citrus bugs (forum)

Diana starts with ...
My Lisbon lemon tree is so infested with bronze citrus bugs that I can't get near it. Any disturbance and they spray noxious acid stuff out from the tree which burns my face and stings my eyes so I have go immediately inside and wash it off. I think stress from the recent dry conditions had lead to the severe infestation- poor tree.

I have tried spraying oil spray and then a week later pyrethrum from as far away as possible, but it makes no difference to them. Any suggestions? I am considering resorting to something non organic and nasty if all else keeps failing. So far kids have not been sprayed with bug's acid, but I don't want them to get too close by accident.
The lime trees and pummelo are fine, the orange has only a couple of bugs.

Diana.

Time: 19th October 2012 12:00am

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John Mc says...
I've heard on radio talkback some people have an old vacuum cleaner for that one purpose.

Time: 19th October 2012 6:22am

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Diana says...
Thanks John,

I've heard that too, but unfortunately I can't get close enough to the tree without being sprayed by noxious acid stinkbug stuff (and I would have to use a new vacuum cleaner). Also, it's a fairly big tree.

Time: 19th October 2012 10:03am

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About the Author Diana
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Diana says...
Perhaps mechanical removal is the only way, with protective clothing. The green harvest website says 'Bronze orange bugs give away their presence by their foul smell. The young pale green nymphs appear in winter, their colour changes through orange to bronze as they grow to adults. They can be serious pests in some areas, causing flower and fruit drop by sucking on the stalks. Hand removal is possible, use a bucket of hot water to knock the bugs into. Wear protective goggles, long sleeves and gloves as the caustic fluid squirted by these bugs is very dangerous and painful, particularly to the eyes.'

This method does not sound like fun.

Time: 19th October 2012 10:25am

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BJ says...
Lemon and lime are hit at my place. Lime does not seem to mind, but the problems with my lemon are so bad Im just about to yank it. You can try shaking the tree and putting chooks underneath to eat the falling bugs, but this also shakes off much of the fruit, so eaither way, the bugs win.

Time: 19th October 2012 10:34am

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Diana says...
That's pretty sad BJ. I think the problem will not be so bad when the weather gets wetter and the trees are not so stressed- it wasn't bad in previous years. Do chooks really eat those nasty things?

Time: 19th October 2012 12:46pm

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Brain says...
hi folks
One of my lemon trees did get attacked by the bronze stink bugs and DIED. Yes, enough of them can suck the life out of the tree. They too would also attack (the imperial) mandarins, but the lemonade lemon seems to escape them.
Anyway, I actually remove them by hand with limited success (as the tree did die) but here is my method. Get a big pair of pliers with long sharp points, even better if the tip is bend - as in electrical pliers. And with your other hand, get a saucepan with a long handle with high walls and fill with water (can be hot/cold). I simply use the pliers and remove them from the tree and then place them in the water to drown - sounds mean but all is fair in love and war. The trick is, they squirt the acid from the tail, and so you make sure you face away from the tail, i.e. you try to be behind the branch or at least 90 deg away or long sleeves and goggles does help. Also, make sure you are up wind. Next, aim for one of the legs with the pliers and then quickly remove them and dump them in water. If you remove enough adults, hopefully, the cycle will be broken. Please do make sure they don't escape from the water and I tend to leave them out and the birds will get a lovely meal out of them. As for the high ones that can't be reached, get a big stick and knock them down onto the ground, and when they are down, get them. Good luck.

Time: 19th October 2012 4:00pm

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About the Author Brain
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GardeningAustraliaWannabee says...
Give your citrus a lime sulphur spray in the winter. This will help kill overwintering eggs.
Best to remove the bugs when they are green(hard to spot) or salmon colour, because they cannot fly at this stage.
I have no problems with them except late in summer when they migrate from the neighbour's tree.

Time: 20th October 2012 12:02pm

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Diana says...
Thanks Brian and gardening Australia. Normally I am an organic gardener but in this case I might resort to Folimat spray given the extreme infestation, dangerous bugs and risk of tree death. Next time I will spary lime sulphur in winter.

http://www.yates.com.au/problem-solver/problems/bronze-orange-bug/

Time: 22nd October 2012 9:47am

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Michael D says...
Hi Diana,

I sprayed mine with any coackaroach spray and it killed all of them pretty much straight away. I then spray my tree with water to flush our the residue . I wouldn't eat the fruits for a few weeks after that to be safe.

Time: 22nd October 2012 12:56pm

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Diana says...
Thanks Michael, that sounds like a no fuss alternative. There are not many fruit on it any more anyway.

Diana.

Time: 22nd October 2012 2:39pm

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Boris Spasky says...
You could try brain's suggestion. If the infestation is not too bad I use an old wooden tomato stake or long stick preferably at least 1.8m long. Knock them down. They tend to start to crawl down when poked and prodded rather then spray their stuff.
As GAust said above, they can't fly until they mature to black. Don't let them get to that stage because they are harder to deal with and they'll lay their eggs for next year.
What ever you do ignore the Bunnings staff who I overheard pushing Confidor. It's not registered for citrus. It's highly toxic and the fruit should not be eaten.

