Yates Confidor Tablets Garden Insecticide Questions & Answers

I think you have a good approach, but be careful of damaging the leaves by scraping. Using white oil first is a good plan because it suffocates the scale and the ants that distribute them around your plants. Do this at least twice because it’s hard to hit all the scale each time. White oil acts by contact. The lifetime of the tablets depends on how fast the confidor is released from them. If your soil is consistently fairly dry, then they will last longer but absorption into the roots might be slow and ineffective. If the soil is consistently overly wet then the confidor can leach away from the roots. So try to control soil moisture if possible (eg don’t overwater). Confidor works by travelling through the plant sap stream and poisoning the scale as they suck the sap. Don't use confidor while the plants are flowering, as there is some evidence that bees collect affected pollen and take it back to their hives to reduce hive populations. So wait until after flowering season to use confidor. You can use white oil while using confidor. Once you have control, I suggest you use white oil for maintenance, and only use confidor if infestation occurs again. I hope this helps you. David.

Hi H, This product is no longer registered nor stocked by Yates, being discontinued in 2018. We recommend that if you have purchased this recently, you contact the makers of the product to confirm its suitable use for the plant you are looking to treat.

Thank you, but these are Confidor tablets manufactured by Yates. I just still happen to have a supply of them. What advice would you have given before you discontinued them?

My research shows no deleterious effect on birds by imidacloprid (the active ingredient of Confidor) when used according to directions. This may be because the chemical uses a biochemical pathway in sucking insects to kill them, that is not present in birds. Or that the concentration needed to affect birds is not present in the fruit of trees where imidacloprid has been used, e.g. your crabapples. Of course this is exactly what you want to know. And so do I. I have the same problem with my Jonathan and Granny Smith apples. I have been trying for 25 years to get rid of the woolly aphid, spraying when I won't affect the other insects like bees, hoping I am not affecting the lorikeets and possums that eat the apples before we can. I have been using white oil and neem oil, without much success because the woolly aphids hide under the bark, are also in the roots, so they just migrate up the tree from there. I have tried leaving control to predatory insects, but this approach has just totally stunted the growth of my trees as they were overcome by the woolly aphid. There is conflicting evidence about comparing the deleterious effects of different insecticides in your and my situation. My apple trees not only feed us and the birds, but also hide my neighbour's horrible roof and shade our home from the hot western sun in summer. How do I balance all these factors? Do I chop out the apple trees and plant Crepe Myrtles, and not see the lorikeets any more? And don't have freshly picked apples! So, now that the flowers have finished on the apple trees, I am trying a granular product containing imidacloprid, sprinkled on the soil according to directions. I am also continuing to use white oil. As a biologist, biochemist and environmentalist I believe I am going the best way about it. I hope I am doing the right thing. Good luck with your decision.

Many thanks for your comprehensive reply, David. As you say, we’re worried about the same thing. Last year I drenched the tree (not a big one, it stands just over 2.5m) 2-3 times with Yates Rose Shield/Gun, including while fruiting, which cleared the woolly aphids for a while, so I wasn’t doing the birds any favours then. I too have the granular form of imidacloprid, probably the same brand, which I haven’t used yet. I will probably use the Confidor tabs. The parrots don’t eat the whole fruit, or many of them, so I’ll hope that any exposure to the product will be limited and below the threshold of concentration that would affect the birds.

David B. We have an infestation of mites in the chook shed, and an adequate supply of Confidor. Would it be effective as a miticide sprayed in the nesting boxes and roost areas?

Yes, Confidor tablets can be used in hanging baskets containing any plant, including geraniums. 1: Be aware that the active insecticide is water soluble, so as water washes through your basket, the insecticide will wash out. So try to limit your watering to just the amount the basket of soil needs by keeping the soil moist, not dry or overflowing. Hanging baskets and pots are not easy to water properly; if the soil is dry on top but 1-2 cm down it sticks to your finger, that is the best time to water using a small watering can or plastic bottle to judge the amount of water more easily (or a water wand with a tap control). Geraniums are pretty tolerant of inconsistent watering. 2: Don’t use too many tablets; perhaps one tablet cut in half and the halves inserted either side of the plant would be enough. 3: Be aware of the possibility that the insecticide is transferred into pollen, which could be a danger to all pollen collecting insects (as far as I know there is no conclusive scientific evidence to support this theory).

Yates no longer manufactures or distributes Confidor – and has not done so for at least four years. The Confidor currently on the market is not made or distributed by Yates, nor does Yates manufacture or distribute any of the other products with neonicotinoids currently on the market. We do wish to continue to support your garden needs with an alternative. Please chat to us about your plants symptoms and we will be more than happy to guide you through our range of products to find a suitable solution, that is available for purchase at a wide range of leading and independent hardware stores, nurseries and supermarkets.

