LESLIE: Hugh in Missouri wants to know about fending off Japanese Beetles. You’ve got The Money Pit. How can we help you today?
HUGH: I have quite a few Japanese beetles that have really attacked my cherry tree and my plum tree and my raspberries and my rose bush. I’ve got rose bushes. I’ve talked to a national company that will help me but I have a couple dogs that are in the backyard some. And I’m wondering if – how important is it to avoid chemical sprays for fending off Japanese beetles?
TOM: Everybody puts chemical sprays in a big, you know, sort of the big pile of being something bad. But you have to remember that pesticides and various products like that today, they’re relatively safe if they’re applied by people that understand what they’re applying and they’re applied properly, because they are so thoroughly tested. So I wouldn’t necessarily steer away from using them for fending off Japanese beetles.
LESLIE: And so focusly applied, as well.
TOM: Yeah, exactly. It’s not like a one size fits all, so I wouldn’t get so worked up about not using a so-called chemical on my landscaping. Because frankly, it actually would be the right thing to do. There are so many people in this country, with insects especially, that will buy a way ridiculous amount of over-the-counter products and spray everything and make their homes more toxic than ever just so they don’t have to hire a pesticide pro to do it for them.
HUGH: OK.
TOM: But the best pros know exactly what to do, what to apply, how much to apply and what insect they’re trying to get rid of.
HUGH: OK.
TOM: Now, if you want to try this a natural way, one solution that I have heard of – but I can’t attest to how successful it is but I have read about it – is to make your own application – your own pesticide, so to speak – out of red cedar planks. You know how you use red cedar in closets because it keeps moths away from clothes?
LESLIE: Yeah, it keeps the moths away.
HUGH: Yeah.
TOM: Same principle applies. You basically get yourself some red cedar and you soak it for a couple of days in water and let that cedar sort of leach into the water and then you apply that as your spray.
HUGH: OK.
TOM: So that’s one thing that you can try. You can also buy red cedar chips online or you can find them at a pet store. Sometimes, they sell red cedar for the bottom of hamster cages and things like that. But you can saturate some water with that and apply that as your pesticide and see if it works for you. But again, I’m not concerned – I’m not so afraid to pick up the phone and call a pest-control operator or purchase the right product to get rid of the insect that I’m dealing with.
HUGH: OK, thank you. I’m really enjoying listening to your program every week.
LESLIE: Oh, thanks so much.
TOM: Well, good. Thanks so much for calling. So glad we could help you out.
HUGH: Thank you.
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