Time: 30th October 2012 9:25pm

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Fin_ says...
I bought a cheap vaccum cleaner last year specifically for this purpose and it works a treat! Keep the extended tube on and you can reach in to them from a couple of metres away. Make sure the vaccum is a bagged one and you can then dispose of them easily. Prior to that I used long barbeque tongs and picked them off into water but found I got squited more with that method as you actually have to get closer to them. Cheers, Fiona

Time: 31st October 2012 1:11pm

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Byronic says...
I run a continual battle with big black stinkbugs (now) and then the smaller orange bugs. But I have a workable solution which should help anyone with this problem. Its not entirely organic, but it does work. My solution is a pyrthrum spray called Yates Pyrtethrum Inset Pest GUN. Its a regular-looking trigger spray but it has both a spray setting and a "gun" setting which shoots a jet of pyrethrum up to 4 metres with great accuracy. The trick is to spray every morning and again in the evening when the bugs first appear, and then every day or other day to pick off the remaining few. After a week or so the number of bugs will be only a few, but you have to be vigilant...

Time: 21st December 2012 6:21pm

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GardeningAustraliaWannabee says...
I've looked into this further. From an organic standpoint, the Yates retail strength pyrethrum is pitifully weak (4g/L) and ineffective. The commercial strength (3x stronger) may be more effective, but it's pricey at $25 per 100ml.
Being a true bug, control with oil sprays and the like don't do much.
The best organic method for dealing with true bugs is sabadilla dust, which is made from the seeds of a small perennial bulb in the Lily family.
It seems no one manufactures the dust any more, and I've tried to get the seed without success.
Some sources suggest liquid Rotenone may work, but I haven't tried it and I don't believe it's available in Australia at this time.

Time: 21st December 2012 10:58pm

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RichieSecret says...
Hi folks, I have found out that the eggs of the Bronze Orange Bug are parasitised by a wasp called Anastatus. If we can find out which plants host said wasp we can attract it to our property and let it do it's work on the eggs. Any info would be appreciated.

Time: 17th October 2013 1:22pm

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MaryT1 says...
I am getting a few stink bugs on my citrus trees ( I have 27 mature fruiting citrus plus a number of younger ones); it's no wonder since my neighbours' trees are covered in them. I usually remove them when they are orange and easy to spot but a few has matured to black (or just arrived black). I remove them one by one (since there's been never more than three) with a pair of long handle sacateurs made by Wilkinson Sword (1.5M), cutting them in half. They don't seem to mind and never move away from my advancing blades :)

I read that if you spray the tree with white oil in autumn it would discourage them from laying eggs in your tree. That's what I did but also white oil is my defence/cure for everything from aphids to scale so my trees are sprayed regularly.

Time: 24th November 2014 7:03am

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Brendan says...
Hi Mary, I find Pest Oil is better than white oil. Eco-oil (or Neem Oil) is good too.
http://www.annettemcfarlane.com/Citrus%20Guide.pdf

Time: 24th November 2014 9:36am

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MaryT1 says...
Thanks for the link, Brendan. My 'white oil' is homemade and not the product in the shops, I say white oil for want of another name. I'm sure Pest Oil would work as well though I'm not sure what you mean by 'better'.

Time: 24th November 2014 11:21am

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Bruce Qld says...
The easiest and cheapest method is to mix 450mm of tap water with about 50mm of el-cheepo dishwashing liquid in a hand spray /squirt bottle. When it is squirted from the bottle it should not be foaming, but in a liquid stream. Give the bugs, juvenile or mature, four or five squirts on a 'jet' setting and watch them die before your eyes. The juveniles succumb quite rapidly in most cases, sometimes just a few seconds. The adults may require some additional spraying, but they eventually die too. Keep this up once or twice a day for a week and you should be winning the battle. I am on day three of my battle and after over 100 the first day I have had only 7 today.

Time: 23rd October 2015 4:39pm

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rat3het says...
I have sprayed my lemon tree to kill the stink bugs with pyrethrum and have got rid of most of them

I will continue till they have all gone

the bugs fall to the ground , I have picked up most of them , but wonder if they have eggs inside that may hatch later

the comment above Give your citrus a lime sulphur spray in the winter.
may stop or reduce next years young from hatching

is this the way to go



Time: 4th December 2015 3:16pm

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Sola says...
Just wondering i know they burn when you get sprayed my two month old kitten got some more n her eye and i flushed it with plenty of water straight away is there any more i can do for her and been keeping it clean with a wet cloth through the day. She can open it

Time: 14th January 2016 3:20pm

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Byronic says...
Hi Sola. I think thats probably a question for a vet.

I suggest you call your local vet and see what they say.



