Neem Oil

[Dido]

I have good result with it but with enulsifier used.
I use the one from Neudorf from time to time on my orchids. As the only Problem I have are mealy bugs.

 

[Stone]

get some crown from garden city plastics, cleans up mealies & scale very quickly.

Are you saying they sell supracide to the general public?

 

[couscous74]

Neem oil stinks. It keeps me away from the orchids, and thus I don't see the mites anymore.

 

[gonewild]

Neem oil works great if you are inclined to live "organic".
Not that it is very effective at killing a broad range of pests but if you don't use pesticides it works better than nothing.

But if you don't mind using toxic chemicals Neem is a waste of time.

There is a big interest in the tropics now to plant Neem trees around houses. People say it helps to repel mosquitoes from it's vicinity. So maybe when used as a spray it actually repels the insects rather than kill them.

 

[Secundino]

Neem oil's active ingredient azidirachtin will possibly be no longer allowed in organic agriculture (mainly because it does not work selectively) in Europe. It smells and works as long as you apply it like your formulation tells. But this is true for every pesticide. Very important are the intervalls one should observe. Especially with scales.
I don't use it. As pyrethrin-containing pesticides do harm orchid tissues (not all groups) I'm back to household formulas and mechanic intervention. With some 300 plants it is still manageable.

 

[gonewild]

You should contrast informations. Neem oil's active ingredient azidirachtin is no longer allowed in organic agriculture.

Who does not allow it?

 

[NYEric]

Neem oil's active ingredient azidirachtin will possibly be no longer allowed in organic agriculture (mainly because it does not work selectively) in Europe. It smells and works as long as you apply it like your formulation tells. But this is true for every pesticide. Very important are the intervalls one should observe. Especially with scales.
I don't use it. As pyrethrin-containing pesticides do harm orchid tissues (not all groups) I'm back to household formulas and mechanic intervention. With some 300 plants it is still manageable.

I use neem because I think it works and there is no resistance building issue. As it is a natural material I would think that it is typically a "household formula". BTW you need more plants!

 

[Secundino]

Oh yes, I need more plants!!
By 'household fomula' - I apologize for my bad english - I meant a formula extracted, mixed and prepared by oneself. Like garlic and onion decoctions, equisetum preparations and stuff like that. Like the one I use now, a bit of detergent - as wettening agent - and isopropyl-alc and water. A stick, brush, lots of patience and infected plants.
Neem has a few advantages - like it does not affect bees, does not affect adult insects, is quickly destroyed without leaving metabolites etc. But it has also negative properties. As far as I know it acts upon the metabolism of larvae when changing moulds. That means it could affect as well predators like Coccinella and other wanted insects. And it will not affect adult shieldcritters, our beloved scales...
Then, it does only work at its best when highly emulsified. As I don't buy it I think there are a lot of formulas on the market, from azadirachtin to neem extracts, in solutions and emulsified to different degrees. And oil. This last, I think, could be contraproductive for the use we want.

 

[lepetitmartien]

Neem smell is directly related to it's age, the newer it is the less stinky it will be. It will smell, yes, but not to the point you can't enter the GH. Plus as you point rightly, the emulsion must be done right.

Neem was forbidden in France, then not. I have not heard of a Euro wide rule out but its status is currently very confusing and they seem to still fight over it in Brussels.

Beware of garlic/onion, as they are reservoirs for viruses that can harm orchids. I'm not saying it's not effective, on the contrary, but the cure can be more dangerous than the issue in the long term, especially if you're dealing with sucking/leaf eating pests.