mosquito control - drop of oil

[writeone]

A friend with high mosquito problems had a specialist from the county come inpsect her yard and suggest interventions. She has a lot of plants in containers. The county rep said to put a drop of oil in the planter reservors would place a thin layer of oil on the water surface  that would prevent mosquitoes from breeding there. And it wouldn't hurt plants.

That's a lot easier and less expensive than dunks.

[mjb8743]

Not in my EBs! Changing water levels + potting mix in the water would turn into a gunky mess with the addition of any oil. A bad idea, in my opinion.

A piece of fabric, or netting over the tube will keep out mosquitoes. The Mosquito Bits go a long way so the cost really isn't high. Just 1/4 teaspoon in the tube will last about 14 days. The Dunks are more expensive and a pain to divide in 4ths.

Mickie

[writeone]

Not in my EBs! Changing water levels + potting mix in the water would turn into a gunky mess with the addition of any oil. A bad idea, in my opinion.

A piece of fabric, or netting over the tube will keep out mosquitoes. The Mosquito Bits go a long way so the cost really isn't high. Just 1/4 teaspoon in the tube will last about 14 days. The Dunks are more expensive and a pain to divide in 4ths.

Mickie

Thanks for the clarification and warning. I was using the dunks and I thought the amount was 1tsp. I've not found the bits in local stores. Where is the best place to buy the bits.

I might experiment with oil in one box. I flush mine out a few times, so doesn't seem to be much potting mix in them. Even if there were a little PM in the water, 1 oil drop should still float to the top.

[potatohead]

I got mine on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Mosquito-Dunks-117-6-30-Ounce-Bits/dp/B0001AUF8G/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1342547947&sr=8-1&keywords=mosquito+bits

It's a good size jug, and has lasted me quite a while.

[mjb8743]

I might experiment with oil in one box. I flush mine out a few times, so doesn't seem to be much potting mix in them. Even if there were a little PM in the water, 1 oil drop should still float to the top.

And just where is the top? As the plants drink, the water level drops, spreading oil over the reservoir walls and wicking chamber mix. I wouldn't want an oily mess in my boxes when I refresh them. And... if this is done repeatedly, that mess could built up each year since the mix is reused. Yuk!!!!

Mickie

[kathy]

Oil is ok in an open container/saucer type thing but I would not do this in an EarthBo.I would be very afraid of gunking up the works....the ability for the soil to move the water and fertilizer.

[cushman350]

No oil slicks.

[writeone]

Thanks everyone. I won't even try. I'm glad to know about the bits.

[ErnieHodge]

OK, I have to open my big mouth again.

I don't think the county rep was talking about pouring a quart of 30 weight motor oil into an EB. They were talking about 'ONE" drop of maybe mineral oil which spread out over even a small container would not hurt anything except mosquito populations.

If the local government is spraying once a week in your area that's what you're getting 'ON' your plants, yard and garden, some type of oil or chemical.

I do agree it's easier to cover the water fill tube and the drain hole to keep mosquitos out (unless you're using the AWS and then it's just a little more work).

Oil will float on the 'top' of the water. The only place you can put oil in an EB is down the fill tube. There's no way the oil can get from there (floating on top of the water in the fill tube) into the actual reservoir of the EB. If you're using the AWS it's probably better to just cover the fill tube with some kind of netting or fabric.

We live in FL on a canal off a river. Do we have mosquitos? Oh yeah. We don't use dunks or bits and we don't have any issues with mosquitos in our EBs. The AWS seems to keep them out but during the bad times when we have lots of mosquitos we cover the fill tubes and drain holes. The new version EB is really easy to cover the drain hole with tape and a piece of screen. The original EB drain hole is a pain because the tape gets wet and comes off after a few weeks and has to be redone.

Am I going to put a drop of oil down the fill tubes on my EBs. NO. I think it would be really hard to get one drop to hit the water at the bottom of a tilted EB fill tube. Would I put oil in any other type of container? Sure, if the container has exposed standing water.

Just use common sense and do what you have to do to protect yourself from mosquitos and the diseases they can spread.

DISCLAIMER: The last part of this post is is not for new EB users. This should only be used under extreme circumstances and should only be attempted by EBers with at least 100 years experience!

I have a better idea:

"I'll just duct tape the drain hole shut, fill the EB with water until it comes out the fill tube, duct tape the fill tube shut and don't have to ever worry about mosquitos again until I replant the EB."  

[gardendoc]

I too have to chime in on this. I think the mosquito menace from our EBs is really over blown. Personally I'm not worried even though I was afflicted with a mosquito borne virus that me pretty sick several years ago. I rely on my 40% DEET spray and garden on.