Remove oil from bamboo plants off furniture, etc?

11 years ago

Hello there.

I live in a rental property with a cute patio that is surrounded by bamboo. It's pretty and provides some shade, but there is a residue from it that literally coats everything I put on the patio and ruins it - chair cushions, decorative things, other plants. It is oily and then causes dirt to cling to it.

Any suggestions on how to deal with it - or how to remove it from things like cushions? My brand new chair was coated in one day. :-(

Thanks!

Comments (2)

denninmi
11 years ago
It's not oil. It is an excretion from the digestive track of scale insects. They could be on the bamboo, or on other nearby trees or shrubs, so you will need to verify which plant is infested in order to treat it. Use a systemic insecticide such as Bayer Advanced Tree and Shrub, this product is highly effective on scale insects.

As far as the cleanup, any good detergent or soap should cut it. Try Dawn dish detergent or Murray's oil soap, both of those should clean without worrying about harming the dyes in the cushions. Spic and Span cleaner is great for hard surfaces but can fade/discolor some fabrics IMHO.
cutenewt
Original Author
11 years ago
Ok - thank you for the info! I haven't seen any bugs like that around (I looked them up online) but I do get to go to a plant nursery sometimes so I'll check with them to see if they have the insecticide you mentioned and start there.
Thanks again!
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