http://www.tcs-hydroponics.com/doc/bugs.htm#mantis
Praying Mantis
Praying Mantis feed on virtually any insect they can catch, and make fun gardening pets. Eggs take 2-8 weeks to hatch. Approx. 1-200 mantis
Praying Mantis Eggs
$8.95
(Tenodera sinensis)
Praying Mantis are beautiful insects with a voracious appetite, and a delight to have in the garden. Being strictly carnivorous, they'll eat almost any insect of any size they can overcome. Waiting in quiet ambush for hours at a time, when an insect comes wandering by they suddenly jump out and attack- always biting the neck first. At rest, they seem to be "praying", holding their "hands" together.
Each praying mantis egg case will hatch about 100-200 tiny mantises, all at once. In order to hatch they'll need several weeks of warm weather, so they can "sense" that summer (and pest insects for food) has arrived. Attach the egg cases to a twig or plant about a foot or two off the ground where there's cover to protect the babies. When hatching, the young crawl from between tiny flaps in the cases and hang from silken threads about 2" below the case. After drying out, the long-legged young disperse into the vegetation leaving no evidence of their appearance. This happens within an hour or two, and it's very difficult to know hatching has occurred unless the elusive, well camouflaged young are found. (The egg case does NOT change appearance in any way.) If you'd like to see when the mantis have hatched, place the egg cases in a paper bag, fold the top and seal shut with a paper clip or cloths pin. Place the bag on a window sill in direct sunlight. Periodically open the bag CAREFULLY, and when you see tiny mantids running around inside, take them outside and sprinkle them throughout the garden. Be patient- sometimes it takes up to eight weeks of WARM weather for them to hatch.
Once hatched, praying mantis begin feeding on small insects, such as aphids. Later on, they'll continue advancing up to larger and larger prey. By summer's end, praying mantis can reach several inches in length. In the fall, females produce more eggs, deposited in a frothy secretion that hardens to protect the eggs from predators and severe winter climates. Egg cases are attached to twigs, leaves, fences, etc.. Several egg cases may be laid before cold winter finally sets in. This new generation of praying mantis will hatch when warm weather returns, to repeat the process.
Best to purchase by June if you live in the northern US If you want them to grow to maturity and lay eggs.
NEMATODES
Heterorhabditis bacteriophora
Beneficial Nematode
Target Pest:
Weevils; Beetle grubs; Japanese beetle; Masked chaffers; May/June
beetles; Black vine weevil; various white grubs; Banana weevil; Bill bug;
Colorado Potato beetle; Cucumber beetle; Sweetpotato weevil; Asparagus beetle;
Carrot weevil; Banana moth; Citrus root weevil group; Sugarcane stalk borer;
Various tree and vine borers; Bagworms; Flea beetle; Flea and over 200
other species. Our nematodes control the grubs or immature stages of the
above listed pests.
Description:
This is one of the oldest known and best of the insect parasitic
nematodes.
Product information:
Heterorhabditis bacteriophora is packaged on a sponge without
dehydration and without the use of unacceptable solvents, preservatives, or
inhibitors making this product suitable for use in organic and conventional
gardening and farming. The sponge formulation has the advantage that the
nematodes can be easily removed from the sponge into water and applied using a
conventional garden sprayer, a watering can, a hose-end sprayer, or
introduced through closed irrigation systems (not soaker hoses). Our
nematodes are produced in natural insect hosts- not artificial media.
The nematodes and formulations we use meet organic standards making them
suitable for use in organic gardening and farming.
Release Rates:
5 million - 2,000 sq. ft lawn - Nematodes are best released in the evening.
First - pre-water the area to be treated.
Second - apply nematodes.
Third - water after application.
Fourth - return to normal watering.
Lifespan:
H. bacteriophora enters the host and kills it within 24 to 48 hours,
it then reproduces within the host and searches for new hosts which
provideslong-term control.
Strategic Considerations:
Pesticides may adversely affect nematode survival. Broad-spectrum
insecticides are toxic to nematodes.
Nematodes are shipped as a mix of Heterorhabditis bacteriophora and Steinernema carpocapsae Nematodes.
Steinernema carpocapsae
Flea Exterminator
Target Pest:
Pet Fleas; Codling moth; German cockroach; Asian cockroach; American
cockroach; Fruit fly; Armyworm; Beet armyworm; Cucumber beetle;
Artichoke plume moth; Cutworms; Sod webworm; Black cutworm; Mole cricket; Corn
earworm; Cotton bollworm; Tobacco budworm and Leaf miners.
Description:
Our nematode can provide control of flea larvae and pupae in outdoor
areas. Fleas found on dogs are actually "cat" fleas and are carried
about the neighborhood through and over fences by roaming cats. We can gain
control of fleas in the lawn or kennel by suppressing flea populations
in the lawn and other areas frequented by the pet. Control of developing
stages of fleas in lawn is a key component of a total flea pest management
program. The nematode used to formulate Flea exterminator can, in addition to
the control of fleas, be used to control the above pests.
Product information:
Flea Exterminator is packaged on a sponge without dehydration and
without the use of unacceptable solvents, preservatives, or inhibitors making
this product suitable for use in organic and conventional gardening and
farming. The sponge formulation has the advantage that the nematodes can be
easily removed from the sponge into water and applied using a conventional
garden sprayer, a watering can, a hose-end sprayer, or introduced through
closed irrigation systems (not soaker hoses). Our nematodes are produced in
natural insect hosts - not artificial media. The nematodes and formulations we
use meet organic standards making them suitable for use in organic
gardening and farming.
Release Rates:
5 million - 2,000 sq. ft lawn - 2 applications per year, early spring
early fall. Nematodes are best released in the evening.
First - pre-water the area to be treated.
Second - apply nematodes.
Third - water after application.
Fourth - return to normal watering.
Lifespan:
The nematode enters the host and kills it within 24 to 48 hours, it
then reproduces within the host and searches for new hosts. This hunt and
seek cycle provides long-term control.
Strategic Considerations:
Pesticides may adversely affect nematode survival. Broad-spectrum
insecticides are toxic to nematodes.
