Very Interesting Jan! Thanks for sharing the info! The particular bottle of Boric Acid I bought was in the pesticide aisle at a local WalgreenÂs or CVS. It has a warning label & so forth, but when I compared it to the old bottle of boric acid my neighbor has (that she actually got from a pharmacist many years ago) the ingredients are the same without the warnings! I guess it is kind of like the pesticide that they use spray people with to keep mosquitoes away back in the 60's or 70's (was not alive back then, So I do not recall the name right off the top of my head)... Now 30 years later the manufactures say, "Oops, out bad! Sorry it gave you all cancer..." Thanks you again for the link! Fortunately I have no children and no pets (other than the 3 or 4 Caribbean geckos that call my balcony garden home) and they say away from the mess. W.C. I have to tell you, I placed the jelly there that night and they ants were all over it. The next morning so much of it had disappeared & there were even more ants gathered around the glob of deadly jelly! This evening after coming home from an event, I peeked to see if they were still eating, there are not more ants. I am sure they have eaten their fill & are now setting up their new colony somewhere in one of my bamboo pots, but they will all soon be dead (lets out an evil chuckle). So for now, they are not in my orchids. I have actually only ever had a problem with ants in my orchids when I had scale & mealy bugs. The ants were "farming" them on the leaves & living in the potting medium. After I got rid of the mealy & scale, the ants left or died. -Ray-

Oh brother, WisconsinTom, I have studied extensively on Monsanto, their products, their GMO crops and you have no clue. But keep after it you are getting paid well by Monsanto I'm sure. But as you try and pretend to be the "reasonable" one here, I will remind the others that you are the one that named called with your post by starting out the "level of ignorance here in the above post" dated Sept 18. You were talking about me in that post, but you have no clue to my education on the subject or scientific research people in my family have done on the subject. The only knee jerk reactions are your own and I could school you on the subject but will not waste my time. I hope you are getting paid well. Oh and lastly Europe has totally outlawed all GMO crops, as has Hawaii except for the grandfathered in Papaya. But ignore all the recent scientific studies that came out this year on what's killing bees and monarchs among other insects and yes I remember the ads by tobacco companies that said their was no evidence that smoking caused lung cancer too....lol This post was edited by joeinmo on Mon, Sep 29, 14 at 20:14

Here a discussion from Queztal and Billy Meier in 1987 Looks like GM is here to stay but there will be some learning along the way... Billy: Then to something else. For now, I have, once again, heard of enough evil that the future will bring. �" How does it stand, then, with the progress relating to genetic engineering? You’ve already told me a few things, but now, in relation to this, the question arose in our group during a discussion: when will it have come so far that genetic science will merge plant and animal genes together, in order to cultivate plant-animals, respectively animal-plants? Do you have any knowledge about this and does such an action represent the natural scientific evolution of man? Quetzal: 16. The science of genetic engineering is established in the laws of overall evolution; therefore, it also cannot be prevented, even though in the future, irrational ones, who will unite together in whole organizations, will want to destroy such progress by all unfair means, even with lies and with false test reports and impact reports on genetically altered plants, animals, and humans. 17. However, genetic progress can’t be stopped, in spite of all these irrational machinations of the genetic engineering enemies, because the laws of evolution will allow it that even this branch of progress will find its fulfillment through human genius. 18. Of course, genetic engineering will need its time before it can function flawlessly because every beginning requires efforts, researches, and mistakes that must be made, for only through these can qualified and real successes be obtained and can progress be created. 19. But exactly this means that all negating things that will be undertaken in the future by those who are irrational and fearful, in reference to genetic engineering and, thus, to genetic manipulations in plants, animals, and humans, will be wrong and impeding to progress, as well as absurd, unrealistic, stupid, and irresponsible, for such actions will inhibit the progress and the better well-being of the Earth person and, thus, will slow down many vitally necessary solutions for humans, animals, and plants and even make such solutions impossible. 20. Due to the irrationality and irresponsibility of the genetic opponents, it will be that a lot of genetic progress for all humans, animals, and plants, as well as waters and air, and even for all of nature, will be prevented for many years, even though life could be prolonged by centuries through genetic engineering and just through the genetic manipulation of the person, by what means his health could be so stabilized, namely in a few decades, that he would almost never get sick. 21. Also plants, fruits, and vegetables, as well as other food products, could already be so genetically altered in a short time for the welfare of humans that ample benefits would arise from it, but the irresponsible, irrational and, thus, the gene-negating ones will work against this with lies, deceit, and fear, by what means the actual successes of genetic engineering will also have to wait a long time for themselves, for when the first actual successes are achieved, from which the people will benefit �" often not even knowing that their food or medicines are genetically engineered and are only actually useful and healthy because of this. 22. But concerning your other question: 23. It will be the year 2002 before a genetic attempt will officially become known, with which plant and animal genes will be brought together. 24. About this, we have acquired probability calculations, which show that the whole thing will report itself in Japan, in the sense that the genes of spinach plants will be transferred into pigs 25. Nevertheless, this won’t be the first case, for the same and similar things will already happen prior to this in different countries of the Earth from their scientists, as a result of their research; it’s just that the world public will learn almost nothing about this, like also not about the cloning attempts regarding humans and animals. 26. Even in the current time, many series of experiments like these are already running in scientific laboratories around the world; it’s just that these are concealed, and to be sure, with the full authorization of the irrational and irresponsible genetic opponents; therefore, ways of inhibiting progress are thought of by those who, out of complete ignorance and often influenced by sectarianism, try to restrain the development themselves, and to them, all unfair means are right, and this will also remain so in the new millennium, at least in the first two decades. Billy: Idiotic, especially when one considers that the progress cannot be stopped, not even when lunatics rant against it. But so it has always been on the Earth, for there have always been pathological idiots, who didn’t want to allow the progress, who braced themselves against it, and with this, often caused much disaster, by what means often many people lost their lives, who may have been saved if the progressive had been allowed, especially with regard to medicine and food preparation, etc. source link Here is a link that might be useful: Contact Report 215 This post was edited by konrad___far_north on Sat, Nov 9, 13 at 21:43

ehuns27 & pennyhal2, I agree with you as far as the imidacloprid. Good ideas. I 've been dealing with mealy outbreak every Spring/Summer. I think they thrive in heat and dryness. My understanding is to not let your plants unduly dry out for long periods of time. Avoid making it habitable for these stupid bugs. Advise to clean the rim of your pots and underneath. I've found masses of cotton and bugs all along and inside crevasses, cracks, the drainage holes and even on hangers. Check your supports, benches because they will colonize on inorganic materials and then migrate to your plants. I've had to scrub even empty pots because their population was exploding last Summer. Also, make sure the ants are not found crawling on your plants or mix. They WILL farm these creatures for the honeydew they produce and will carry the bastards to you plants. Can you tell I don't like 'em? ;] I have a sneaking suspicion that the nymphs or wee babies may float on air. Keep checking every 2 weeks for at least a month. So sorry that some of you are facing this pest. I KNOW how that goes. It can be frustrating, so, get a jump on it and don't assume any plant nearby the infected one is clear. It may show sign weeks later. Treat them all.