Author Topic: Potassium Oleate insecticide  (Read 1412 times)

lebmung

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Potassium Oleate insecticide
« on: April 16, 2018, 03:14:23 PM »
Does anyone use Potassium Oleate as an insecticide? I am not talking about potassium soap from the supermarket, that is made of potassium fatty salts of different oils. It is officially accepted in Europe in organic gardening as an insecticide. I just bought a bottle to spray against aphids. Ants who were feeding on the honeydew died instantly. Now I wait to see the results. Neem oil applied at 2% didn't do too much.

Doug

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Re: Potassium Oleate insecticide
« Reply #1 on: April 16, 2018, 03:30:33 PM »

I used to use "Safer Soap" insecticide in the states on apple trees primarily for aphids. I believe its based on potassium oleate. Works well and was approved for "organic" use. I didn't know it worked on ants and other hard body insects. Maybe is suffocated them?

lebmung

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Re: Potassium Oleate insecticide
« Reply #2 on: April 16, 2018, 03:45:20 PM »
I have no idea but the ants died pretty fast. From what I read it seems to be the potassium salt of the oleaic acid extracted from the olive oil.

marklee

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Re: Potassium Oleate insecticide
« Reply #3 on: April 16, 2018, 10:43:40 PM »
The "soap" they sell here as an insecticide is "potassium salts of fatty acids", it can be found under another name as "impede", and I thought the "safer" soap is the same formulation.

pineislander

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Re: Potassium Oleate insecticide
« Reply #4 on: April 17, 2018, 06:56:23 AM »

lebmung

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lebmung

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Re: Potassium Oleate insecticide
« Reply #6 on: April 19, 2018, 03:19:23 PM »
The spider mites are all dead so far but the tips are burned. It seems like, the new growth gets burned after 3 days, this is in greenhouse.
From what I see the best it to spray it, leave it on the plant for 24 hours then wash the plants so it doesn't attack the plant. Also it leaves a whitish soapy residue.