Help! Chilli crisis!

[Norm]

Hi Chris,
Didn't know they were. It's still advertised.
The Organic Gardening Catalogue
This is one of many

[Norm]

I think I've foind it! It's Derris DUST there seems to be a problem with.
Parkinson's Disease, Pesticides and Derris Dust

[kittykat8]

do you just sprinkle the derris on the soil, to kill the red spider mite in between the peppers

marion

[smallblueplanet]

I've just double-checked in daylight. There are no red spider mite or mite webs on the plant . You can see that from the picture of the underside of the leaf I posted above.

SBP: pge 109 of hessayon would suggest a trace element shortage [yellowing between the veins]. Possibility?

I wondered about magnesium zaz? Its just its only one plant and its blotches and I fear it might be mosiac virus - but I've never seen it so I don't know what it looks like!

[Alison]

My initial thought was that it was a nutrient defficiency as you have no evidence of any bug attack. Seems strange on such a young plant but you never know.

[zazen999]

I've looked on t'internet and you might be right unfortunately. Esp if the others haven't got it and they are all in the same soil.

Doesn't appear to be any cure either.

[smallblueplanet]

Well atm the plant looks healthy, but 'blotchy', so I'll leave it standing on the patio seperated from its chilli brothers & sisters and see how it goes. We're away for a few days next week so it might be clearer by then.

All the pictures I've seen of mosiac virus have nasty brown blotches too. Lets hope it doesn't get any worse and maybe as Alice says its just the way it grows.

[SarzWix]

Manda, when our plants looked like that last year, it WAS Red Spider Mite, but we didn't see any physical signs of them til at least a week later, by which point the plants were quite poorly We got some predators and they recovered reasonably well.
It might be worth misting them with seaweed solution whenever you remember to toughen the leaves up a bit & make them less attractive to sap sucking pests. Certainly won't do any harm

[smallblueplanet]

What sort of concentration of seaweed solution do you reckon sarzwix, I'll make some up. No harm in feeding the leaves, as you say.

[Norm]

Hi Marion

do you just sprinkle the derris on the soil, to kill the red spider mite in between the peppers

marion

Derris Liquid Concentrate comes in small bottles and you mix it with water and spray it on the plant. There seems to be some controversy with Derris Dust as it has been linked with Parkinson's Disease, so I'd avoid dusting.
Parkinson's Disease, Pesticides and Derris Dust

[crichmond]

Rotenone - the active ingredient obtained from the crushed root of the derris tree - has been linked to the progressive brain disorder Parkinson's disease, and a subsequent investigation by the Pesticide Safety Directive (PSD) has led to the decision to withdraw all derris-based sprays and powders.

Although no definitive date has been set for the removal of derris from the market, sources claim that products will be available until September 2009. This will give organic gardeners plenty of time to find new artillery for the constant battle against garden pests such as aphids, caterpillars and flea beetles.

Among the products to be targeted are Liquid Derris and Derris Dust, but organic alternatives do already exist in the shape of sprays containing fatty acids, plant oils and pyrethrums. Derris itself has been used in the amateur horticultural sector since the mid-19th Century.

[SarzWix]

What sort of concentration of seaweed solution do you reckon sarzwix, I'll make some up. No harm in feeding the leaves, as you say.

Errrrmm... Can't remember Manda I don't think it was a really strong solution, as the plants were a bit weak so we didn't want to overlaod them, so to speak. But yours still look reasonably healthy, so I guess you can do it as strong as you like? Spider Mite dislike dampness, so just plain water is enough to P them off!

[gojiberry]

I believe that it is this Sept derris is being withdrawn. All pesticides have to go through rigourous testing under EU law and the cost is exorbitant. The makers of derris have deceided that the cost is to great and so are stopping production. That was my take on what I have read in the press.

[Norm]

It all stems from tests carried out in New Zealand in 2001 and continued in the US from 2002 to 2006. They injected lab rats twice a day with concentrated liquid derris for 5 years and they developed Parkinson-like symptoms. The results on primates were inconclusive, but the belief was that humans would have to main-line 50ml of concentrated derris liquid twice a day for at least 3 years to achieve the same level of symptoms. Now, where's the glyphosate - I need a fix

[HeyWayne]

They do say you get spots when you use steroids. Knew I should have pushed harder for a drugs test!

How are they looking now spb?

My broad beans are suffering a mystery illness too.