edenstrauss 3 Report post Posted January 28, 2012 [photo of ginger plants & flowers pending] Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
edenstrauss 3 Report post Posted January 28, 2012 [photo of ginger plants & flowers pending] Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
edenstrauss 3 Report post Posted January 28, 2012 (edited) This is another type of organic fertiliser from IJO which I had been using on & off to promote new growth & healthy green leaves.Since the nursery's owner whom I've consulted on IJO's organic fertiliser had suggested that I stepped up dosage becox he claimed that the percentage of fertiliser in the gray pellets were extremely low & wouldn't do plants harm in burning them off, I had taken the risk & was surprised that it had done my plants alot of good. However, I need to highlight one of our woes of having a fast growing plant: the need for space & repotting can drain us physically & mentally. Edited January 31, 2012 by edenstrauss Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
edenstrauss 3 Report post Posted February 7, 2012 (edited) Organic insecticide: (organic) Neem oil by IJO (ijo)(photo of neem oil)I was really keen on neem oil after I read about thr wonders of the neem tree.The full anatomy of the neem tree had been useful. From its branches to leaves, I was surprised that IJO's neem oil had been derived from the seeds of the neem tree.Although raw neem leaves weren't new to me as I had been using them for facial purposes, I was quite convinced that IJO's neem oil was genuine.The reason being that when it had been diluted for use, it gave off a pungent garlicic smell which was characteristic of the neem leaves I had been using. The neem leaves I bought would usually have a type of smell resembling those of onions. Edited February 11, 2012 by edenstrauss Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
edenstrauss 3 Report post Posted February 7, 2012 (edited) I had followed the instructions at the back of the bottle & diluted the required amount in a pressure sprayer filled with tap water.(photo of back of bottle)The mixture had to be given a shake in the pressure sprayer while in use. Otherwise, the neem oil will be floating on top of the water & the insecticide wouldn't be effective on plants.The mixture is then sprayed onto the undersides of the leaves & I do give the "red corns" a sprinkle too. However, it's preferable that the application takes place in the evening or after a shower.Not unlike any other insecticides, it isn't a good idea to use it on plants under the hot sun. It'll burn off the plants.For any leftovers, I would sprinkle them on the surface of the soil.As a deterrent, I would apply IJO's organic neem oil on my plants once a week. Edited February 11, 2012 by edenstrauss Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
edenstrauss 3 Report post Posted February 7, 2012 The neem oil seems to be more effective as compared to the white oil that I had used earlier on when my plants had sooty traces on the undersides of leaves & the joints between leaves & stems; coupled by an incessant community of ants - likely to be a sign of pests infestations.When the usual pesticide that I used didn't work, I turned to white oil which didn't work becox the sooty stuff, ants & some insects kept returning.As such, I had discontinued white oil & turned to neem oil when ijo introduced it to me.After using the organic neem oil, it seems that it is working well becox I realized that the undersides of the leaves had been coated with the oil, giving it a waxy sensation when felt as long as 1 week after the application.For now, I discovered that there weren't any ants crawling onto the plants. However, I m keeping my fingers crossed while I monitor my plants further. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
edenstrauss 3 Report post Posted February 11, 2012 (edited) Towards this early evening, I was surprised to see a yellow bug which clung onto one of my red "corns".I took it off carefully & was told by my hubby that it was a lady bug which was said to be beneficial to all plants. Lady bugs were beneficial insects who helped in getting rid of pests such as aphids. By eating them of course.However, out of ignorance, I brought the lady bug down to the ground floor & left it onto a flowering shrub as I didn't believe that it was a lady bug since it was yellow & not red with black pokka dots as typically depicted in cartoons or photographs.I almost kicked myself when the search engines on the internet has confirmed that it was indeed a precious yellow lady bug! I've just sent off a good insect that would benefit my plants! Ain't I stupid? Right now, I could only be hopeful that my plants would be a future resting place for more lady bugs in the near future.And the worse part was, I didn't even take a photograph of the yellow lady bug. This was how my yellow lady bug looked like... Edited February 11, 2012 by edenstrauss Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
