Here is my take on this. I am a member of a rose society and I see many menbers use Hercules type efforts to have the perfect rose. It does not make a difference if they are showing roses or just growing roses. Many have have a long list of things to do all year long with crazy fertiling scheduals and spray programs. They buy roses with showing in mind,fertilize with showing in mind and spray for bugs wih showing in mind. Think that price of gas is high, buy some Banner Max or Compass and a good miteicid. I work for a lawn care company full time during the year And I am a licensed pesticide applicator. I don't do lawns but tree and shub care. It amazes me how many people are stressed about powdery mildew,japanesse beetles,leaf hoppers and other issues. Even if I tell a customer that its only cosmetic they want it killed or controled some way(like maple leaf gall because it makes the leaves look funny). Most people have never heard about IPM but just want to use chemicals to kill every thing. Because I work about 60 hours a week during the season my own roses take a hit. But They look good to me, I don't spray any chemicals from my company on my roses. I use a fertilizer when I have time but water all the time when they need it. If at the end of the year my ogrs have blackspot thats just the way it is. I used Actively Aerated Compost Tea ,I use Milorganite,I use rose tone and others. I try to ammend the soil but I always water. I do whatever time permits. The bottom line is insects and diease will all ways be ahead of us and will out live us all. I tell my customers a tree or shrub including a rose bush most likley will out live us all. Go to a park or forrest and look at the trees and shrubs nobodys taking care of them and the all do just fine. Roses are like people all they want is food ,water ,and a comfortable climate and they will do fine. Look up What "Integrated Pest Management" Means. By the way some customers don't like to be told you should not try to kill everything or learn to live with some mildew of blackspot. Stanc

You are dead wrong in your supposition, wynsworld. The people you will talk to when calling the information hotline are in the business of helping people like you use their products properly, safely, effectively, and legally. They are one hundred percent willing to tell a caller that they MUST NOT use their product in a certain way because it may: damage the plant, not do the job the user intends, harm the user, harm non-target animals, harm the environment, or be illegal. Ortho has nothing to gain from people who get themselves into trouble by misusing their products and a great deal to lose. That number is the very first place you should go to for good information. Look on the label and call the number listed. If you have never done so, you might be surprised. I've called them many times over the years, mostly to see to what they had to say about certain off label uses. I've never had a sales job pulled on me, but have been given a great deal of good information....mostly in the form of "NO, you cannot use our Ortho product for that use." But plenty of times to explain how to safely use it for something that might not be listed on the label. Chemical companies spend multimillions of dollars in research in order to produce their products and the labels that are considered federally legal documents. They want their customer to be successful and will help you to that end. On the other hand, if someone wants to do something dangerous or even non-effective with their product, they'll tell you immediately that you cannot. I suspect that they will be happy to bless your use of this pesticide for your purpose, and why not take advantage of their insight? They have an awfully lot at stake that you will be satisfied with their pesticide and live to tell the story. ;-)

I just noted that I wrote I wasnt putting a essential oil recipe in there for cleaning wooden floors, but there is one in there. Note though, that I havent ever used that recipe as I dont have wood floors, so I cant 100% say it wont take the shine off. If you want to try it, just do a test spot in a hidden area. Also, I dont know if I can give people my e-mail address if they want a printable version of this? Or my environmental group on myspace? Can I? Will someone please tell me so that I can put this info down if someone wants me to send them out a printable copy? Oh, and sorry it took me so long to get this up online sylviatexas! Thanks, sammie

We use a combination of Nickel Plus and K-Phite. It's working great. We spray with both, using a sticker-spreader we got at Tractor Supply. We also add their blue dye now, because it helps us see where we have missed a spot. It isn't very easy to see through goggles, with sweat pouring down in your eyes. Just avoid spraying any blossoms, unless you are really desperate for a blue daylily. We were advised to spray once a week for 3 weeks, then wait 3 weeks before spraying again. I've only sprayed once this fall, since it has been raining off and on ever since. Occasionally, I will have a plant that shows sign of rust, but nothing like it was before I started using the nickel. I wouldn't use anything else. Well, let me take that back. I am going to try some Actinovate on just a few isolated and unimportant plants to see how it works. The only thing I don't like is having to don all that protective gear, but I wouldn't have it otherwise. I'm very cautious. We use goggles, a special pesticide mask we bought at Lowes, chemical gloves (also at Lowe's), rubber boots and a yellow rain slicker. My hubby and our yardman refuse to put on a garbage bag drawstring skirt, but if I'm doing the spraying, I wear that, too. I'll have to get my hubby to take a picture of me in that fancy outfit so everyone can get a good laugh. When the weather is warm, we get very sweaty in all that garb! We start very early in the morning while it is still cool. We have a big tank sprayer on wheels we pull behind our riding lawn mower. It runs on the lawn mower battery. We got an extra length of hose so we can cover more territory. One of us drives the lawn mower while the other sprays. I could do it by myself, but it takes longer to have to keep stopping to move the mower ahead. We wash the tank out thoroughly after spraying and run clear water through the wand when we have finished. Aren't you cold climate people lucky??? Nancy