Red mite mites

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Red mite mites

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wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Sun Dec 18, 16 10:57 pm Post subject: Red mite mites
I have an infestation, and await the feed merchant opening tomorrow to get something to zap the little crawlers with (I itch. I've only just stopped itching after a persistent headlice infestation, too) but a google search turns up a biological control report in smallholder magazine. Anyone tried it? Or found it? Seems easier than taking the house apart with a blowtorch.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46249
Location: yes

Posted: Sun Dec 18, 16 11:17 pm Post subject:
the diatomous dust in a dust bath mix seemed to help keep them gone after using sprays for birds and housing . not tried a bio control for red mite but have reduced my slugs and indoor spider mites using such things.

Bodger

Joined: 23 May 2006
Posts: 13524

Posted: Mon Dec 19, 16 6:07 am Post subject:

Don't base your defence on it, its not the miracle cure that it was once hailed as a few years ago
I still use it, mainly because I have a huge bag of it but I use it in conjunction with other products and strategies.
I spray the sheds with insecticide, I treat the timbers with creosote substitute and I also smear the ends of the perches with Vaseline.

Most of the time by doing this I'm able to keep the little blighters under control but I have to constantly on my guard and check the sheds regularly.

chez

Joined: 13 Aug 2006
Posts: 35935
Location: The Hive of the Uberbee, Quantock Hills, Somerset

Posted: Mon Dec 19, 16 1:29 pm Post subject:
I blowtorch, vaseline liberally on perch ends and around the crevices and perch ends and scatter diatom in the bedding and dust baths. It works for me.

gythagirl

Joined: 18 Feb 2010
Posts: 1467
Location: Somerset

Posted: Tue Dec 20, 16 2:03 pm Post subject:
Red mites have reappeared since moving the chooks into the polytunnel. In the past I've found cypress hedge trimmings in the henhouse instead of straw works a treat (cadged from an American blog) so once we'd dusted the hens & house with the dia-stuff, I got P to trim a hedge (it needed doing, really!) and the trimmings are now in place. Added bonus is that the henhouse smells nicer

chickenlady

Joined: 18 Aug 2013
Posts: 413
Location: Dorset

Posted: Tue Dec 20, 16 3:20 pm Post subject:
Bog standard ant powder works fine too...contains permethrin at the same level as the posh mite powder but way cheaper. Just puff it into all the crevices of the coop, bedding, nest boxes too.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46249
Location: yes

Posted: Tue Dec 20, 16 8:04 pm Post subject:

chickenlady wrote:

Bog standard ant powder works fine too...contains permethrin at the same level as the posh mite powder but way cheaper. Just puff it into all the crevices of the coop, bedding, nest boxes too.

some ant powder is borax based, im not sure that would be ok for chooks.
best check the label

wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Wed Dec 21, 16 12:36 pm Post subject:
Well, the house is now slightly scorched. I should get some predator mites after Christmas, so I'll see how they go. I don't want to spray, as I used up the last of the straw cleaning them out, and I can't pick up anymore until next week.

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