edenstrauss 3 Report post Posted February 11, 2012 (edited) After watering my Ginger plants with worm tea derived from ijo's organic worm castings, I did notice that there were many new baby shoots making their way out from the surface of the soil.And the newbies are growing pretty fast even when I water them with tap water. Edited February 11, 2012 by edenstrauss Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
edenstrauss 3 Report post Posted February 11, 2012 I was concerned about the building up of salt contents with an everyday watering of plants using the worm tea.Moreover, I noticed that the NPK was highest @ the N-component of the scale. Meaning that the worm castings had a relatively higher Nitrogen content. As a result, it would promote many lush, green leaves & new growth for plants as you could see from the photographs in the earlier posts as above.On the other hand, I did notice that my Ginger plants had halted in blooming after prolonged usage of about 10 days.I had then decided to lay off the worm tea for a while. And blooming had kicked in again after I applied water on them for about a week. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
edenstrauss 3 Report post Posted February 14, 2012 Surprise! Surprise! Surprise!I've mentioned in my preceding posts in this thread that I had chased away a yellow spotless ladybird, not realising that it was supposed to be good for my plants as ladybirds were said to eat up pests such as aphids & mealy bugs.After leaving our guests on a flowering shrub that was 2 blocks away from our flat during weekends, we were surprised by the presence of yet another yellow spotless ladybird. I had no idea if it was the same chap that we removed over weekends but anyway, I have decided to leave it untouched & let this ladybird be our guest since we've plenty of room here with our "Ginger" plants. I had also taken the valuable opportunity to take a few photographs of our guest... becox it looked so loveable & cute! Don't you agree? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
edenstrauss 3 Report post Posted February 14, 2012 (edited) Isn't this spotless yellow ladybird cute-looking? It looks "kawaii"... And here's another "kawaii" shot of our guest. The yellow wings looked so polished & glossy.Doesn't the ladybird remind us of a yellow Volkswagen Beetle? Isn't it just adorable? hahahaha However, I did wonder if such a breed of ladybird is supposed to be beneficial to plants or are they leaf eaters as some of the breeds are? Anyways, I will have to be on a look out to see if my plants had been attacked. Edited February 14, 2012 by edenstrauss Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
edenstrauss 3 Report post Posted February 19, 2012 (edited) After consulting the owner for the following website (Everything on Ladybug), he had kindly advised me that this particular breed of ladybird is known as illeis koebelei.http://www.everything-ladybug.com/ladybug-pest-control.htmlThis breed of spotless yellow ladybird is a plant-friendly insect that thrives on cleaning up mildew & fungus attacking plants.As such, we were more than happy to have it become a permanent resident of our plants. However, we don't see it nowadays. We are hoping to see it coming back to our plants & welcomes it making our plants its home & where possible, breeding there.I recalled seeing this strange looking chap crawling around my plants a month ago... it moved really fast & I had made several attempts to catch hold of it but was unsuccessful. Now I realised that it might be the larvae or baby of the spotless yellow ladybird.Disclaimer: I do not own the photograph of the larvae for the illeis koebelei uploaded as above. Kindly give the photo credits to the owner of the following website: http://gaga.biodiv.tw/new23/s7-26.htm . Thank you. Edited February 19, 2012 by edenstrauss Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
edenstrauss 3 Report post Posted February 22, 2012 While I was watering my plants recently, I came across another 3 ladybirds loitering around my plants... By the time I fetched my camera, the other 2 were no longer in sight & the other chap has flown towards another plant in the same pot. However, I have managed to take some photographs of it before it flew off to another location. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
edenstrauss 3 Report post Posted February 22, 2012 The spotless yellow ladybird perching precariously at the rim of the leaf.This one does look alot smaller than the first which looked alot larger in my first photograph uploaded in my earlier posts... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
edenstrauss 3 Report post Posted February 26, 2012 Yet another 2 photographs of a spotless yellow ladybird at our "Ginger" plant...It was quite a challenge trying to take a snippet of it close-up becox the location it was at was almost out of reach. The spotless yellow ladybird was camera-shy & was crawling towards a hiding place where it could not be easily seen... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
