I have an opportunity to get everything out of my hobby greenhouse & clean out (hopefully) the unkown type of root rot & mealy bugs. These are not disastrous as yet. Just a @#$*^! nuisance. I think I can identify the infected plants & do control before I re-introduce them, also sanitize the equipment etc. A friend in the UK recommends "Jeyes Fluid", but it doesn't seem to be available in Canada. I will use a 10% bleach solution if I have to, but it IS quite corrosive & also I don't want to drain much of it into the soil beneath. Does anyone have any suggestions? In the "bad old days" in the early '70s I remember fogging greenhouses with pretty noxious chemicals. I was not comfortable with it at the time & definitely want to think carefully about what I use, now we are all better ejumacated. TIA gb
I don't know a lot about this but I've heard that in hot weather if the greenhouse is emptied of all plants and all ventilation closed up to superheat it for a day the temperature rises to a point where bugs etc can't survive. It may be too late in the year to try now, but we are having some fine weather in BC right now... summer in September! The other thing I read recently was about Neem oil - one man wrote about spraying all surfaces of his gh and had good success. Apparently bugs just can't stand the stuff, but it's harmless to humans and animals and the soil. Try googling Neem Oil, there's lots of info on using it as a pesticide.
Unfortunately, Neem oil is not registered for use as a pesticide in Canada, and can therefore not be recommended for use.
I have seen Virkon used in the commercial nurseries as a cleanser, not sure if its appropriate for your project or not. If its mainly insects that you want to eliminate there is a product called Dr Doom. There is one of the roducts that is a total release aerosol can which has a pyrethrin base.
