Green products for your garden at the Garden Press Event
Many of us are choosing to use organic pest control and plant food products when gardening and there is an ever-growing range to choose from. Here’s what was unveiled at this year’s Garden Press Event – enjoy! Compare and contrast with what was revealed in the 2020 event.
Organic pest control – Neudorff
- Fridge-free Nematodes for tackling leatherjackets, vine weevils and lawn grubs have been updated to include two separate sachets of the nematode mixture in each pack, so you don’t have to use it all at once.
- Sluggo Slug & Snail Killer can be used in the same way as other slug pellets, but it protects animals that eat large amounts of the pests, such as hedgehogs and birds. The pellets contain iron-III-phosphate, and all Sluggo products are certified by the Organic Farmers & Growers’ Association.
- Renamed WeedFree, Neudorff’s glyphosate-free weedkiller has three products in the range. WeedFree Plus ready-to-use-spray and Concentrate include two active ingredients: pelargonic acid, found naturally in pelargoniums and maleic acid hydrazide. WeedFree Express contains pelargonic acid only.
- BugFree products are certified by the Organic Farmers & Growers’ Association and contain the active ingredient pyrethrins, a contact insecticide derived from chrysanthemums. It is neonicotinoid-free and provides effective protection against insects at all stages of their life cycles.
- For more information, visit www.neudorff.co.uk.
Envii garden products
- Envii Feed & Fortify: An organic diatomaceous earth (DE) which has a coarse granular construction for slug protection, rather than a powder which blows away and dissolves in the rain – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYBIpbtxCWQ
- It also improves the fertility of the soil. When wet, it leaches iron silicates into the soil. if you add it to a shaker (a jam jar with holes in the lid), it controls spider mites and ants.
- Envii Seafeed Xtra: A seaweed-based fertiliser with 5 per cent solids, Xtra Urea and Iron plus amino acids and comes in an easy dose bottle.
- Envii Maximato: This is a bacteria-based solution to improve the strength and yield of tomato plants. Testers reported protection against Blossom End Rot.
- New this year is a must this year for pet owners with artificial turf – Astro Fresh.
- Early Starter (which I trialled last year and found very helpful with tomatoes) protects young plants in spring.
- There’s also Deep Rooter, which protects plants from drought. The firm showcased its compostable packaging. Visit the new website at www.envii.co.uk.
Grazers
This nature-friendly range tackles rabbits, pigeons, deer, slugs, snails, caterpillars and aphids. New this year is the G4 Lily Beetle Spray (I trialled this one and found it very good). It actually helps plants to be more effective against major pest grazing and kills nothing, so it is entirely safe to wildlife and the environment.
Using a specific mix of calcium and natural adjuvant, apply the liquid to green, photosynthesising leaves and stems, making them ‘unpalatable’ for the critical period of attack. Like all safe biological activities, this effect naturally dissipates within the plant. In the meantime, the plants thrive and resist being eaten, www.grazers.co.uk.
Organic pest control – Vitax
New this year from Vitax are more than 10 products, including specialist feeds, following demand from gardeners. There is the organic-based Acer Feed, a must for fans of Japanese-style gardening.
Keep an eye out for Stay Off Mole Repellent, an organic product that works by giving off a smell that moles associate with predator activity. It’s not unpleasant or particularly noticeable to humans.
Plant Guard Organic is a new addition, developed to protect plants from bugs and diseases naturally.
It works to create a residual barrier to prevent spore germination and removes bugs, spores and dust to prevent pests from laying their eggs, allowing maximum light for photosynthesis. It’s non-toxic with natural ingredients, including micronised seaweed to stimulate plant growth. Available as a ready-to-use spray or as a concentrate, Organic Plant Guard can be used outdoors or under glass.
Vitax Organic Rooting Gel is also new, developed specifically to aid rooting and the establishment of cuttings. It is made from natural plant extracts and contains no synthetic growth hormones or fungicides, www.gardenworld.co.uk.