Time: 15th January 2016 3:46pm

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Tubby says...
I was looking at this forum because my lime trees are invested with Stink Bugs. I'd just like to warn people just how corrosive the liquid that the bugs spray is, I disturbed one and it must have sprayed my arm s it flew over by the time I got inside I had a line of blisters across my arm. When our daughters were going to school they each had a couple of Chooks that they raised and one of them that would eat anything got hold of a stink bug and moments later she was flapping around in pain I couldn't catch her to rinse it off but by the next morning she was completely blind in one eye, her eye looked like a white marble. Keep your children & pets away from these bugs, I feel they should be labeled as dangerous especially considering that they can spray the fluid as they fly overhead, you don't need to touch them to get hurt.

Time: 12th December 2017 6:51pm

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Bruce Qld says...
Thee best and guaranteed method is to use a pressure sprayer with water and kitchen washup liquid (90% water 10% washup liquid - 50ml in 450ml of water). Stand back an spray whatever bugs you can see. Give each bug a good dousing and watch them fall and die. Do this two or three times a day and you will have no bugs in a week. All dead !!

Time: 13th December 2017 9:15am

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Waterfall says...
Fly or insect spray and then I hose the tree down with water.very effective.

Time: 13th December 2017 1:40pm

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Bruce says...
If the 10% washing up liquid isn't working just keep increasing the concentration until it does. Not all washing up liquids are equal. We use homebrand lemon liquid from the supermarket that costs $1 for a 1 litre bottle.

Time: 14th December 2017 2:56pm

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About the Author Bruce
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Gippsy1 says...
Hi guys the best thing i use for these creatures is ( confidor ) have used it everytime dosent hurt your fruit as i have been using it for years.Its The best stuff you can buy for me you can get it in a spray bottle or sachets that you make up for pressure bottles.If doing the latter once you have done this pump up the bottle then turn the end peice on the wand so it is just a stream then go for it.If you have pumped your bottle up enough tge stream goes a fair way.best time to spay is late arvo while still daylight next morning there all dead on the ground P.S i was pruning my mandarin tree 4 days ago and was sprayed by one under my arm i new right away what had happened but what i didnt do was wash the stuff off and a small time later i rubbed where i had been sprayed and the without realizing wipe the sweat off my my face my face is still fairly swollen around my eyes and cheeks hope it goes back to normal very very soon ( for the want of a better word these creatures are nasty things.if you keep on top of them then it's really easy to control them even when i see just 2 or three of them i spay them and as i said earlier there dead on the ground nxt morning

P.P.S please use proper protection clothing when useing this product i.e long sleeves,goggles and face mask.One final thing make sure there no children around when spraying and also no wind.

Cheers guys

Time: 4th January 2018 2:28am

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Gippsy1 says...
Hi diana i just use confidor as i also have done the way you have but the nursery where i go to the man said sometimes this dosent work and you just have to go rhe other way and that's what i did i now have these nasty creatures well under control All the best diana.

P.S. Ihave done a post on here just waiting for it to be checked hopefully when cleared and posted it will help you out it will come under the name Gippsy


Cheers Diana

Time: 4th January 2018 2:58am

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Bruce says...
Be careful eating fruit that comes from a tree treated with Confidor, as it is not approved for human consumption. It is only to be used, and their documentation that I read specifically mentions orange stink beetles, when the tree is not flowering or carrying fruit. I called them to ask if it was OK, and they said it is not approved and I should strip all fruit and flowers from the tree and dispose of them. It is OK to eat the fruit the next year as long as it has not been sprayed in that season when in flower or fruiting.

Time: 4th January 2018 2:42pm

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Gippsy1 says...
Hi bruce thanks for your advice about confidor and the spraying of the fruit.I am always checking my fruit trees for these pest'sand if i see just one i spray the bug.my trees have never been infested by these bugs as im always checking the trees.

P.S. One last thing bruce i have been doing it this way for about 8 to 10 yrs and neither myself nor my family have got sick. But i thank you for your concern.

Cheers bruce.

Time: 7th January 2018 4:54pm

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QRcode says...
The best spray I have found after many trials, is one containing Permethrin, which is a pyrethroid. I haven't tried Mavrik (also a synthetic pyrethroid), which is another expensive watered down Yates product.
Permethrin has been around a long time and is used in some medications applied to the skin. Permitted for use indoors for various insects, ants,cockroaches, bed bugs, silverfish, etc, but not strictly for citrus. Far better and safer alternative to systemic confidor. The half life on plants is between 1 to 3 weeks from available studies.
Don't use when bees are around as always. D.Y.O.R.


Time: 18th November 2023 2:36pm

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Susanscalliwag says...
I bought an old vacuum cleaner from marketplace. Best $40 I ever spent.

I’ve had no fruit off my lime for about 3 years and I was concerned the tree would eventually die.

The wand keeps us further away than trying to spray them.

Best solution I’ve found and I’m now enjoying my limes again after so long.

Time: 27th May 2024 4:01pm

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