Mosquito netting is actually a good cover for excluding insects. It has better UV resistance than tulle, and allows more air flow than spun row covers. Less heat buildup too, probably more important for you than for me. ;-)

Someone who used to post here (Rodger) used mosquito netting to cover pole beans grown for seed, and had good results. I've tried to use spun polyester row covers on beans, and the reduced airflow caused foliar diseases (which vanished when the cover was removed).

I've actually been looking for an economical source for mosquito netting myself, since that may work as a cover for tomatoes... which are also sensitive to high humidity. I've had a few varieties cross, and don't have time to bag blossoms. 12' X 8' sounds like a good size to cover a few plants.

I've found mosquito netting at the Army surplus store that is designed for sleeping cots to be a quick easy cover for my raised beds. Do not remember the cost of the pre-made cot cover so that may be the deal breaker for you. Lasted two or three seasons if you are careful removing the clips when opening/closing it. This one has a satin strip along the bottom which was very helpful but I was not able to find that style again.

Mary, I think it was your post last week that got me curious about mosquito netting. So thank you for the suggestion. Army surplus stores? Are those still around? I remember those from 20-30 years ago, but haven't seen any since.

Yes, you'd think that good mosquito netting would have decent UV resistance. I'm puzzled about Agribon, though. I've never used it, and heard that people like it, but polypro is the *worst* outdoor plastic from a degradation standpoint. How do they get away with it?

Agribon is good stuff, I've used that too although not for long periods so cannot speak to the durability issue. We have Arizona Bag Company here in Phx and they sell large rolls of it. I like the pre-made, correctly sized netting I mentioned above. the Agribon has to be cut to size which can be a drawback if you change up the garden at all. We have several surplus stores around town. If you start looking for them you may be surprised. Sporting goods stores may have that too. I Googled "mosquito netting to fit a sleeping cot" got lots of hits including WalMart and REI (pricey that one). Good luck.

I have used Agribond for years - the insect barrier weight. And I have some of it that is easily 7-8 years old.

Dave

I could go with Agribon, except I sure don't need fifty feet of it, plus shipping charges. I now see that Agribon includes some UV stabilizers. That's good, because regular polypro is asking for trouble. But the opportunities with polyethylene mosquito netting are looking pretty good and cost effective.

Tulle is usually 72" wide, so you get two square yards for the buck or so you pay per linear yard. I think nylon net would last longer; the holes are a bit bigger, but the threads between holes are thicker. Both come by the yard at fabric stores, or buy them by the bolt on ebay. I think I paid $11 for 40 yards of tulle on ebay a couple years ago.

I think the UV resistance of nylon is also quite poor. When I bought tulle a few years ago, it was in bolts 1 yard wide, and about a buck for each yard length. Tulle is cheap, but it isn't intended for outdoor applications. That's where polyester netting starts looking attractive. I just never knew where you could get it, in convenient sizes.

From what I have read mosquito netting needs to be around 400 microns. Some of the smaller aphids and thrips would still be able to penetrate that.

Buy tulle by the bolt: 108-Inch Wide by 50 Yards Tulle Fabric By The Bolt, White.

"Buy tulle by the bolt: 108-Inch Wide by 50 Yards Tulle Fabric By The Bolt, White."

I bought something similar to that several years ago (same 108" wide, different seller). Even though the tulle is only good for one season and we have to net year-round here, I'm still using that original bolt. Pretty good deal.

this is interesting to me also b/c I got less than ten zucchini this year. I ignored that while I waited for the tromboncino but the June 11 event (38F night) shocked them. I got two tromboncinos this month.

I wonder if plastic mosquito netting can be made into larger pieces by heat bonding. That would allow fast and permanent large nets that would fit my site.