As said above, sticky traps are more intended as a monitoring tool for commercial growers, particularly for glass-house/high tunnel growing. I've only used them in a glasshouse so I don't know about the effect of rain. In all honesty, I find it's more accurate and just as easy to have a look at the plants regularly. You can still pick up problems early if you're observant, and you won't get stressed out by false positives - by that I mean that just because an insect species is on your sticky trap doesn't mean it's going to be a problem in your garden, especially if you have some diversity in your garden and encourage beneficials. If you're gardening on a very large scale, of course that's a bit different. Sticky traps might be just the thing for you. But remember, you still need to be able to identify the insects on them, otherwise you're none the wiser whether they're good, bad or benign, and you won't know what control measures to apply. So you'll need to invest in a good magnifying instrument and a good book on pest insect identification with a key that you can use easily.

I had a small outbreak of fungus gnats last winter... I got rid of them by swatting the adults, and spraying for the youngsters. I also allowed the plants to dry out a little more, because fungus gnats thrive in moist conditions. Worked like a charm! They haven't appeared since.

Here are some places you can get them online: http://www.amazon.com/Yellow-Sticky-Trap-15-pack/dp/B000I6K3JY http://www.ghorganics.com/StickyTrap.html http://www.planetnatural.com/site/yellow-sticky-traps.html I would go with Amazon (last link). They are reliable and seem to have the best price. Good luck! Diana

Patty, I thank you, and my new niece, May, does, too. Her first P. paniculata, I don't remember its variety, grew magnificently this year, better than any other of her new perennials. She is a young mother of two toddler girls, and an avid gardener, new to this country, coming from Thailand. May loves her 40+ young rose bushes, and learned her first, very valuable lesson the hard way this year....black spot and midge fly cannot be ignored. Early on, I supplied her with all the organic items out there, but she failed to use them. Thinking, like youth often does, that those bad things happen to other people's roses, not mine, she found out otherwise. You have been a tremendous help with your phlox recommendations, not to take precedence over all your other expert, rose enlightenments you have so generously shared with your Rose Forum friends. Moses