Bumping this down...Nancy helped me out in the other thread.

Thanks a million, Nancy!!

does anyone know where you can buy kphite? do you have to buy it in large amounts? is it very expensive for the avg home gardener? i have been looking for it and havent found a source yet.

thanks
tracie

I got this info here at the forum a couple of years ago from beachlily:

Plant Food Systems). His phone number is 386-961-4379. Kphite costs $87 for 2.5 gallons. I purchased it from Mike Panza (his sales territory is Florida and he works for J.P. McCone

Babct

thank you! i wonder how much is mixed per gallon. 2.5 gallons would probably last a long time! :)

tracie

To use Kaphite according to the directions they give, a foliar spray takes about 4 teaspoons of Kaphite per gallon of water. A soil drench takes about 1.5 teaspoons per gallon. Yep, 2.5 gallons of Kaphite lasts a long time!

Lalalandwi, you are going to learn alot about rot and rust when you move down here! I'm not having very much problem with rot ... with a couple of significant exceptions!

I ended up getting it thru Plant Food Systems. You can buy directly thru them & they also offer a 1 g for 60. They put me in touch with the sales rep in FL & he told me a few local sources to buy from which would be cheaper in the end because they would buy in bigger quantities. I didn't check to see how much, but I will when I get down there. Beachlily, you're close to Apopka? He said Growers Supply carries it. Only using a few tsps should carry for quite awhile. The rep did tell me it could be used as a systemic for rust & happy to hear it is 1 that works up & down. Since I bought it prior to talking to the sales rep, I didn't know it worked for rust too. I was getting it just to prevent crown rot. So now I have 2 systemics, bought Banner Maxx already, & in need of a contact according to the daylily rust articles I've been reading. The FL Dept of Agriculture says to switch between any 2 of these systemics: Banner Maxx, Heritage, Systhane, & Contrast. No contacts?

Yes, I still have ALOT to learn. Unfortunately, I missed the local society meeting on the 19th to talk to a bunch of people about it. At least I'm half way there in combatting rust, at least that won't kill my dls. Right now I'm just worried about crown rot because that will kill them. When I get down there I will end up running around for a few hours to get all the ingredients for potting mix I need to make sure I have impeccable drainage. Good to hear you aren't having too many issues. The ones that you are, have you figured out why?

I know of no supported claim that Kphite (potassium phosphite) is effective against daylily rust. I use Kphite at a rate of .6 oz per gal for foliar spray to prevent crown rot, and 1.28 oz per gal for soil drench to treat a plant with crown rot in progress. Concentration rates published by Pat Stamile in the Daylily Journal.

There are several products that have essentially the same potassium phosphite formula as Kphite. Agri-Fos is one several people have been using in this area with good results. It is available in small quantities, very reasonably priced.
Ed

I don't think there is any evidence that Kaphite is effective against rust. I use it to great daylily rot and I use it as a general "pick-me up" for my plants. It is supposed to help the immune system of daylilies. The dosage I cited is from the Kaphite label. I haven't read Pat's article. I have, in the past, used the product at substantially higher rates with no ill effects.

I did find an article about rust & K-phite, linked below. The article was written 2 yrs ago & can't find anything more current. Nancy is using it with Nickel Plus with good success. I'll rotate it with the Banner Maxx that I already bought & see how it goes. At least I know it will work on root rot & would be nice to use it for rust too. Thanks for the Stamile notes, Ed.

Not to take away from root root, but I forgot to mention a product that was recommended to me from the place I got Banner Maxx from...Clevis. Has anyone heard of it or used it before? It's a systemic & contact all in 1. Linking the label below. Do you think the percentages would be good to be effective?

beachlily,
Pat did warn against using too high a concentration for foliar spray. He said it will turn the foliage white and shortly afterward it will die.

Thanks lalalandwi for the article, I had not seen it before. From the article, I think K-Phite would be better used against rot. Nancy does use Nickel Plus, and it is being touted as a very good rust preventative, especially when used with a systemic fungicide. Dan Trimmer recently spoke to our club and he is using Nickel Plus in combination with Cabrio EG. Then rotating with Bayleton 50 and Nickel Plus. He said he is able to reduce his spraying to monthly, even during rust season and it is very effective.

I have ordered some Nickel Plus. I currently use Cabrio EG and rotate Bayleton 50, each time mixed with a water conditioner and Contact fungicide.

I looked up Clevis. Myclobutanil (Eagle), is the systemic fungicide in Clevis. Myclobutanil has not proved very effective against daylily rust. However, the contact in this mixture, mancozeb with zinc is a very good contact fungicide.

It's also a point of argument as to whether the products touted to prevent disease by improving immune systems are effective against daylily rust. Rust is a parasite, not a disease and prefers vigorous, growing plants to feed on. I think that may be why it is most active during the high growth periods of daylilies.
Ed

hmmm.. i have agrophos. i just started using it, so i cant report if it helps with the rot. i lost a ton of nice dls this summer to rot from our weather.

where in tx did you get the cabrio? i have been looking for it. what size did it come in, for what price? also, how much do you use and how? thanks

tracie

Hi Tracie,

This summer was tough on daylilies. I doubt that Agri-Fos will eliminate crown rot, but it does help considerably.

We buy the Cabrio EG from the BASF dealer in Wharton, Texas. It costs around $75.00 a pound and you will probably have to buy a case at a time. It's been awhile since I bought any, so I don't know how accurate my pricing is.

I mix 1 tablespoon Cabrio EG to 4 gallons water. I include a water conditioner/spreader sticker called 'Indicate' and a contact fungicide in a pressurized sprayer. Try to apply with enough pressure to rattle the foliage. Sometimes I will include an insecticide in the mix.
Ed

As if to make up for almost four months of drought, we have been blessed with slow, drippy rain for several weeks now. I think I spied one or two of my potted daylilies that look like they might be getting rust. If they fail the "white glove" test in a few days, I'm going to try the Actinovate on them. I'm always open to new ideas, and am willing to try new solutions. Alas, most of then don't work, but once in a while I find a winner!

Ed, I haven't had to use Banner Maxx or Cabrio even though I have an unopened bottle of the stuff. I still have an unopened bottle of Soil Mender's Plant Wash, too, that I thought I would try. I had planned to use both of them, but the Nickel Plus takes care of the rust problem in my garden.

Nancy

Ed, this is music to my ears..."He said he is able to reduce his spraying to monthly, even during rust season and it is very effective." Once a month, really?? Just that fact alone is a seller in my mind. I just wish there was a soil drench available or some sort of natural fertilizer to add Ni to the plants. Nickel Plus is about the nickel, sulphur & nitrogen you can get elsewhere? I've tried researching what other products are high in Ni & didn't come up with too much. I must be losing my marbles because I could have sworn Hi Yield had a bag of just Ni when I was working at the nursery, now I can't find it.

Thanks everyone for this invaluable info!

According to the Dan Trimmer, who got it from the company that makes the Nickle concentrate, it should not be used in areas frequented by children. Apparently children can absorb nickle through their skin. Adults are not at risk, guess because our skin is tougher!

I've used Nickle with Headline or Bayleton every time I've sprayed this year. I didn't spray in July or August and got hit hard in Sept. with rust and leaf streak. It's been a strange year. A friend in North FL with a small daylily nursery never had rust this year. I would not hold my breath! The growers use an injection system to fertilize and spray. They are much more efficient at it than the normal homeowner who doesn't have a similar system.

Lala, you are going to find that there is nothing easy about growing daylilies in Florida!

Please be very careful when using Nickel Plus. Whoever does the spraying must be well protected to avoid contact with it. I have read a report where an agricultural worker died from exposure to it.

At the risk of being repetitive, I wear safety goggles, pesticide respirator, chemical gloves, rubber boots, knee-length rain slicker, long pants, and even a drawstring garbage bag "skirt." I make absolutely sure I do not come in contact with it. All measuring equipment is used only for that purpose. It gets really hot under all that protective gear, so start very early in the morning! And don't forget to use a spreader-sticker. If you'll ask the vendor, you might be able to use a liquid fertilizer along with it.

We had no sign of rust all during the summer months, so we did not have to spray from May to the middle of September. We aprayed once a couple of weeks ago, but due to frequent rains, haven't been able to do it again.

I keep a very close watch over the potted daylilies, and have seen 3 plants among the many that are suspect. Today I added some Actinovate with Biofungicide to them, so time will tell.

I've sprayed with Miracle-Gro liquid fertilizer by itself, but haven't been very impressed with the results. I only use Nutri-Cote now, because it is such an excellent fertilizer for daylilies in my garden.

Nancy