What the devil is Bifenthrin or Thiacloprid?

[OllieMartin]

I've found caterpillers and eggs on the underside of my brassicas, and cabbage white butterflies are hanging around them. I've identified them as Small Cabbage White Caterpillers, but my book says "Spray with bifenthrin or thiacloprid..."

I've raided my Wilkos and Homebase, but none of the bug killers they stock say much about caterpillers.

Any good, cheap recommendations?

[zazen999]

I use chilli and garlic spray. Works wonders.

They both sound like I'd not like to eat them.

[Hazel at the Hill]

Sorry I don't have the answer on this one, but for next time, netting is much cheaper than sprays, and you arent eating the chemical poisons that have killed the caterpillars.

I'd pick them off and squish the eggs you see - only takes a minute and you'll soon notice the decrease.

[OllieMartin]

^That's what I have been doing, but it's quite a dense patch and I thought spraying would be easier.
I'll probably net another time.

[COMPOST CORNER]

googled them:
Bifenthrin
Of the class pyrethroid, it is a synthetic pyrethroid insecticide

Chemical name: [2-methylbiphenyl-3-ylmethyl (Z) -(1RS,3RS)-3- (2-chloro-3,3,3-trifluoroprop-1-enyl)-2, 2-dimethylcyclopropanecarboxylate]



Trade or generic names
Talstar®, Bifenthrin, Rose Clear 3, Roseclear Gun, Scotts Bug Clear,
Bayer Sprayday Greenfly Killer Plus, Doff All-In-One Garden Pest Killer,
pre-harvest, in Starion or Talstar, and post-harvest, in Prostore, masterline


Crops / products generally treated with this product
Turf, ornamental plants, flower beds mulched areas, grains, rice

Used to control
Insect grubs, insects, ants, Glasshouse whitefly , Scaptomyza Fly , fire ants, mosquitoes, termites,

Known risks associated with high exposure
Take care to avoid spraying near bees. It is toxic to fish,

Other information
Bifenthrin attacks insects by contact and ingestion. It acts by paralyzing the nervous system. It is not absorbed by plant foliage



Thiacloprid, a new chloronicotinyl insecticide, is targeted chiefly to control aphid pest species in orchards and vegetables. In a standard IOBC glass plate assay, residues of thiacloprid (SC 480) severely affected adult stages of the cereal aphid parasitoid Aphidius rhopalosiphi whereas pre-imaginal stages (which develop within the host) remained unaffected. As for A. rhopalosiphi, the pre-imaginal stages of the crop-relevant egg parasitoid T. cacoeciae were not adversely affected by a spray treatment with thiacloprid (SC 480). However, when treated host eggs were stored under greenhouse conditions, the emergence success of ecdysed parasitoids was significantly reduced. This is assumed to be caused by thiacloprid residues that had been deposited on the host egg cuticle during spray treatment and which were ingested by the parasitoids during emergence, when they were biting its way through the host egg cuticle. In contrast, if treated host eggs were subjected to field exposure conditions before emergence of the parasitoids, no statistically significant reduction in emergence success was recorded. Moreover, the fitness of parasitoids emerging from treated host eggs was not reduced compared to untreated parasitoids. Since pre-imaginal stages comprise a major part of a parasitoid population and were not affected in a lethal or sublethal way by thiacloprid (SC 480), we conclude that a spray treatment with thiacloprid (SC 480) in the field will not significantly interfere with the pest control function of a parasitoid fauna in the target crops.

Better to stay organic I think, squashe 'em!!

[Two_Sheds]

I thought spraying would be easier.
I'll probably net another time.

You have to net against pigeons anyway. Net 'em !

[OllieMartin]

You have to net against pigeons anyway. Net 'em !

Can't I just spray the pigeons too?