Understand how to use green cleaner for spider mites by proper mixing and application. It’s not an exhaustive process for it to be effective against those annoying pests. The truth is, while you might think you never overlooked the prevention of bugs in the greenhouse, one day, you can end up seeing webs and other telltale signs of spider mites.
When this happens, you need a solution, and it is the green cleaner for spider mites. The good thing about this product is that you can use it indoors, so polytunnel growers in the United Kingdom shouldn’t worry about Green Cleaner drawbacks. And if you’re growing plants in a controlled environment like the greenhouse, you will have an easier time eradicating spider mites.
How To Use Green Cleaner For Spider Mites: Tips For Success
When using pesticides in the greenhouse, the University of Massachusetts, Amherst emphasises checking the product’s recommended application rates. The size of your polytunnel and the crops you grow will also influence what pesticide is the best and safest for you. As for the Green Cleaner, the manufacturer recommends it only for horticultural plants, so if you have food crops, you should skip this product.
Mixing
Before usage, make sure that you shake your Green Cleaner bottle before measuring it and adding it to the water. It would help if you even shook it occasionally while spraying as well, and experienced UK gardeners even recommend using a pressurised pump sprayer or atomisers and foggers. Afterwards, mix 1 to 2 ounce per gallon of Green Cleaner and remember to keep the mixture agitated while applying it to your plants.
Application
You can avoid adverse reactions by testing the Green Cleaner on one of your plants first with a low rate of around 0.5 ounces per gallon. You can then increase this rate to 2 ounces on the initial application, 1 ounce every one to two days for the second applications, and 0.5 ounces for weekly maintenance. However, you should only apply Green Cleaner when your lights are off and then wait for the plants to dry completely before turning the lights back on.
Additionally, it would be best to apply a light mix if you spray on late flowering plants. The brand recommends spraying with a light solution often rather than using a heavy mix. Lastly, ensure that you have uniform coverage on plants.
Green Cleaner should kill every spider mites it comes in contact with, but don’t use it on the inner flower. It would also be more manageable to eradicate the pests before your plants undergo flowering or early flowering. You can then use Green cleaner for maintenance against problems.
Additional tips to get rid of spider mites
Before you start applying Green Cleaner, remove the unhealthy leaves from your plants, and throw them away from the greenhouse. You can also cool the polytunnel temperature to slow down the spider mites’ growth if you deal with a heavy infestation that’s difficult to control. Lastly, ensure that you have sprayed every surface of your infected plants and saturate them thoroughly.
What Is Green Cleaner?
Green Cleaner is a concentrate that you mix to create a solution of 0-hour re-entry interval and 0-day pre-harvest interval against pests and fungi. While it’s not for food crops, it is safe enough to use at any stage of your plant’s development and without protective gear when you spray it. This product is also exempt under minimum risk pesticides for the environmentally conscious, but this product requires a registry for sale in some UK areas.
What makes Green Cleaner the choice of gardeners in the UK against spider mites is that the pests don’t get immune to it, and it can kill both the adults and eggs. As a bonus, Green Cleaner can also work against powdery mildew and other common bugs like whiteflies, russet mites, broad mites, and aphids. Green Cleaner has soybean oil, sodium lauryl sulfate, citric acid, and isopropyl alcohol as its ingredients to work as miticidal, insecticidal, and fungicidal.
How To Control Spider Mites Infestation
You can control spider mites using pesticides and miticides such as the Green Cleaner. However, Ohio State University also discusses other practices to solve spider mites infestation. The first and easiest way is by using a forceful jet of water to knock off the spider mites on your plants.
Another method is by using biological control or the introduction of spider mite predators in your greenhouse. These beneficial insects such as lady beetles, lacewings, and even predatory mites can control your spider mite population. However, it’s worth noting that you must know what weather is best for them and avoid using pesticides to kill them.
Conclusion
You can always do your best to prevent mite infestation, but what should you do if some still managed to get to your plants? If the infestation is hard to manage, learn how to use green cleaner for spider mites. Mix the solution diligently and start from a low rate of 0.5 ounces per gallon to help you get started in solving your spider mite infestation.
You can also use the polytunnel to maintain the internal conditions that pests won’t like to decrease their population further. Overall, problems can happen, but quick action can save your British plants. Read your pesticides carefully and do your research firsthand.