How to Apply Beneficial Nematodes to Control Pests in Your Garden 

Great video, you confirmed the process I plan to use next week. I have a Hudson diaphragm sprayer and, unfortunately, can't find the nozzle size nor find a replacement nozzle that is definitely 400 micron or larger. I'm treating .5 acres so hoping to figure this out before my nematodes (Arbico Triple Threat) arrive. I spoke with Arbico and they only told me to never use high pressure (>100psi) since that will tear apart the worms (these backpack sprayers won't reach those pressures but I guess a commercial device might). Hoping for fewer pests and more happy plants.

Neem uh tode that’s how I say it and I’m sticking to it lol

I don’t know if you still read these comments, but this was super helpful. I’ve watched other videos, and they either go too fast or they don’t give enough detail. One of them did a 2x speed walk through the garden instead of just showing her walking regular speed. Not helpful. I am a relatively new gardener who was forced to take care of the plants at my rental house. 😆 I struggled with thrips all last year, trying everything to get rid of them. To the point of making my roses look as unhealthy as the thrips did. This year I concentrated on using beneficial insects. Wow! What a difference. And I don’t have to spray a bunch of chemicals that don’t work anyway.

Hi - Great video! How do you keep the soil moist for a week after spraying? Do you mulch after, if so what mulch do you use? Also, I notice you use as foliar spray as well - are there any plants to avoid spraying like this? I am in Southern California zone 10b. Thank you!

Awesome intro. You had me at garden nerds. We no likey pupation. Steiner who?

wow thanks! the neem oil hasn't been cutting it, and I'm afraid to use more for fear or disturbing the pollinators

I prefer unscrupulous nematodes.

Great information! I have used beneficial nematodes before but I did not realize my water needed to be filtered. I love the back-pack sprayer, too. Thanks!

Do nematodes kill termite If yes which type is best suited for termites ??

I just received my 3 different nematodes five days ago and have them in the fridge. I know they only last 14 days so I have to get out there. My question is, I need to fertilize my garden (organically fish emulsion), but I’m afraid it will hurt the nematodes. How long do I wait after I spray the nematodes, to be able to fertilize? Thanks so much!!!!!!!!

I had always heard of nematodes for slugs in England, but not available in the US. I have a major slug problem and might have figured out a way around it. Some of the slugs have nematodes and the bacteria associated with it and I will be making my own nematode tea. Thanks for the video. It was great.

I needed to know how many nematodes you had in the sprayer.like how much per gallon/ 1000ft² roughly.

Thank you!! I so needed this video! I just bought some beneficial nematodes and wanted to make sure I applied them correctly. 😀😀

Great video, thank you! I'll be releasing nematodes this evening. Using a 50 gallon drum of aerated dechlorinated water.

IMPORTANT - Nematodes are surprisingly large. Even many watering can roses will not have holes big enough to let them through. The minimum size of the holes (or your spray jet hole) is 400 microns, which is 0.4mm or 0.016 inches. When I used a standard watering can, I was surprised to find it kept completely clogging; nothing but a dribble coming out! Nematodes really are that big. Thanks for the video

Thank you so much. Subscribed and liked.

I was gonna ask if it’s safe if you have pets in the yard but I guess it’s ok because you have a cat walking around right as you apply it. 😄

Very informative. I only wish I could buy a small amount as I've got 1 tomato plant and 3 cukes. Been ravaged by insects and already have had to replace the plants. And you can leave water out overnight, and open to the air, to rid it of chlorine.

Thanks for this! I just bought them and hope it helps!

Awesome job explaining how and where to use different species of nematodes.... I have just started a living soil bed indoors. And to control fungus nats I'm adding them to the soil and cover crops. Wasn't sure how to apply them until now ty so much

How often would u need to treat the whole yard and the plants? I hate how ugly my small citrus trees look due to leaf miners and treating them weekly isnt doable for me, I'd love to have a longer lasting solution. Does it get washed away by rain? Do nematodes have any negative effects on pollinators? Tks for the great video!

Don't forget to mix them in the sprayer regularly too so they all don't sit at the bottom :). I really loved this video and your presentation. Beautiful throughout.

