skip to main content

Pesticide Killing my Oleander

16 years ago

I have a beautiful oleander which unfortunately started to get pests which were destroying the flowers. I bought some Ortho Rose and Flower and I phoned them to double check it was safe. They said it was the safest product they sold. I followed the instructions very carefully. It did indeed kill the pests. However, it seems it may also have damaged the oleander itself. The flowers all turned brown and dropped off, the buds are also brown and dropping off and the leaves have started to turn brown and curl up. I don't know what to do! Will this kill the entire plant? Should I cut off the affected areas or just leave it and see if it recovers? The stems also suddenly got black spots/veins on them a day after I sprayed.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (7)

botanybob
16 years ago
Ortho has several rose and flower products, some for insects, some for diseases, and some multipuprose products. What does your product label say? What are the active ingredients? Its hard to figure out what is going on without knowing which pesticide you used.

Does it list oleander as one of the plants that can be treated with this product?
0
chessy2309
Original Author
16 years ago
I used Ortho Rose and Flower Insect Killer. It says on the label that it can be used for roses, shrubs, small trees and houseplants. When I spoke to them they said it could be used on anything that flowered and could only not be used on edible plants. The active ingredient is Bifenthrin.
0
Related Discussions
Need Help With My Ficus and Oleander
Q
Comments (13)
Hi Jeannie - I would like to frame Rhizo's last note here for posterity! It's so true (the business about needing various sources of info. and the unfortunate fact that too many garden books have flaws (as do any such books). My information is gathered from many years of growing bonsai, some ficus, and a lot of listening/reading/watching of experts in the field. Your book may say what it does, it doesn't make it right, and because it's such a basic need of ficus anywhere (even if they survive low light) and because every serious grower I've ever heard of advocates high light, I will stick with it. Most I know have theirs within 3-4 inches of high intensity, wattage and lumen 'grow' lights of one kind or another, whether metal halide, high pressure sodium, fluorescent or something else, and their plants/trees are gorgeous, all other things being UNequal (water, fertilization, etc.). This shouldn't be personal, but maybe this helps - I'm probably a lot older than you (never mind how much :-), and so have had a lot more years to pick up all the useless trivia I spout here, and I'm sure when you get a few decades on, you'll feel exactly the same and be impatient with others too (of course we shouldn't be, but sometimes it's hard not to be!). Anyhow, I hope that your plants do well, and let's try to get along.
...See More
OT - bugs - how do you deter/kill with no pesticide/herbidicide
Q
Comments (14)
Sammy, The clip on thing works. The only problem I have with it is that I often forget to put it on :O and that it will slip off my waistband when I bend over (I don't wear a belt). I didn't think about breathing in anything, I can't smell it. There is a little fan on the clip on thing that disributes the repellent. I don't think it is harmful, it's the same stuff that is in other mosquito repellents (not sprays) like the ones that we use when we sit outside.
...See More
worried about loosing my oleanders
Q
Comments (10)
Barbra, the house I bought in Port Isabel has two stands of oleander--all across the front and against a fence one side of the house. When we purchased the house in February 2009, they were waist high, but had obvious signs of hard pruning in the past. I let them grow and by the end of last year they were headed for 10'. Where I'm from, in California, they're large freeway plants that thrive on neglect. I'd never heard of pruning them. But, here, on this property, they were becoming thick, looming presences so I cut them by half, which made them 4-5' tall. That was a month ago. They're already jumping back, I don't think you can hurt them. JMV PS mine are composted and mulched, which is more coddling than I ever would have given them in California.
...See More
How do I kill a oleander bush
Q
Comments (13)
They're practically immortal where I live, which is Phoenix, Arizona. And in the case of having to remove my dad's 40 year old oleander stump it was a 'perfect storm.' When dad had planted it, we had sheep and to protect the oleander from our ram he put sheep fencing around it. Of course, 40 well fed and watered years later, it's a dirty monster. One that does not biodegrade into any thing compostable, the smoke it toxic, as are all parts of the plant and since this one had been planted up against a shared fence and close to an underground irrigation pipe that supplied the neighborhood...I was in for a long term project...and by long I mean years. We cut it back with lopers, the fence was totally incorporated into a multi-trunk mess of all diameters. Turned off the water to it, that didn't matter. Poisoned it. Didn't matter, it grew back year after year. Until finally I dug down and exposed as many roots as possible, cut it back and into as many pieces as possible with a sawzall and then a chainsaw. Let it dry out as much as possible. Cut at it and I mean slashed it. Added Kingsford or your generic charcoal briquettes. lighter fluid, MAKE IT HOT, GLOWING HOT. I made sure there's not danger or embers blowing and did this on and off for a couple weeks. It's been about four years since we started and it comes back every time. There were 3 of them in a row. The smallest one, the easiest to kill, after almost a decade...fresh, green oleander shoots started growing out of the dead stump. So, I know this one will be back. If you leave any of it behind, its like bremuda grass, it will spawn new growth in time. Be positive though, you might be dead by then and someone else will have to deal with it... ;)
...See More
jean001
16 years ago
What was the temperature when you sprayed? If 85F or above anytime that day, that's the problem.
0
chessy2309
Original Author
16 years ago
I didn't spray until very late in the evening when it had already dropped well below that temperature. I also made sure that I sprayed from over 12 inches away and that I didn't overdo it. Is there still a chance that my plant might survive this? (even though I'm not sure what happened!)
0
jean001
16 years ago
I can't say if it will recover because it depends upon a number of factors.

