BioAdvanced Plant Food Insect Control Spikes, 10 Spikes

This is an awesome product! In my opinion, there's only 1 successful way to get rid of whitefly and that's with a systemic. If you wait a day or two, your plant will end up dying. I lost 5 hibiscus shrubs by using insecticidal soap twice a day. I put a flower (from my favorite one) in my car and the windows were closed. Next morning, I had hundreds of trapped whitefly in my car. It was so disgusting! I was able to save my favorite hibiscus from death by immediately treating it with a systemic spray and removing it from the ground and putting it in a clay pot. I used Miracle Gro potting soil and put 2 spikes around the side edges across from each other. I have 5-6 huge blooms daily. This also kills "midge" which chop your flowers off before they open. Midge lives inside the flower, chops them off and then they re-enter your soil to start the cycle all over again. Don't try to battle midge and whitefly without these tablets because you'll be wasting your time and your plant will probably die.UPDATE: 2013-11-25 - My hibiscus hasn't stopped flowering! I've averaged 5-6 flowers every day. Amazing! All the leaves are dark green and they continue to grow too. I transplanted it to a bigger clay pot so it can continue growing. Here in inland San Diego, the weather is sunny with only a few weeks (every year) of freezing over-night temps. I just bring it indoors during those times.IF this insecticide doesn't work for you, it means you waited too long before applying it. Just be patient and your plant has a good chance of recovering.When you replace the spikes with new ones, make sure not to over-water. That means you should have no drainage for the first few weeks. This will allow the strongest treatment to continue working. It states this on the package.

We tried all sorts of natural and manual methods of treating a thrips infestation with our houseplant collection. They were attacking our monsterras and alocasias and despite continually manually removing the larvae we found and wiping every single leaf of our collection with with either rubbing alcohol or neem oil. It would take us forever and we just couldn't get them all as they lay their eggs within the leaf itself. I found this product suggested on some youtube channnel and these spikes worked wonders to tackle the issue by feeding the insecticide stuff directly into the leaf. The first application had a dramatic effect but didn't completely get rid of them, but by the second application it seems to have really done them in. Will likely do a third application to be safe. But also the fertilizing element of them has also helped our plants start shooting out new leaves too. 10/10 would highly recommend for dealing with thrips.

This product can make taking care of your indoor house plants easy. Bayer products, from aspirin to insecticides, are always the best quality. Their garden products are just as effective as their pet products. This 2-in-1 combination fertilizer and insecticide can revolutionize the way you take care of your plants.I don't like insects inside my house. Every plant that I buy spends a two-week period inside a screened porch, where I subject the specimen to an aggressive treatment with spray insecticides. The insecticide does a very fine job of killing every insect on the leaves and the stems of the plants. I subject the plant to several different brands and types of sprays to make sure I kill all of the insects that may be on the plant. The problem with spray insecticides is they do not treat the soil. One fine day in March, I watered one of the plants heavily. A half hour later, I lifted the pot off of the plastic saucer to empty the excess water. I found two dead millipedes beneath the pot. I knew then that there are insects in the soil. I ordered these plant spikes from Amazon to kill insects that may be hidden in the soil.Every new plant gets these plant spikes applied according to the directions. I have found dead snails in two of my new plants. I find dead millipedes inside my screened porch. The insecticide is clearly doings its job. I will repot these new acquisitions after their quarantine period. The spikes will still be in the soil and they will transfer to the new pots without getting disturbed. I still spray the plants to get rid of flying gnats that may have hitched a ride.The active insecticide is Imidacloprid. I am familiar with this product because it is one of the ingredients in Bayer's excellent canine heartworm preventive, "Advantage Multi". Advantage Multi prevents heartworms, kills intestinal worms, and kills adult fleas in canines. The imidacloprid in that product kills fleas.I love this Bayer Advanced 2-in-1 plant spike. I would have given it a five-star review but for the applicator. The applicator is a plastic injector that makes inserting the spikes easier. The tip of the applicator holds the spike while you push it into the soil. Pushing the plunger should release the spike into the soil. However, it usually does not work. The plastic applicator is very flimsy and the design is not very good. The plunger is a flexible piece of plastic that bends rather than push the spike out of the applicator. It is frustrating at times. I would like to see Bayer improve the design of the plastic injector.Do not forget that this product contains a fertilizer. Avoid adding your regular fertilizer while using these plant spikes. I have Osmocote slow-release in my plants. They were already there when I added the Bayer 2-in-1. No problems so far, but I would be careful about over fertilizing the plant. I would use with caution in delicate plants because the fertilizer may be too strong.Keep the plant spikes away from your pets. You do not want your dogs and cats chewing on the plant spikes. Keep your cat out of the house plants. Imidacloprid is a systemic insecticide that is absorbed by the plants and distributed throughout. While it is very unlikely that the concentration will be enough to harm your cat, it is still a good idea to exercise caution. Imidacloprid is the active insecticide in Bayer's line of topical flea control products for dogs and cats, so it is very safe. It is very safe but you do not want your pets to dig up the plant spike and ingest it.Lastly, I do not know how effective this product will be when used outdoors. The spike will slowly release its active ingredients into the soil and then taken up by the plant roots. This works great in a pot that is housed indoors. An outdoor plant with grasses and weeds growing around it may not take up enough of the active ingredients. The surrounding plants may take up the insecticide before the targeted plant can. Too much water from rain and your sprinkler system will wash away the insecticide from the vicinity of the spike. The insecticide must remain in the soil long enough for the plant roots to take it up. That is why you do not want to water too heavily for the next ten days after applying the spike. You do not want the imidacloprid to wash out from the bottom of the pot. Water just enough and no more.Highly recommended. Insecticidal sprays are every effective but they do nothing to rid the soil of insects. You need this Bayer 2-in-1 to get rid of the insects hiding in the soil.

I initially purchased this to treat a large ivy with mealybugs. The plant was very big and otherwise healthy. I had tried topical sprays but the infestation always returned.I treated the plant every 8 weeks (as directed) for about a year and am very happy with the results. I notice an occasional mealybug outbreak but have been able to control it by removing that portion of the plant. Please keep in mind that progress is very slow and I probably would not waste the money on a small plant. The ivy looks great - the fertilizer seems to have improved the overall health of the plant.I recently noticed an outbreak of scale insects on some of my bonsai. I just purchased two packets to treat them. I treated them a couple of weeks ago and have not yet seen any improvement (as expected). We have pets and I am hesitant to treat the bonsai with topical insecticides so this is a great alternative.I can't say that this product completely eliminates mealybugs because my ivy is not 100% healed. Once the weather improves, I will probably take it outside and treat it with some topical pesticides.