This is awesome! Thank you for sharing this!

great video, thank you! I am assuming all Solo backpack sprayers have the correct >400 microns on the nozzle? Do you leave in the nozzle filter or remove?

I understand that filtered water is needed when mixing and applying to make sure you don't damage the nematodes, will watering later kill them? From automatic sprinklers and such ?

Hey nice lady i want you to know Bayer Corp. Is right under your video sharing how nematodes are bad. Hilarious. Great vid

If you have a thick layer of mulch on top of your soil, can you just spray the nematodes right onto the mulch or do you recommend removing the mulch and spraying directly onto the soil?

Inline KDF filters such as Boogie Blue Plus and Camco 52702 only remove 70% of chloramines. You can get rid of the remainder using sodium ascorbate or Vitamin C powder. 1/8 teaspoon per five gallons is enough to treat water that's been through a KDF filter. Also a good idea to check water temp before adding nematodes. I keep it very close to 60F. If it's too cold, I heat it up with a 600 watt immersion heater.

I always heard that nematodes are sensitive to sunlight. I always spray mine after sundown.

Question after spraying my vegetable garden with nematodes, how do you properly clean the sprayer. I want to make sure all nematodes are out of the container.

I noticed that my garden has grubs in the soil so I applied some nematodes last night but want to get some earthworm for the garden. Do you think this will be an issue? will the earthworm eat all the nematodes?

Terrific instruction. Thank you!

Hello , dose this nematodes help in the bad nematodes ? I have a berry tree infected by harmful nematodes

Well I learned something new today! Explained so well! Thank you!

Understanding nematodes in this video. Thank you

I bought a packet of beneficial nematodes online and now all of my tomato plants are dying and the roots are being eaten by them. I guess they sent me the bad ones instead?

But what time of year do you spray?

Thanks a lot, very informative and helpful.

I'm a beginner organic gardener and this video has got me off to a good start. Thanks!

am dealing with so many problems with my strawberries yellowing. I have tried adding nutrients through foliar fertilizers and the yellowing seems to be getting worse. What can i do to eliminate and make my pants healthy again? Can these beneficial nematodes help?

Do you need to pull back mulch and apply directly to soil for ornamental plants? I am looking to treat Viburnum Borers with Heterorhabditis bacteriophora.

Which type of nematode would you use to control masked chafer larvae (grubs)? Or should I use all 3 varieties like you did?

Will these be safe on your milkweed plants? After all Monarchs are insects. Milkweed attracts aphids which are very aggressive.

Hi, we have four horse trough planters infested with grubs and have purchased beneficial nematodes to deal with them. We'd like to use a 2 gallon water Erin get can to apply the nematode solution. Can you advise the amount of nematode material per 2 gallons. Many thanks!

Super video! Thank you! Question, you sprayed on plants and trees…you mentioned that you need to keep the soil moist for a week. Is that the same for the tree and plant leaves as well! Thank you as I’m just learning regarding nematodes 🙃

Based on my research your description of which nematodes kill which pests is not completely accurate. In particular you say H. Bacteriophora is good for ants. Most sources say otherwise and recommend S. Feltiae.

How do nematodes interact with bed worms? I have some in-ground worm composters from vego garden, will the nematodes kill the worms?

We bought some potting soil about 3 years ago (a well known brand) and we would up with small black flies infesting all the house plants. It appears they lay eggs in the wet soil then the larva mature and we get more flies. We haven't been successful in eliminating them. Would nematodes help?

They might work in a controlled environment like a greenhouse. Save your 💰✌️

Can they be applied to decomposed granite? I have a small patio yard. I finally realized that my dogs are constantly getting bit by ants and possibly fleas even tho they are protected with flea preventative. It's not stopping them from getting bit.

I've heard the nematodes are harmful to injest? I'm having a gnat issue in my vegetable garden and wanted to use nematodes in the soil. But wondering if it will be harmful if they were on my salad greens and eaten.

I think my culinary water has chlorine, will distilled water work?

How often do you apply nematodes? Is this a yearly thing or more frequent?

