Is carbendazim for flowers and plants harmful to humans? A detailed explanation of its effects and uses

For experienced gardeners, the proper use of fungicides is the most ordinary thing. But for novice flower lovers, they are often prone to gullibly trusting online tutorials, and carelessly get the frequency of use wrong, causing the opposite effect. So, regarding the most common methods of using carbendazim, what issues need attention?

Carbendazim, commonly used in flower growing, is used very often. It is indeed currently recognized as a little expert at protecting flowers, but if used incorrectly it also has hidden risks. First, let's talk about the toxicity issue. Carbendazim is a "systemic fungicide" launched by DuPont of the United States in the 1970s. Although it belongs to the low-toxicity category, it can only deal with plant diseases such as fungi imperfecti and ascomycetes. But quite a few experts remind us that even the safest chemical agent itself has limits to its use.

From the perspective of pesticides, it is itself harmful to humans. For example, if the powder is inhaled during use, in mild cases it causes vomiting and diarrhea, and in severe cases it harms the liver and kidneys; acute poisoning can be fatal, and chronic poisoning may even affect the next generation. Another danger is that if it comes into contact with the skin during use, it may be absorbed through the skin, then causing damage to the stomach, intestines and liver. If there is also long-term excessive contact, it may increase the risk of liver tumors. At present, there are also reports abroad stating that carbendazim residues in fruit must be strictly controlled. In China, quite a few exported fruits have been returned because of this.

So what are the advantages of carbendazim? The amounts used for flowers and for crops are different, because gardening does not need to consider the safety of "eating it", as long as you wear a mask properly during use, poisoning can be avoided. However, some flower lovers also worry about the "phytotoxicity" problem, because carbendazim can be called a "fungus-killing all-rounder" and can solve many fungal problems such as powdery mildew, black spot, stem rot, and gray mold.

Therefore, as long as flower lovers cannot figure out what fungus the plant has, they will take carbendazim and give it a try. The advantage is that it saves trouble, and the disadvantage is that you need to pay attention to the "effective ingredient content" on the medicine packaging bag, because the medicine concentration from different manufacturers is not the same, and you must not mix the concentration incorrectly, otherwise burning roots and seedlings will be troublesome.