OBTAINING EFFECTIVE DILUTIONS OF INSECTICIDES WITHIN PROPAGATING STOCK
John A. Weidhaas Jr
This paper is essentially a review of research and a progress report on systemic insecticides as they may be used on woody ornamental plants. The wording in the title was chosen to emphasize the complex nature of systemics in relation to conventional contact insecticides which are simply diluted to the proper degree and applied externally on plants. My objective here is to discuss the nature of systemic insecticides as they are used on trees and shrubs, the knowledge gained to date, and the research needs of the future if systemics are to become useful tools of the plant propagator.
A systemic insecticide was defined by Bennett in 1949 as a substance which is absorbed and translocated to other parts of the plant rendering it insecticidal. Such a definition does not include chemicals which are simply absorbed into the plant, but not translocated. Some insecticide compounds are soluble in plant lipoids and, therefore, are absorbed into plant tissue (Gunther and Blinn, 1956).
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