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From: tarnopol@ttidcb.UUCP (Lewis Tarnopol)
Newsgroups: net.garden
Subject: Re: WARNING
Message-ID: <390@ttidcb.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 24-Jun-85 15:36:57 EDT
Article-I.D.: ttidcb.390
Posted: Mon Jun 24 15:36:57 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 27-Jun-85 05:55:51 EDT
References: <2575@decwrl.UUCP> <380@ttidcb.UUCP> <10315@rochester.UUCP>
Reply-To: tarnopol@ttidcb.UUCP (Lewis Tarnopol)
Organization: Transaction Technology, Inc. (CitiCorp), Santa Monica
Lines: 40

In article <10315@rochester.UUCP> nemo@rochester.UUCP (Wolfe) writes:
>> (wrt cutworms)  Direct spraying with 50%
>> ammonia (mixed with tap water) does not work (although it's death to slugs
>> and snails - also providing a mild foliar feed of nitrogen).  
>> Lewis Tarnopol
>Although the body of advice concerning cutworms was correct, I urge 
>			CAUTION
>if you plan to use 50% ammonia to discourage the slugs.  In my moist,
>cool western NY garden, slugs are a major pest and I am continually
>searching for new and better ways of fending them off my plants.  So
>I tried this suggestion.  While some plants did not seem to mind (the
>strawbs, and kale), many of the plants that I sprayed (spinach that was
>interplanted with the strawbs to discourage slugs - unsuccessfully;
>morning glories, a volunteer tomato, cosmos) developed wilted, yellowed
>leaves.  So much for mild foliar feed!  I haven't had much opportunity
>to examine the treated area for slugs, so I'll report on that later.  
>Nemo

Thanks for the input, Nemo.  I sprayed tomatoes, chard, spinich, basil and
lettuce with the 50% ammonia mixture with no harmful results, but
discontinued the practice after a few days.  Maybe I was lucky but there
was no wilt or yellowed leaves.  The ammonia mixture was meant only as a
direct kill, i.e. it must be sprayed on a slug or snail...it will not deter
them.  Again, I was looking for a way to eliminate the large cutworms on my
vegetables without picking the squirmy little buggers off with my fingers.
Ultimately, I now use my fingers (gloved!!).  Perhaps a 10% solution would
achieve the snail/slug kill without offending the leaves, but now, after your
report, I think it would be better to drop the ammonia idea of mine.

By the way, I get 100% direct spray kill using Safer's soap (nursaries carry
it) solution on the ants that feed the various aphid species on my tomato
plants. (Ants feed the aphids for the tasty excrement they provide).
-- 
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-
Lewis Tarnopol
Citicorp/TTI
3100 Ocean Park Blvd.
Santa Monica, CA  90405
(213) 450-9111, ext. 3082
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