The label says that Provado VineWeevil Killer2 is a systemic and kills a wide range of pests. You can use it on all ornamental plants in pots and containers indoors and outdoors. It keeps working inside the plant to give useful reduction of Greenfly, Blackfly, and Whitefly for up to 4-6 weeks, and Vine Weeil grubs for up to 4 months. On house plants even difficult pests like Woolly Aphids, Whitefly, Scale Insects and leaf-eating beetles such as Lily Beetle can be controlled. Full effects can take up to two weeks after application when the product has worked its way through to all parts of the plant system.
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| Vine weevil larvae |
When to use (instructions on Bayer's label):
"Vine Weevil grubs start feeding on plant roots cuasing damage from spring right through to winter. To prevent damage the best time to start treating is from spring through to winter. To prevent damage the best time to start treating is from spring onwards when plants are actively growing and followed by an additional treatment in summer and again in autumn for maximum protection. Each application protects up to 4 months against Vine Weevil and also provides useful reduction of foliage pests such as Aphids and Whitefly for up to 6 weeks. May also be used to control Greenfly, Blackfly, Woolly Aphids, Whitefly, Scale Insects, and leaf-eating beetles on house plants without spraying.
Maximum number of treatments is 3 per year. If needed, the treatment can be repeated at 4 month intervals.
Pesticide resistance in glasshouse Whitefly and some Aphids is widespread. Where resistant pests are present, Provado Vine Weevil Killer2 is unlikely to give control.
This product may stain soft furnishings or other absorbent surfaces."
Where to use (instructions on Bayer's label)
"For use on house plants and container grown ornamental garden plants. Do not use drench on edible plants or on compost which may be used for growing edible plants. Maximum concentration applied must not exceed 30ml product per 1 litre of water for outdoor containers and 50ml product per 1 litre water for house plants."
Further instructions regarding dosage are shown on label.
Provado Vine Weevil Killer2 should be used with caution, kept away from children and pets in a safe place and it is also toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects. The label should be carefull read before use.
The idea behind the design of the bottle is, I am sure, to protect the user from getting the chemical on themselves but Bayer Garden has been too clever with their 'easy dose, no touch system bottle' no doubt designed by NASA scientists who are way too clever for me!
The way I see it
First you need to peel a label off the back of the container to get to the instructions beneath and I'm no dummy but I had to read the lengthy, small text of the label over and over and still had trouble understanding what I was supposed to do. I'm not talking about understanding how to mix a particular measure of chemical with water and pour it, I am talking about how to use the dispenser and get the stuff out of the bottle!
The dispensing marks - 20ml, 15ml, and 10ml - are shown in raised plastic on the green, circular dispenser 'thingy' which Bayer call the 'Chamber'. The dosage is marked in green upon green so I had to take my bottle outside into the sunlight (yes, we have sunlight even in the UK sometimes) and tilt it one way and another just to be able to see the marks. Are you following this?
The white fluid in the bottle doesn't show up very well through the green chamber and you have to be precise you know! You have to have the right number of mls to the right amount of water for a particular size of pot which (may or may not) hold a particular amount of compost/soil/whatever.
Now, this might sound horrendous but it gets worse because you only make up about 1 litre of the mixture at a time and so between each 1 litre you have to go through the same rigmarole again... Get the picture? Don't try to do this when you are in a rush.
What I didn't at first get is that you tilt the bottle horizontally to fill the chamber and then you upright the bottle vertically to read the markings. If you haven't enough fluid in the chamber, tilt horizontally again, and if you have too much tilt the bottle to the right while it's in the upright position so some liquid pours out of the chamber, and read again. Faff about until you can stand it no longer and then just kill the damn vine weevils with a cricket bat!
Bayer Garden, have you actually tried to use your own product? Are you having a laugh? While I understand you are trying to protect the user against contamination, the points above are valid so kindly rethink your packaging or provided a DVD User Guide with your product.
Rightly or wrongly, I tip a full chamber into a 2 gallon watering can of water, and hope for the best. That would be a rather diluted solution.