hey DGC,
I’ve been noticing a lot of IPM questions lately. I loved the Patreon spider mites video. The borg assimilated some of my plants recently. I wanted to talk about the steps I’ve been taking to control them.
I love the shoutout given to Marrone bio. They’re a great company with quality products. I wiped out a russet mite infestation with no problems. Rotating venerate and grandevo is definitely recommended. I’ve had a different experience with spider mites using these products. They mites eventually developed a resistance and the population exploded.
Through research I came across a few enzyme products that have been incredibly effective. Build a soil sells a product called tweetmint (https://buildasoil.com/collections/foliar-sprays/products/tweetmint-enzyme-cleaner?variant=791262449).
Tweetmint is technically a cleaner and an amazing one to boot. I use it in place of bleach when cleaning the garden because of fumes in closed areas. The ingredients are generally regarded as safe. A pest control expert named Stephen Tvedten patented the process of using enzyme cleaners in pest control on plants. There’s a link in the info on build a soil. The enzymes break down the exoskeleton of most insects, including arachnids. It mimics the molting process, making resistance less likely, because insects use enzymes while molting.
Another enzyme product I’ve found and like is the amazing doctor zymes. The name and picture on the bottle are kinda gimmicky, but the product is solid. Another plus is this product is actually sold as a pesticide. The soil king turned me on to this product. Search on YouTube and you’ll find a video of him talking about it’s many uses, from pest control to curing athletes feet. They claim this product is residue free and can be used, on cannabis, up to the day of harvest and pass all testing. I didn’t spray plants past week 3 though. Both of these products contain enzymes that are harmless to humans.
With the combination of these two products I was able to knock back the borg like a transphasic torpedo. After this I released beneficial mites on a bi-weekly basis in both flower and veg. With a combination of Neoseiulus Californicus and Mesosiulus Longipes the stragglers can’t keep up. The releases may be overkill at this point. I should mention I run a 72 plant perpetual garden. I didn’t think I’d get this far without cutting everything down. Now I’m working on building a beneficial mite habitat to keep them around. I plan on sticking with the beneficials from this point on and avoiding spraying.
So that’s my story guys. I plan on posting more regularly from now on. For the most part I just sit back and listen. I’ve finally got a little time to contribute more. I enjoy learning from the crew so much, I want to do more. Already a paying member, so adding to the conversation is the logical step. I’m setting up my office and plan on posting pics and more soon. Thank DGC!
Thanks for the info. I have been meaning to get and try some tweetmint. How far into flower have you used it. I have had problems with every grow and spidermites. I think I have them wiped out for now. I haven’t been able to find any on my plants but I am scared they are still there holding their breath waiting till my head is turned. I hate those sons of bitches. I just flipped so I am extra scared of them now. Veg is no problem I can handle them then but when they pop out in flower that is just so disheartening.
I also love dogs as much as cannabis. I have a very special one. He is on cbd oil himself.
I wouldn’t recommend tweetmint past the first week or two of flowers. I would stop as soon as there’s bud set. The reason being that tweetmint also contains a mint oil. While harmless, it would effect bud flavor. I’d recommend the doctor zymes product for early to mid flower, because there’s no mint oil. Also the claim it’s safe during flower on cannabis. Even still, I would recommend avoiding spraying in flower if possible and using beneficials as to mitigate the effects on flavor. So if you’ve beat them back and can’t find many in the flower room, I’d skip straight to predator mites. Have tweetmint on hand for prevention in veg and doctor zymes for a knockdown spray in flower if necessary. Neoseiulus Californicus can survive low pest density by feeding on pollens. They also tolerate a wide range of temperature and humidity. Good luck, if you’re seeing little to no mites l, you’re on the right path. You just have to stay vigilant now. I have to tell myself this everyday lol
Being a post about Tweetmint I had to chime in. I also use it as a general cleaner. It readily kills mold and mildew. We have grown jaded by products offering so much and delivering so little or by products that were effective, but turned out to contain horribly dangerous ingredients Tweetmint is the real deal and it does have so many uses. I have sprayed it deep into flower with no adverse consequence. By the way, Dr. zymes is a copycat. They essentially stole Stephen Tvedten’s IP and made their own version. However, I hear enforcing this would cost quite a bit.
I didn’t know they were a copycat. That seems to be business these days. I will say this, doctor zymes doesn’t contain the mint oil, so I feel more comfortable using it in flower. You haven’t noticed any flavor effects from the mint while spraying in flower?
I like both products but the tweetmint definitely has a broader range of uses. If the mint doesn’t have an effect on flavor I’d definitely use it more in flower.
Yeah, they’ve been trying to get their product noticed for a while, but it’s hard for people to imagine one product can do so much in such a clean way. Unfortunately, because it is such a great product, there will be those who try to copy it. I have sprayed flower directly in the last days of September to stop bud rot. There was absolutely no residual. It also saved my outdoor crop 2 years in a row from pm. I didn’t know about it in my first outdoor year and pm absolutely destroyed my harvest. It was really bad. This area in general is bad for pm. But I then heard of it on The Pot Cast and researched it before buying it. A scheduled spraying in veg and some in flower in my last two seasons saved my harvest. I have also seen it eradicate a bad spidermite infestation. You can contact the owner of the company through @safesolutions on IG. There is no social media team. The owner will answer your messages. You can even get her on the phone and she will tell you more about the product. It’s a real deal family owned, mom and pop business.