What a Novel and neat idea to use them to kill insects without Insecticide I also believe in using wasps to kill insects too.

Have you tried homemade nematodes? Are they as effective or more effective?

Prolly bought the wrong nematode. My garden is ruined by gnats.

Can you spray the stuff on your pets so that way they don't bring in fleas or any other insects??

Does it kill giardia? My yard is only dirt and we are struggling with getting rid of giardia.

You know anything good from earwig bugs?

Did your sprayer come with the correct size nozzels? I'm looking at the SOLO 425 (which I assume is the one you have) and can't find any mention of the nozzle size

can beneficial nematodes kill all the life cycle of the ticks and fleas?

Which model of Solo sprayer are you using? I want to purchase one and there are many to choose from. I have 8000 sq ft of lawn to apply nematodes to. Also, should I spray nematodes on the soil inside my greenhouse? I am growing tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and herbs in my greenhouse and have been having issues with whitefly, spider mites, and moth caterpillars. This year my greenhouse has gotten as high as 106F with both screened roof vents wide open, 2 fans running both 18 inches, but I had to leave the door open during the day to exhaust the heat out. One more question for you. I ordered my nematodes in June and they arrived near the end of July but we have been in a heat dome not having any rain since late June. We are under watering restrictions until September 30th and only allowed a 3 hour watering window from 6:00am until 9:00am once per week.It is now September 4th and my nematodes are still in my fridge on the bottom shelf in the coldest part in a sealed container. There was no expiration date on the packaging and it is now September 4th. Will my nematodes still be able to be used or did I waste my money by not anticipating the heat wave and extremely dry weather? Thanks for an excellent instructional video. I learned so much from you.

I've just learned about using these little dudes to combat fleas which is just what I need!! I've had heavy rains in my area lately and so my question is would it be ok to use them during this wet season or wait until it's not raining as much?

Just bought some cause I am having a bad time with thrips

Will they help with squash vine borers?

this is great info, thank you! Quick question, would i be right in saying that Beneficial nematodes Heterorhabditis bacteriophora would be my best bet to treat a tree which has termites?

Thnx for the info! Where do I get my GardenNerd Card? He he he 😂 the Journey of Discovery continues

I am so grateful for this video, we have been dealing with fleas every year in our yard AND house every summer for two years without any pets! (My son and I basically get eaten alive.) we don’t plant any food but would you recommend we use all 3 nematodes? You also mentioned it’s important to spray at specific times, what are those times? Thanks!!

I thought they died f rom sun light??

I am in N TX and have fleas and fire ants galore this year after a very wet spring. Now it is scorching hot. In your opinion, is it better to wait until fall to treat with the triple threat or go ahead and treat now (as soon as they are back in stock and ship) and do my best to keep the ground moist? I don't want to just throw away my money. Also, would I treat the whole yard (just under an acre) or focus on the areas where my dog spends the most time and my garden beds? This was an excellent video BTW. Great info and succinct.

Did you say 1/2 tb to 5 gallon?

Typo...2 gallon watering can...

Very informative video! Thank you! I have a bad infestation of Asiatic beetles in my 1500 sq ft garden of catmint, geraniums, Black-eyed Susan's and pink drift roses. I plucked off 33 beetles last night in less than 20 minutes. My plants are dying. Several catmint have totally dried out and more on the way. Do the grubs do irreversible damage? Wondering if my half dead plants will come back in the spring but not sure if the roots are too damaged.

Where do you get a nematodes

New to the channel and love it! ❤

and a bunch of other stuff ...loll

Mosquitoes?

Why you don't use battery sprayer? Hand pump isn't suitable.

Wonderful, are these beneficial for eliminating termites in the garden soil, which seem to be causing the grass to turn brown. Entomopathogenic Nematodes?

Strange you would assume nobody watching this would be getting their water from a well.

The nerdiness on these nematodes are amazing!

I am Mr Nimbus.

how do you know if the nematodes are alive???

where do you buy these?

I don't think you are supposed to keep your nematodes in the fridge. It will kill them. Keep them cool but not cold.

you may be wispering on the video but the volume on your post is SCREAMING