented garlic/chili water... leave the diced garlic and chilli in water for 3 days, strain and spray... not tried it yet

[mumofstig]

A friend of mine was telling me to try a fermented garlic/chili water... leave the diced garlic and chilli in water for 3 days, strain and spray... not tried it yet

Some people do use these kinds of home made sprays, but I should advise that they are not licensed for use on crops, so cannot be recommended by the forum.

[TheSpartacat]

Oh wow, Sorry Mumofstig... didn't realise that there might be risks with chili and garlic?
I had heard that rhubarb spray was now a big no no 

[mumofstig]

Oh wow, Sorry Mumofstig... didn't realise that there might be risks with chili and garlic?
I had heard that rhubarb spray was now a big no no 

There is no risk that I can see, but I'm sorry to say, it is illegal to use any such sprays as they are unlicensed

[TheSpartacat]

Hmmm.... well, i guess the powers that be have their reasons... certainly i wouldnt want anyone to break the law!!! 
Is this an EU ruling, or a by-product of Codex Alimentarius?

[Yorkie]

It's a UK law but derived originally from Europe.

[JayG]

The trouble is that it now costs a fortune and can take years to get a Europe-wide licence to sell new pesticides or herbicides; not surprisingly few companies have the resources or the potential market for the product to make it worthwhile.

Home-made products like diluted washing up liquid are clearly very cheap to make but equally clearly are never going to be submitted for testing so the use of any of them is technically illegal.

Whether home-made products work or are safe is a different issue, as is whether you think the law is barmy or unfair. 

The unfortunate fact remains that we can't recommend the use of illegal products, and their status is unlikely to change anytime soon.

[Aunt Sally]

I have used horticultural soft soap for pest control for years.  Way back when donkeys wore spats it was the only thing that most gardeners had to use on unwanted insects. 

The eons of time it has been used MUST be proof of its safety surely - NO, it is now advertised for "general cleaning, or a wetting agent in foliar feeds".

My plants get a regular foliar feeds 

[JayG]

I hate washing up and can sometimes be a bit forgetful, so sometimes find myself with a bowlful of clean, cold, soapy water.

Rather than waste precious water I recycle it via a sprayer onto any parts of my runner bean plants which appear to have lots of little black spotty things stuck to them.

My theory is that black absorbs heat, so by doing this I feel I am helping to keep the plants cool, but it does appear to have the strange side-effect of making the black spotty things disappear! 

[TheSpartacat]

Rather than waste precious water I recycle it via a sprayer onto any parts of my runner bean plants which appear to have lots of little black spotty things stuck to them.

My theory is that black absorbs heat, so by doing this I feel I am helping to keep the plants cool, but it does appear to have the strange side-effect of making the black spotty things disappear! 

Well, in these conservational times, with hosepipe bans... water is a really precious resource- One really shouldn't waste any of it. Of course, the government want us to re-use our grey water from washing up!!
:-D

[Livinhope]

If you don't say anything who is going to know what you're up to?   I think these days were are overwhelmed with do's and don'ts, health and safety, right and wrong, where is the freedom of choice that is supposed to be our right?  And, how do kids learn if they aren't allowed to take risks,  welcome to the nanny state that is now this green and pleasant land.  Even if it is covered in blackfly. 

[Aunt Sally]

If you don't say anything who is going to know what you're up to?   

Exactly - so we don't mention it here