But another thing that should be considered is weed killers. Did you perhaps use the same sprayer you previously used for weed killer?

Beyond that, is the oleander one that was indoors, or in a greenhouse, then set outdoors?
0
chessy2309
Original Author
16 years ago
The pesticide came in it's own spray bottle and so there was no weed killer in it. I bought it from a garden center this year and so I don't know it's history. I'm assuming that it was in a green house over winter.

The leaves have now started turning yellow and falling off :(
0
jean001
16 years ago
The "spray bottle." If that was an aerosol, the cold of the spray could damage leaves and flowers directly.

If it came from a greenhouse, perhaps the lesser humidity at your place has something to do with the problem.

And/or how are you watering? Amount? And how do you decide how often to water?

Beyond that, a photo might help us. Or is it possible to haul it back to the seller and ask their opinion?
0

Related Stories

EARTH DAY The Case for Losing the Traditional Lawn

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

Work less, help the environment and foster connections by just saying no to typical turf

GARDENING AND LANDSCAPING Bid Bad Garden Bugs Goodbye and Usher In the Good

By Matt Kilburn

Give ants their marching orders and send mosquitoes moseying, while creating a garden that draws pollinators and helpful eaters

GARDENING GUIDES How to Switch to an Organic Landscape Plan

By Falon Mihalic

Ditch the chemicals for a naturally beautiful lawn and garden, using living fertilizers and other nontoxic treatments

GARDENING GUIDES 6 Steps to Creating Your Butterfly Garden

By Debbie Ballentine

Encourage these fanciful winged beauties to visit your garden while helping restore their fragmented habitat

GARDENING GUIDES Invite Mining Bees to Your Garden by Planting Their Favorite Plants

By Pollination Press LLC

Look for mining bees (Andrena) pollinating woodland wildflowers in U.S. gardens this spring

INSPIRING GARDENS Inside Houzz: A Waterfront Property Ditches the Grass for a Garden

By Annie Thornton

New drought-tolerant plantings and outdoor gathering spaces help this California backyard take in the view without wasting space or water

EARTH DAY How to Build a Greener Driveway

By Jen Dalley //

Install a permeable driveway to keep pollutants out of water sources and groundwater levels balanced

REGIONAL GARDEN GUIDES Southeast Gardener's February Checklist

By Gardening with Confidence®

Pinch, prune and prepare this month — springtime's riches in the garden will be here before you know it

GARDENING GUIDES Tree Care: Common Tree Diseases and What to Do About Them

By Falon Mihalic

Learn to recognize trees that may be affected by diseases or pests so you can quickly take action

GARDENING GUIDES Make Sure You Read This Before Buying New Plants

By Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

Follow these 10 plant-selection tips to avoid buyer’s remorse

Sponsored

More Discussions

Native ground cover for shade in Philadelphi

2

Help my Pygmy palm tree

0

Can you help me identify culprit if those damages?

4

Is this a spider mite or a soil mite?

2

Dying Pachysandra

2