As a general rule, the less soap the better. ;) For what it is worth, my recipe has ALWAYS been 1 tablespoon (or less) per gallon and that is the standard recipe that often comes up for discussion here. There is no standard recipe for making it in quarts and that is where much of the confusion comes from - that and the fact that many confuse the abbreviations for teaspoon and tablespoon. Personally, I would never use anything stronger than the 1 tablespoon per gallon as even that mixture, if applied too heavily, can easily kill plants. As to the soap - plain old Ivory, when you can get it, is good, plain blue Dawn dishwashing liquid (the original) also works with no problems. But the best, IMO is Murphy's Oil Soap simply because it also contains some oil and so sticks better. So, I have often used as little as 1/4 tablespoon of Murphy's Oil Soap in 1 gallon of water effectively. If the infestation got severe for some reason I would up it to 1/2 tablespoon but never more than 1 tablespoon per gallon of water. Then just pour it into a quart sprayer if you wish but don't mix it in the quart sprayer. As with all such sprays - never in the heat of the day, never in the direct sun, lightly mist don't drench, and aim for the bugs not the plant as a whole. ;) And, if in doubt go with a commercially prepared spray. Hope this helps. Dave

Im sorry you are having so much trouble with ur PC. May I ask how the sap got in your eye? It is true many plants are poisonous, prehaps as a survival technique thoughout evolution. Many plant lovers know this and use caution when handling plants and placing them in terms of pets and children. I have had a pencil cactus for two years now. It has grown beautifully and I couldnt imagine parting with it. Id rather be more careful in terms of handling. Best of luck!

Stop and learn something. You have to be extremely careful what kind of soap, in fact not soap at all as most dish soap has anti-bacterial agents and de-greasers in it which is a recipe for dead grass. Several years ago when my youngest Son was going to college at OSU, he did a gas Chromatigraph on a product called Nitron A-35. What he found is it is flat stale dark beer, baby shampoo, and an enzyme found in human saliva. So we came up with a recipe that closely matched it. 1 bottle of stale dark beer. Open it up and let it sit out a few days. 1 cup of spit. 1 3-0unce travel bottle of Sauve or Johnson's tearless baby shampoo. Place in a hose end sprayer and set dial to 1 TBLSP per gallon.

July 1st 2025..just happened to me! I was cutting off some branches that grew across walkway. Also tieing up some plants against a fence. 12 hours later my lips are numb, the inside of my mouth feels weird. My eyes are watering and burning, my nose is running. I just had a soapy shower and shave…I feel a little better. Also took two Aleve and two antistamine. I put my clothing in the laundry and my towel/wash cloth. Mrs is going to cut my hair! We have a nine foot Pencil and around 10 along a fence five feet tall. I don’t recall getting sap in my eyes but got plenty on my bare arms, I was wearing gloves. I am not a gardener AT ALL….I love gardens but can think of a LOT of other things I’d rather do. So as for researching garden cultivated plants before you touch them is alien to me. Will I remove the plants? I doubt it…..the very tall one is a family heirloom and all the shorter ones are cuttings from that. Here in southern California it seems if drop a piece on the ground it tends to grow! I’ll be reluctant to touch one again for sure, I’m painstakingly typing this with burning watery eyes and numb lips, runny nose. I’m not a proponent of ’banning’ most anything…..education is key. Expecting a rookie to research everything in their garden is not going to happen. The folks that responded with their vast knowledge but scathing remarks came across to me as ’know it alls’ or ’I told you so’s’ Have some regard, sympathy for the afflicted! Their ars couple of rashes on my arm where the sap stuck on hairs. Of course I now wish I understood the consequences but to expect regular none gardeners to research just isn’t constructive critism.