For aphids on a cherry tree have a look at ‘Yates Nature’s Way Vegie & Herb Spray’. It's certified for use in organic gardens and there's no withholding period, so you can spray and eat the same day! It's available in a ready-to-use or concentrate bottle. Click here for more info on this product: external link 

Hi Cat. I have used Confidor on my fruit trees in the past. I am alive and well at 72, and none of our children and grandchildren have health issues that we can attribute to the use of Confidor. My tertiary education and background are in biochemistry, chemistry, biology, genetics, horticulture and ethics. You should continue to research and make your own decision. Regards, David.

Hi David - thank you for your kind reply. Yes have been doing a wee bit of googling/research and I do feel reassured … and now even more so. Happy gardening and thank you again.

Hi Kaye, Confidor is no longer produced or distributed by Yates -it is also not registered for edible plants.

Is there an alternative? I seem to have a lot of mealybug this year. And the scale which attracts the ants.

Hi Kaye, Yes you can use ‘Yates Nature’s Way Vegie & Herb Spray’ on the mealy bugs. It's certified for use in organic gardens and there's no withholding period, so you can spray and eat the same day! It's available in a ready-to-use or concentrate bottle. Click here for more info on this product: external link 

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And 'Yates Pest Oil - Insect Control Spray' for the scale. It is available in a ready-to-use spray or concentrate. This is a great spray to have to prevent Citrus Leaf miner on your citrus too.

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Just alternate the sprays a week apart starting with whichever pest you have in larger numbers.

Hope that helps.

Thank you

I’ve just moved to a house with 2 apple trees and both have woolly aphids. I’ve brushed them with metho and watching to see what happens. I note that Yates don’t make confidor any more, but I’ve read the base around the effected trees should be treated with confidor at petal fall next season. Any help with this?

Hi, To treat the Wooly Aphids you can use ‘Yates Nature’s Way Vegie & Herb Spray’. It's certified for use in organic gardens and there's no withholding period, so you can spray and eat the same day! It's available in a ready-to-use or concentrate bottle. Click here for more info on this product: external link 

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Soil drench of Confidor at petal fall is more for a small farm or orchard. Once you have eradicated the aphids you shouldn't need follow up or preventative treatments.

Any other questions please do not hesitate to contact us directly external link  Michelle Yates Horticulturist

Hi Nicol, Unfortunately Yates no longer manufacture nor distribute products under the Confidor brand.

Sorry,we do not currently have a product to treat Olive Lace Bug.

Confidor tablets are available through other suppliers though.

In short Jen, yes you can. But if you have fruit to harvest (which you should have now), you should be aware that fruit concentrates organic compounds in its flesh. So fruiting time may not be the best time to use insecticides that flow through the sap (called 'systemic' insecticides). I would be doing two things: 1: prune the apple tree down to a height where you can reach the fruit (autumn pruning is fine for apple trees because sap movement helps seal toe cut ends) and 2: spray with white oil to suffocate the woolly aphids. You will need 3 sprays 3 weeks apart to break the insect life cycle. At non fruiting time, then a systemic insecticide will be OK for woolly aphids as they suck the sap. Woolly aphids are quite persistent, so you will need to keep an eye on your tree and treat is as soon as you see them. They cause very bad disfigurement, as you might know. All the best with that. David.

Hi Jen, Unfortunately Yates no longer manufacture nor distribute products under the Confidor brand. Try ‘Yates Nature’s Way Vegie & Herb Spray’. It's certified for use in organic gardens and there's no withholding period, so you can spray and eat the same day! It's available in a ready-to-use or concentrate bottle. Click here for more info on this product: external link 

Confidor can be used for indoor flowery plants

Hi Brian. Can you see what is doing the damage please?

No, only the results of it's appetite. It will be signing up with Jenny craig.

Ha I like your sense of humour. Are pieces being chewed out of the leaves? Or are leaves and buds shrivelling up? Are there beetles (without guitars) in the flowers? What does the damage look like?

There are pieces being chewed out of many of the leaves and the buds are shrivelling up.

Hi Barbara. Confidor is no longer available. If you have some then follow the directions on the pack for sucking insects or mites, as ‘berry bug’ is a mite (not an insect; mites have 8 legs like spiders). Yates Mavrik is a miticide so try that, following the directions on the pack.

Hi Graeme. Sorry mate I don’t have a package so I can’t tell you the answer. If you don’t have the package, I suggest you email or phone Yates and get them to help you. Good luck with it.

1 tablet per metre height

As far as I know there is no replacement. Have a look on the Yates website to see if there is anything. I find it's best to only treat pests and diseases as they arise, with the most suitable product. So personally I wouldn't use this tablets unless I had to treat a large tree for a well established sucking or chewing pest.

Hello, they’ve been replaced by Bayer Initiator Systemic Plant Insecticide & Fertiliser. It’s the same ingredients.

Thanks Sea To. I’ll look out for them.

