[BML]

The price garden centres charge for insecticides is excessive and I'm fed up with beeing ripped off. Does anyone know of a cost effective way to purchase it?

[Salmo]

The really cheap way is to do cultural things that avoid needing them at all.

If you need to use them then think whether you need to treat the whole crop or just some of it.

Sometimes the expensive aerosols and diluted ready-to-use work out cheapest as you only use what you need and never have some left over which is thrown away.

If you use a lot the concentrated versions are the most econonical.

[mumofstig]

I wonder which insecticides you are buying, we might know an alternative that is cheaper, however without knowing which pest/pests your crops have I wouldn't know which, if any, insecticide to recommend

[BML]

All I asked was, "Does anyone know of a cost effective insecticide?"

[Robert_S]

Garden centres are pricey...have you tried Wilkinson's or such like?

[BML]

I walk past the place every time I go to Didcot and when I have gone in there I have found other gardening stuff very competative but never thought to look at insecticides.  I will next time so thanks a lot.

[mumofstig]

All I asked was, "Does anyone know of a cost effective insecticide?"

I wasn't being awkward  I just wanted to know which ones you were using, or which pests you were using them on.................in the hope of finding a cheaper alternative for you!

Was that asking too much, I don't think so 

[Ice]

All I asked was, "Does anyone know of a cost effective insecticide?"

That was an incredibly rude reply to someone that took the trouble to ask for more details only so they could help you more effectively.

[New shoot]

All I asked was, "Does anyone know of a cost effective insecticide?"

That was an incredibly rude reply to someone that took the trouble to ask for more details only so they could help you more effectively.

Seems to have been a bit of this going on lately    Shame if people can't use the forum to ask for advice in a friendly way.  There's enough rudeness in the world without people taking pot shots on here.  

I thought MoS politely asked a pretty relevant question.  Hard to advise unless you know you're after general greenfly killer where there are usually cheap options available or have a major issue with a difficult pest to treat, where a single expensive product is your only option  

[Robert_S]

Things are very open to be taken the wrong way on internet message boards.

[sunshineband]

Re-reading posts before you push that 'post' button' is helpful and can avoid unwitting rudeness, on the whole 

Surely no one would deliberately be rude, and if it was a misinterpretation, then quickly apologise.

At least, I would hope so 

[New shoot]

Totally agree.  The fact misinterpretation is possible means all the more reason to take care to be polite at all times  

Not directed at you Robert, who also offered some good advice to a newbie  

People on here do spend a lot of time answering questions, offering advice and laughing about stuff with each other.  A quick read of the first page of threads on any of the forum sections will show this.  Let's keep it that way  

[sunshineband]

Thank you New shoot.. your comments are appreciated

This is a very friendly and open forum and many members stay for years and years, enjoying the exchange of information and humour 

Rudeness is unnecessary and unacceptable

[Ice]

Doesn't hurt to use the appropriate smileys too.

[BML]

At the age of 75 this is my second year at attempting to grow vegetables so I have a lot to learn.  Last year none of the carrots I planted came up, the cabbages were full of slugs, the onions had a bad time because I planted them to close to the cabbages but the potatoes did alright.  This year I took a chance and planted potatoes in February and was lucky in that they did well.  As I did not do well last year with carrots and parsnips I planted seed tapes which failed but by looking at this forum I’m learning. 
Before I started vegetable gardening I used to watch butterfly’s from my window and think what pretty things they are.  Now, I’m becoming paranoid about them.  I started some next year’s cabbage plants in the greenhouse and then put them outside for a couple of weeks but when I was ready to plant them out I saw lots of little holes in them.  When I held them upside down to knock them out of their pots I saw what I now know are aphids on the underneath of their leaves but I was told that they did not cause the holes as it was most likely Cabbage beetle.
So, I’m bothered with slugs, aphids, cabbage beetle and caterpillars and I hoped to find an insecticide to kill the lot.
I recognise that it is too easy to misunderstand or take exception to what is written on a forum or E-Mail as I learnt to my cost when a few years ago my Managing Director told me to find a course to send his Secretary on to help her organise her time better.  I found a course and told her but she didn’t want to go so she went winging to her boss, my Managing Director.  Although I was in the next office the self-important twit sent me an E-Mail asking why I had arranged the course for her.  Like a fool I replied to the E-Mail telling him that it was because he told me to and before I knew it we were in the middle of a bad tempered argument.  I know now that I should have just popped my head round his door and asked for a minute of his time but I didn’t.  I have not taken exception to anything on the forum although I have to admit to expecting instant answers which give me idiot proof advice.