Question
hi darlene, if #@$#$bugs can survive inside my house, can their predators? which predators are the most effective? i've got several hundred plants in this winter, it's cheaper then liquor... but now i'm buying gallons of alchohol for THEM! and have you ever wrestled a 8' bougainvillea into the shower, ouch! if you can get me some info on predators, i promise they'll be well fed. it seems safer then nicotine tea, isn't nicotine used as an herbicide? or worse, tobacco mosiac virus, ughh.
thanx for sharing your knowledge, B.
p.s. i started taking cuttings full throttle this year and found that some of the more challenging ones take terrificlly in the filter of my aquarium, organic hydroponics:)

Answer
Ben,

These sites have lots of ideas for getting rid of bugs:

http://www.mrgrow.com/content/pesttropical.htm

http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/insect/05595.html

http://www.ehow.com/how_9355_control-scale-insects.html

This site sells predator insects:

http://www.planetnatural.com/site/beneficial-insects.html

I have lots of plants too and I understand your problms. I find that insects attack plants under stress, either too much or too little water.  So I try hard to keep my plants from being stressed.  In the fall I make my husband go on a ladybug hunt. It is usually not too difficult.  You can usually find a nest of them at the base of trees under leaves or in other protected areas. He brings a cup full or so in and puts them on my back porch where I keep most of my plants. (Everyone else is trying to get rid of the lady bugs in their homes.)

For the few plants that the ladybugs are not enough and they still get insects I keep spray bottles of a mixture of Neem oil (it comes concentrated and you dilute it with water, safe to use indoors- available at any Lowes or Home depot and most other garden centers) and 2 tablespoons of dish soap per gallon of Neem oil mix. Mix the Neem oil acording to the package instructions. Any time I have a plant with a serious infestation of bugs I spray it daily for a week and make sure I get the fronts and backs of all the leaves then spray a couple of times a week for the rest of winter. I just spray the plants with lots of bugs. The lady bugs take care of the rest. Good luck with your plants.

Darlene