twich Posted September 20, 2006 I hear you can just boil a heap of leaves in water, strain, cool and spray on garden plants to kill a wide range of pests because of its extremely high levels of nicotine. Just wondering how effective this would actually be and if anyone has tried. I also hear caffine works too but then I would have to spend "$" at a "shop" whereas N. rustica would grow easily and for free..just like me baby! free and easy. An old dude told me they used to use nicotine sulphate ( or something like that) and it worked well (also on chicken lice) but they banned it because you could get 'high' on it. High like on pituri I guess. I suppose you could also kill yourself pretty easily playing around with powdered nicotine. Which makes me wonder, would deeply inhaling the smoke from a whole ciggar result in effects like those of pituri? (From the very high levels of nicotine) Don't laugh too hard now! I am a non smoker so I find the whole nicotine hit thing a bit hard to understand. Or chewing up a ciggar with acacia ash? I know it would taste crap but what about the effect? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Auxin Posted September 20, 2006 Yes, I've used "tobacco tea" to kill alot of bugs- really it doesnt have to be that strong, a few grams per litre is supposed to be enough but I make mine stronger. And yes its poisonous. When you spray it wear a mask and wash up after. Most places have stopped using nicotine sulfate, but not because it got people high- because too many people died. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TheMooseZeus Posted October 3, 2018 Bringing up an old thread so i dont have to make a new one! Rustica seems to be very resistant to insects so i can see how it would be used as a pesticide. As for poison, people smoke the stuff? Is getting some on your skin or in your mouth that bad? Especially a few grams/ litre Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Auxin Posted October 3, 2018 Most nicotine is destroyed in combustion. Conversely its very bioavailable by skin absorption or drinking the stuff. Back when I grew it I would get anywhere from a very strong buzz to mild 'green tobacco sickness' just from handling the leaves and flowers of N. tabacum, N. rustica, or N. gossei and that was while I was a smoker. Two drops of pure nicotine or one cigar has enough nicotine to kill a non-smoker if taken orally. Its one of the poisons the body can build a tolerance to, though. You'll know if your being exposed to too much if it feels like you drank too much coffee, more exposure will result in increased restlessness, nervousness, as well as nausea. Thats as far as I ever got but things only get worse from there according to the literature. 'Green tobacco sickness' is the actual name of the illness caused by excessive skin exposure to tobacco plants, it happens a lot in growers and harvesters. It takes some minutes for the nicotine to fully soak in. If it feels like you drank coffee when you didnt, go wash with soap and stay away from the tobacco plants for a few hours. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TheMooseZeus Posted October 4, 2018 6 hours ago, Auxin said: Most nicotine is destroyed in combustion. Conversely its very bioavailable by skin absorption or drinking the stuff. Back when I grew it I would get anywhere from a very strong buzz to mild 'green tobacco sickness' just from handling the leaves and flowers of N. tabacum, N. rustica, or N. gossei and that was while I was a smoker. Two drops of pure nicotine or one cigar has enough nicotine to kill a non-smoker if taken orally. Its one of the poisons the body can build a tolerance to, though. You'll know if your being exposed to too much if it feels like you drank too much coffee, more exposure will result in increased restlessness, nervousness, as well as nausea. Thats as far as I ever got but things only get worse from there according to the literature. 'Green tobacco sickness' is the actual name of the illness caused by excessive skin exposure to tobacco plants, it happens a lot in growers and harvesters. It takes some minutes for the nicotine to fully soak in. If it feels like you drank coffee when you didnt, go wash with soap and stay away from the tobacco plants for a few hours. I've often felt light headed smelling the plant! I thought it may just be placebo. Though i am sceptical when it comes to plant sprits i am very drawn to it in a way, it's very interesting to see grow. I take it that cigars don't kill people because you don't eat the thing? That info is really good to know, thank you so much for sharing. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Halcyon Daze Posted November 1, 2018 Confidore is nicotine. I feel it just from getting it on my hands when I'm spraying scale without any gloves on. I used to make tobacco tea a fair bit, but I was worried about spreading plant viruses around, as Nicotiana species famously harbour a lot of viruses. If you know a smoker then you can soak the used cigarette butts out of their ashtray for their nicotine. The butts are potent. I sometimes added chilli, garlic, coffee leaves or custard apple leaves. All of which kill bugs. There's also neem and I think leaves of the yam bean which contain rotenone. Probably many many more. Kills all the good bugs too so only spray selectively when there is no other alternative. Don't forget a couple drops of detergent to make it stick to the little critters. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TheMooseZeus Posted December 18, 2018 When is it time to harvest leaves? Many of mine are beginning to turn yellow but it seems early in the season. I have been collecting the seedpods to prevent the spread of the plants Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Strontium Dawg Posted December 19, 2018 If they're yellowing it's time. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
squidgygoanna Posted December 19, 2018 Do the dried leaves need to be cured before they're used? don't know much about the process 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TheMooseZeus Posted December 19, 2018 1 hour ago, squidgygoanna said: Do the dried leaves need to be cured before they're used? don't know much about the process Yep! To smoke they do. I doubt it matters if they're going to be used as a pesticide Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sagiXsagi Posted December 20, 2018 I have made N.rustica pesticide in the past and it works. Time to harvest as pesticide is during flowering, when the plant is mostly covered in sticky trichomes all over. I think you can also wash the material to make the pesticide solution instead of boiling the whole thing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Smiling Posted December 21, 2018 you shouldnt allow your plants to flower either. During flowering more nornicotine is produced which makes more carcinogens when curing 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sagiXsagi Posted December 22, 2018 I dont think that's a problem as this is a thread of talking about nicotiana as pesticide. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TheMooseZeus Posted December 23, 2018 On 21/12/2018 at 8:56 PM, Smiling said: you shouldnt allow your plants to flower either. During flowering more nornicotine is produced which makes more carcinogens when curing 8 hours ago, sagiXsagi said: I dont think that's a problem as this is a thread of talking about nicotiana as pesticide. Both great points! Thanks! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TheMooseZeus Posted December 27, 2018 A few things - When making pesticide surely nornicotine is preferred over nicotine. I left some dried and fresh leaves in a spray bottle in the sun and i have started using that on aphids on my corn plants. Not sure if thats working yet. Pretty sure nicotine is incredibly water soluble so i assume the spray bottle wont be contaminated forever. I can't help but think rustica tea can "clean" pests out of soil too 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites