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hydrogen peroxide

Mushroom growers use low concentration H2O2 (hydrogen peroxide) to prevent moulds. Anyone tried it with fig cuttings?

I have had better luck with at 10% bleach solution to clean cuttings and then rinsing them off. I also use a plastic brush to remove dead material.

This has come up in several posts lately for bug control. I have used it in the past for overall plant health and liked it. I have a Hardy Chicago in the garage that I got from Hartman's last fall, it's not waking up yet but a sh** load of fungus gnats are. They are lethargic and fat with eggs, I put yellow stickies in all the pots and smush the wanderers everytime I walk through the garage. They haven't made it into the house yet thank god. I have a long season plant waking up that I want to put into the sunroom, I haven't found a gnat on that pot or sticky trap yet, but I don't want to deliver the gnats to my babies.

 Anyhow, Walgreens has 16oz. bottles, 2/$3. I'm going to give it a try, I'll let you all know the results.

Calvin,
  Go on an all-out offensive on those gnats before you let that plant anywhere near those others!  Those Fungus Gnats are EVIL!  They are not just a nuisance, the larva eat rooting fig cuttings for breakfast, lunch and dinner!  (You probably already know this, but I thought I'd take this opportunity to vent.)
Jim

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ivan
Mushroom growers use low concentration H2O2 (hydrogen peroxide) to prevent moulds. Anyone tried it with fig cuttings?


Ivan, I use H2O2 for rooting and asked the same question several weeks back wondering why people would use bleach instead of H2O2.  I really didn't get an answer as to why not use H2O2, I think some people just prefer and/or are comfortable with bleach.  I personally would rather use the H2O2.

I used Hyd. Peroxide straight out of the bottle into a rooted cutting container becouse it was droopy
and over night it percked right up, it's a win win.

So, does the peroxide kill the gnats? Do you just soak the dirt or dilute it? I love this idea.

Tami,
I've  read that 1 part peroxide to 4 parts water will kill the larvae on contact.

The peroxide is the 3% strength kind.

Perfect, thank you so much Sammy.

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Came across this short PDF today containing info about  organic ferts and amendments.

32. Hydrogen Peroxide
 
It is this hydrogen peroxide in rainwater that makes it so much more effective than tap water when given
to plants. With the increased levels of atmospheric pollution, however, greater
amounts of H202 react with air borne toxins and never reach the ground. To compensate for this, many farmers have been
increasing crop yields by spraying them with diluted hydrogen peroxide (5 to 16 ounces of 35% mixed
with 20 gallons of water per acre). You can achieve the same beneficial effect with your house plants by
adding 1 ounce of 3% hydrogen peroxide (or 16 drops of 35% solution) to every quart of water you give
your plants. (It can also be made into an excellent safe insecticide. Simply spray your plants with 8
ounces of 3% peroxide mixed with 8 ounces of white sugar and one gallon of water.)


 
http://www.omasgartenpflanzen.com/Organic_Directory.pdf

Thank you....I printed and kept that one!

As I promised I want to share my results. Used it around a 1:4 ratio(H2O2:H2O).
 While it didn't result in total eradication, it was plenty strong enough and did help. If you have a small number of plants it is even more useful, watering with this solution flushes all the adult gnats out of their little hiding places, even the recently molted adults that look more grayish in color and have wings that don't work quite yet. It sort of causes a mass exodus, and then you can wait and sqaush them in larger numbers each time you walk by your plants.

My pots that I put outside I thought would naturally clear of the problem. I haven't done the h2o2 treatment in a long time and they are now teaming with the fungus gnat revival. I have decided to try an different approach because I don't want a garage full of gnats next spring threatening my babies inside once again. I am trying predatory nematodes. Arbico has a fair deal on them right now and shipping is free. They are kinda spendy, but when compared to the price, time, and labor of rare/prized cuttings I think it is worth it. I just did the first treatment last night. I will start a seperate thread at some point with the method and results.

A couple years ago I took a load of hydrogen peroxide in 55gl drums to Eastport, Me.
At that volume it can cause your lungs to bleed just by breathing the vapors.

I asked what it was for and I was told due to the warmer waters the Salmon were getting lice. They were treating them with it before the fish were released to the market.

I guess it would be a good shot to try and control the gnats with it.

hydrogen peroxide, nor bleach will wok once the mold gets hold. your best bet is prevention. do not let the mold get anchored into the cuttings. 

believe it or not, best method that has worked for me is wiping away mold with wet paper towel at the first sight. and keep on doing this everyday until the cutting is out of the baggie.. humidity bin or whatever until they go outside under the fresh air and sun. 

i tried spraying, soaking, wiping with bleach solution first, then later used peroxide. however, they don't really prevent much of anything once the mold gets hold. i also tried alcohol swab, no luck there either. 

About half way through the winter I started adding diatomaceous earth to my potting mix and haven't seen a gnat since.

Quote:
Originally Posted by barnhardt9999
About half way through the winter I started adding diatomaceous earth to my potting mix and haven't seen a gnat since.


I  bought a 50 lb bag last week to deal with outdoor pests.  It is working better than expected.   Never would have thought of adding it to potting mix though.  How much...what kind of ratio do you use?  And do you mix it in, or spread a little on top?

I lost a bunch of newly rooted cuttings by adding DE to my potting mix.  Be careful with it!

Thanks.   Maybe just a little spread on top of the soil and away from the stem?

I used it on my compost pile, around my squash and tomatoes, and around the kennel.   It's done wonders for my garden and back yard.

We have hordes of cockroaches and other crawly critters here.  Nasty little buggers.   But we're getting a handle on em.   Much better than poison.

I just added a pinch (less than .2% of the mix) and mixed it in. I think the fine particles would probably hold a lot of moisture if you added much. I try to keep it out of the outdoors because I have lots of honey bees, wasps and ladybugs doing a good job in the garden.

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