I lost my sense of smell years ago but don't recall a petrol smell ... mmmm
I do think that the only way to control the scales/honeydew/subsequent fungus is what you have tried - weak detergent in water. Not really useful if you have a large tree ... but it was the only way we could control scale on small citrus plants.
If you have any street lime (Tilia) or sycamore (or other
Acer spp) nearby, you will probably find a few
Exochomus quadripustulatus which you might persuade to come and owrk for you ....
Good time of year as they are mating and egg-laying at the moment ....
Quote:
Originally Posted by goosey
....... At the weekend I washed the "sticky" leaves with water - but the next day they were sticky again, so I tried a drop of washing-up liquid in with the water. This worked much better but now the honey dew is really thick. The weird thing is the smell - it smells like petrol or parafin. It looks like I am fighting a losing battle - anyone got any pine ladybirds I can borrow . |