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About The nugget. (Sisters, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 3, 2018)
Wednesday, January 3, 2018 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon 21 Head off houseplant pests with vigilance, cleanliness Apply now By Kym Pokorny Oregon State University Extension Service CORVALLIS – Insects lurking under leaves, climb- ing up stems and settling into the soil of houseplants frus- trate indoor gardeners to no end. But there are answers, according to experts with Oregon State University’s Extension Service. Winter is a good time to check indoor plants for sap-sucking insects like mites, thrips, mealybugs, scales, whiteflies and aphids. Spotting problems and responding to them early can keep populations from exploding. There are a number of strategies to keep your indoor pests at bay without resorting to chemical controls. First of all, learn your houseplants’ needs and keep them healthy with the cor- rect amount of light, water and nutrition. Stressed plants encourage problems. For example, hot, dry and dusty conditions promote mite out- breaks and feeding plants too much high-nitrogen fertilizer makes for a delicious dinner for aphids. When you spot some insects, it’s necessary to iden- tify the pest before treating since different insects require different treatments. If you don’t know, put a few infested leaves in a plastic bag and go to your nearest Extension office or take a photo and submit it to Ask an Expert, an online Extension question- and-answer feature. Once you determine that you’ve got a problem, isolate infested plants from others so the insects don’t spread from plant to plant. If whiteflies are present, you can carefully vacuum them off with a hand-held vacuum, dislodge them with a soft spray of water or wipe leaves with a sponge. If you go the vacuum route, freeze the bag to kill the contents. Another trick is to place aluminum foil around the base of a plant. This may dis- orient winged pests like thrips and aphids and discourage them from landing. Or paint a small dish yellow and fill it with water to attract and drown them. Use yellow sticky traps, available at garden centers, to capture aphids and whiteflies. Blue sticky traps are good for snaring adult thrips while white ones work best for adult fungus gnats. Kill fungus gnat larvae that live in the soil by reducing the amount of water you give plants; they love moisture. Also, remove stand- ing water in the saucer. Swabbing bug-ridden leaves with a small paintbrush dipped in rubbing alcohol will destroy soft-bodied aphids and mealybugs. This works best when infestations have just gotten started. Some pests can be easily eliminated by shaking them onto a sheet of paper and dis- carding; or by hand if you are not too squeamish. Pinch off heavily infested leaves or other plant parts and destroy. Spray plants plagued by soft-bodied pests with gentle insecticidal soaps or light hor- ticultural oils available at gar- den centers. These may hurt some plants, so spot treat one leaf first. Also, soaps and oils are not as effective on winged adults, because they fly off and come back later. You may want to consider throwing out heavily infested plants. Discard soil and clean the pot or container as well. If you feel you have to resort to chemical pesticides, keep in mind that few pesti- cides are registered or con- sidered safe for indoor use on houseplants. Read labels Woman’s estate files lawsuit over killing PORTLAND (AP) — The estate of a woman has filed a $3.6 million lawsuit against Backpage.com and the own- ers of the Portland hotel where she was killed by a man she had met for sex. According to the law- suit filed Friday, 25-year-old Ashley Benson had been traf- ficked by an abusive pimp. The lawsuit says she was killed in 2014 by 27-year-old Tae Bum Yoon who found her through Backpage and lured her to the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel in Portland. The Oregonian / OregonLive reports Yoon was sentenced to 18 years in prison after he was found guilty of first-degree manslaughter. The lawsuit claims Backpage.com and the hotel failed to establish and use practices to protect victims of sex trafficking like Benson. Representatives for Hilton and Backpage didn’t imme- diately return requests for comment. for master gardener training PHOTO BY STEPHEN WARD Keeping houseplants healthy is one strategy to avoid pests, but there are effective control methods for infestations. carefully for where and how to use a pesticide. If indoor use is not listed on the label, take the plant to be treated outside, away from children and pet traffic areas. Leave the plant outside a day or two after spraying. Applications for the OSU Master Gardener Program in Central Oregon are now available. The program tar- gets individuals interested in becoming a trained volunteer who wants to learn and share research-based gardening information. The program starts with 10 classes that meet on Fridays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., January 19 through April 6, at the OSU Cascades cam- pus in Bend. It continues with hands-on training through September. Applications must be received by January 9. Cost is $295 and includes tuition, text book and supplies. Partial scholarships are available. More information is available at http://extension. oregonstate.edu/deschutes. n i g n i s i t r e v Ad ! s k r o W t e g T h e Nug Having launched my business, She Soars Psychiatry LLC, just two months ago, I have Th e Nugget to thank for helping build momentum and interest in our innovative treatment approach that focuses on holistic mental-health solutions based in functional medicine. With a combination of advertisements and articles, Th e Nugget has been instrumental in helping my business get off to a great start and tell the story of what makes She Soars Psychiatry unique. Clients often reference Th e Nugget as having been their primary referral source and how they heard about She Soars Psychiatry. Th is speaks to the power of Th e Nugget’s reach and dedication to the local community of Sisters and beyond. Th e staff at Th e Nugget have a clear passion in helping promote and support local business. I look forward to an ongoing relationship with Th e Nugget as I continue my business ventures. - Audry Van Houweling, PMHNP-BC Advertising in Th e Nugget works! Call Karen at 541-549-9941 today!