Sandy the theoretical answer is yes. You should follow the dosage guide on the pack for your size tree. Contact Yates for confirmation. You will probably have to treat more than once, and it should be timed for when the bugs are active. The Confidor is designed to be absorbed into the tree and transported in the sap, which is sucked by the bugs — so they should die from the poison. Direct injection of poison avoids the loss of chemical into the soil, so consider this method. Also consider avoiding the problem altogether by removing the tree before it becomes too expensive to do so, and replacing it with a suitable tree of a resistant species. Because the bug is mobile, you will have the problem forever if you keep the tree. Neighbouring trees will harbour the bug. Also consider a replacement deciduous tree if summer shade and winter sun would be an advantage on the north or west side of your house or garden. There’s usually more than one way to skin a cat. :) And some cats are more suitable than others :). Research more before you act, but act quickly. All the best with your decision.

Thanks, I will give it a try as I do like the tree.

Hi Max. I have personally found no evidence of Confidor being carried or absorbed into fruit, but I can't say it isn't. Different substances are carried into different parts of plants, and actively concentrated there or somewhere else in the plant. E.g. sugars (also a chemical), are carried throughout the plant, and concentrated in fruit at higher concentrations than in other parts of the plants -- which is why fruits are sweeter than leaves. Plant poisons and wastes are often concentrated in bark and leaves, both of which are later dropped off the plant. If a particular garden chemical is listed as 'not approved for...', this doesn't mean it is dangerous to use it for that situation or plant. It simply means that the chemical has probably not been tested for that situation. Some people say that Confidor kills bees because it gets into pollen. However I am yet to see actual scientific evidence to support these claims. If anyone reading this can provide such evidence I would appreciate this please. But, Max, this alone does not mean Confidor is present in fruit, or that it is in high enough concentrations to be of concern. Many substances poisonous to humans can be found in human food, (even in 'organic' food!) but in such low concentrations that no detectable harm results from them. But some substances can become concentrated and then harmful (e.g. mercury becomes concentrated in our fatty tissues like in the brain and becomes extremely harmful). Personally, I have sprayed Confidor on my fruit trees (peaches, apricots, plums, apples and nectarines) to fight aphids, but I choose not to do that near harvest (called 'withholding period'). I prefer to spray rather than using tablets in the soil, as I have control over its use. It is more short-term. Also, there are other sprays to use instead if I choose.

No. The concentration of Confidor in the berry and leaf would be far too low to affect a dog. However I have no information on the effect of berries or leaves on a dog.

Hi Amelia. Yes the tablets will work fir any sap sucking insect like aphids. Check the pack instructions for replenishment intervals, but only use them as necessary to treat existing insects, not as a preventative, to reduce insect resistance to the chemical.

Hi John. I think so. I think borers live in the phloem tissue under the bark, and in the bark. Confidor travels around the plant through the phloem tissue. Also treat the tree with Seasol (which is a growth promoter, not a fertiliser). But you are treating a fruit tree, so you should check the withholding period for the fig tree. If you can’t find that on the label, contact Yates. If the tree is heavily infested and very weak, dig it out by the roots, throw it out (don’t keep it in your garden, or compost it) and buy a new one, because borer damage is irreparable by the tree. Good luck with it. Cheers, David.

Yes, Confidor Tablets will work, providing you use the recommended number for your tree size. The sooty mould is a fungus that is using sugary insect excretions as a food source. So there are insects on your tree branch, using the sap as food, because the tree is producing its own food that travels around the tree in its sap. The insects that are producing the excretions are probably a sap sucking insect such as scale, aphids or woolly aphids, so the insecticide in the Confidor tablets is absorbed by the roots of your tree and travels in the sap stream to every living part of your tree. All insects that suck sap or chew leaves will be killed by the insecticide. Remember that insects are an important part of our environment, so it's best not to kill them all the time. Use insecticides sparingly and targeted towards particular insects. Also there seems to be a link between bee numbers and this insecticide, and it is possible that the Confidor gets into the pollen produced by your tree and is therefore transferred to bees and their hives. (The jury is still out on this link, so there may or may not be a causative relationship.) So it's possibly best not to use Confidor when the tree is flowering. Also, if you live in an area where you get frosts, you might find that the insects and mould are controlled by severe temperatures, so next winter check this out. So check out the flowering time for your tree and avoid using Confidor at that time. I think your willow might be flowering anywhere from February to June. One more thing: the aphids are carried around the plant by ants, because ants love the sweet aphid excretions as food. Ants 'farm' most sap sucking insects such as aphids, so check for ants. You can stop ants climbing the tree and other plants by applying tape covered with horticultural glue around the plant trunks. This will therefore help to reduce ants, aphids and sooty mould. However in a large tree the ants might be nesting in the tree. All the best with your decision.

Many thanks indeed. Now to work out the tree size for doseage! Much appreciated. sharon

Where can you buy Confidor tablets as. Innings no longer stock non does Flower Power

You could use Yates Baythroid Advanced Insect Killer for Gardens, which is a general contact insecticide. As it is not a systemic insecticide, you need to thoroughly spray both the upper and the lower leaf surfaces. Avoid spraying when bees are about. The best time to spray insecticides is just after sunset, when bees have gone home. Insect life cycles are short, only a few weeks or less, so you will need to spray again when the next generation appears. If you need a systemic insecticide alternative to Confidor, I don't think there is a better one. But you can do an internet search.