Here's the best article on nematode management I've seen. They are really hard to get rid of. You can dig em up and throw em away, but if you do that you should pour lots of boiling water down the hole. The alternative is to try to manage them. The article below recommends Zero-tol.

BTW, for him to share plants with you and not tell you about having nems is a serious breach of Hosta etiquette.

Steve

Here is a link that might be useful: Delmarva HS presentation on nems

This post was edited by steve_mass on Wed, Sep 11, 13 at 17:31

I have given up on trying to treat or control and just accept them and hope that sometime in the future someone will come up with a magic bullet that is available and safe for the home gardener. Many of mine have them. The ones i heat treated a few years back were clear the next season, but showed signs the following year...a lot of work for nothing- bummer. I was at my inlaws today and noticed their hostas have them too, here and there.

Even if you are careful about not bringing them in on hostas you add to your collection, it's very difficult to avoid them in all the perennials that harbor them....ferns, Brunnera, heuchera, etc. I imagine a lot of people have them in the garden and don't even realize it.

(old dirt) I think most people either don't know they have them or are afraid to admit it...

hostas are not the only plants that have them,,,but we are hosta nuts and the signs are very clear on them...

I have them and I am not happy about it...I am declaring war on them...lol...but short of finding some Diazinon, or someone comes up with a new cure,,,the fight to knock them back is on...I am treating 25 of my almost 600 hostas...

(steve) I cannot view that aricle without all kinds of ads plastered on top of it which I cannot get rid of...can you print it out ??

jill

I have some nematodes. They also pop up in plants I did not have them last year. I have some success with Advanced Complete Insect Killer, which contains Imidacloprid = Merit, is systemic. It seems to stop any advancement by them in a plant once it is discovered. 'Brother Stefan', 'Lakeside Rhapsody', 'Blue Umbrellas' had it last year, not this year. 'Cathedral Windows' is now without it for 2 years. But then...new ones got it.

I now bathe and scrub tools in 10% bleach after use on any hosta - I have 7 pruning shears. The problem is that I sometimes can not get to it. I think you need to spray plants every 2 weeks starting May to contain that spreading.
Good luck to everyone, we need it!
Bernd

Thanks everyone for the info.

Neonicotinoids like Imidocloprid are dangerous to use on Hosta because they are systemic. That means that this nerve agent for insects reaches all parts of the plant including the pollen. When bees collect the pollen and bring it back to their hive it kills them. It's hard to know how long Imidocloprid lasts in a plant or in the soil, but it's very harmful to the environment, and it is less effective than Insecticidal Soap or Zero-tol.

Jill, try Ad Block on Firefox and you won't see any ads on either the Garden Forums or that article.

Go shopping for Hosta right now at your local nursery and try to find a nursery that doesn't have Nems in their Hosta or in other plants. I haven't found one yet.

Steve