I’ve been using it for a while and I like it quite a bit.
As Doc Brown mentions, its great for cleaning too. I add a few capfuls of tweetmint to a spray bottle of water and it makes a great general purpose cleaning spray that also repels pests. I use it around my home and grow and it always works great.
👍
I was intrigued and here is the breakdown of ingredients in tweetmint and a brief breakdown. Below is a garden hack recipe for you to try.
Amylase and lipase – breakdown starch and oil respectively. Ineffective against insects. Amylase may break down plant and some fungi. General purpose cleaner.
Borate is the main insecticide and general pesticide. The ph of 5.1 will proliferate PM. When heated turns into metaboric acid, pyroboric acid and boric anhydride. Should not be used on flowers. These salts are stable and will not breakdown on the plant.
Gycerol or glycerin- helps ingredients stick to plant and bugs. May help smother bugs. Pm and bud rot will use as food. Smoking glycerol is harmful. Should not be used during flower.
Peppermint oil – insect repellent. Dry exoskeleton. General cleaner and smells good. Should not be used on flower. Lung toxin and irritant.
Seems like it can be moderately effective. Not as safe as they claim. Too expensive for simple ingredients.
Here’s your garden hack to make tweetmint:
Leave out the enzymes there not needed, unless your using it to clean your garage.
Mix some boric acid (same concentration to control ants),2-5% glycerol and a few drops of peppermint oil to scent.
Opps,
I left out the surfactant- this can help spread solution and enter the leaf.
Use kinetic as directed or if you have optic foliar transport – if it comes back to market.
Also do not use on flower.
So make your own:
Kinetic – follow bottle
Boric acid – same as ant concentration
Glycerol 2-5%
Peppermint oil – drops to scent
The enzymes are needed. They’re what breakdown the exoskeleton of the insect. Similar to the enzymes the insects produce during molting. I suggest reading the patent by pest expert Stephen Tvedten available on the build a soil site. They also give an explanation on the borate that everyone thinks is a problem
I had similar concerns when I first heard of Tweetmint on the Pot Cast. I’ve grown for a while and there have been tons of products that promised so much, and some delivered, with a bit of hidden poison. If I was going to spray something on my medicine I was going to make sure it was safe. So I researched it for a while before committing and reached out to the owner for more answers. I was skeptical to say the least.
There is no amylase or lipase in the formula. TweetMint uses a protease enzyme, which has the ability to force insects into the molting process. The protease also helps to clean due to its natural decreasing properties and other various types of proteins.
There is also less than 2% borate and less than 1% glycerin in the concentrated form. And the peppermint oil is also minimal. When you dilute it to an ounce a gallon for treatment those ingredients are heavily diluted. In fact, I asked for proof there was no residual. There is a test done by Klaritie farms through Trace Analytics that found no residual on the flower when sprayed up to 4 days before harvest. I also believe the pH is around 7, but I’ll have to go back and look at the emails.
I have heard the are working on a certified organic version version. I believe the surfactant is what they are changing. They were looking into yucca, but I have to contact them to confirm. However, with the test indicating no residuals I will probably stick to the original formula.
I worked at a group home for 3 years where they used Mean Green from the dollar store. I was smelling that all day long! I grew allergic to it. My body totally hated the toxins in there. Since then I have been very vigilant about anything I’m spraying. I use this around my daughter and as a general household cleaner. It was made in protest to the extremely toxic cleaning chemicals that are drastically affecting our health. The original formulate, Stephen Tvedten, is a bit of a rebel. He is known for the famous “Beaver” letter. When the government sent him a letter threatening him because of damns beavers had built on his land, he wrote a tongue in cheek response pretty much telling them to F-themselves.
Also, I believe his knowledge of bugs is one of the reasons build a soil picked up the product. The recipe you provided would work, but only as much as soap and water would. Tweetmint is way different and works through a very different mode of action.
Anyway, anyone is free to reach out to them and have your questions answered. Their customer service is excellent. The owner answers their dm’s.
Here is a link to Stephen Tvedten’s IPM publication. It’s worth a read.
You made some great observations though. I am totally for holding companies accountable ✌️
http://www.stephentvedten.com/
^^^ Response to Sticky Fingers
Beaver Dam not damn 🙂
Thanks – great research and appreciate your passion for finding the truth. Very cool. I assumed the ingredients from an sds, Msds and manufacture label. I was close.
I do disagree with the residuals. There is no way a stable salt can degrade. It would need to be physically removed and washed off. May be with vegetables this can be done. The glycerol is also very sticky and vicious and would also need to be washed off.
Protease is a very general term and very specific what amino acid they can degrade. They are also very temperature and ph dependent.
Could it be trypsin, chymotrypsin, bromelain. I’m going to take a leap and predict the enzyme is from a citrus fruit. Did I guess the secret enzyme? I guess orange and pineapple rinds could work. As I finished the sentence off to the internet. There are two enzymes that show some benefit but they need enhancement form salicylic acid.
chitinases and β-1,3-glucanase
See link for a good read.
https://journals.flvc.org/fshs/article/download/85813/82729
Doc brown you’re alright