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Spider Mites
·
Spider mites are a pest you may not always be able to detect on your houseplant
because they are so small to the naked eye, they are only about 1/50 of an inch.
· How can you tell if spider mites are alive and well on your
houseplants?
Look for damage on the undersides of leaves. Close examination
of infested foliage may reveal very fine webbing produced by the mites on the
leaves and stems. Plants with spider mite damage have a sickly appearance,
yellowing of the leaves and overall lack of vigor. They may even look dusty.
Spider mites use piercing-sucking mouthparts to puncture the plant tissue and
feed on the liquid within the cells. In light infestations the foliage will
appear to be speckled with very tiny yellowish-green spots. Heavy mite
infestations can turn the foliage to greenish-yellow and eventually tan or
brown. Heavily infested plants often drop their leaves.
· If you think you
may have spider mites but just can’t tell, try this; Hold a piece of white paper
under a leaf, and give the leaf a good hard tap. If tiny, rust-colored specks
fall on the paper, your plant has the common red spider mite. The mites (which
are about the size of fine sand) are very easy to see on a white background as
they try to run for cover and crawl around.
Winter is the time many people
start to notice spider mites on houseplants. The dry, indoor air and reduced
plant vigor seem to favor the mites. If mites are present, the next step is to
determine the extent of the damage and the value of the plant. It is usually
easier, quicker and more convenient to discard a small plant that is heavily
infested than it is to return it to good health and appearance.
· The first
step toward getting rid of spider mites is to isolate the plants, but keep the
infested plants clustered. Isolating your plants will reduce the risk of spider
mite migration. Spider mites are quite adept at riding air currents to and from
the plants they wish to feed on. Keeping your plants in clusters will help
retain moisture by reducing airflow between the plants. Spider mites are not
very keen on moist climates; they need the evaporative properties of an arid
climate to reproduce more efficiently.
If possible, prune heavily infested
portions of larger plants before attempting mite control. Washing or syringing
infested plant foliage may reduce light mite populations. Move plants outdoors
or into the bathtub or shower and then use a forceful spray of water to dislodge
mites from an infested plant.
The next step is to spray your plant or plants
with a pesticide such as earth tones insecticidal soap, Follow the directions on
your pesticide, several applications may be necessary.
Aphids
·
The aphid is tiny about 1/8 of an inch and oval in shape. They may be green,
pink, brown, white, black, yellow, red or gray in color. Aphids are commonly
found on young, developing leaves and stems in clusters or colonies. They are
equipped with piercing/sucking mouthparts where they ingest fluids from new
tender growth and stems. Their feeding distorts the new growth and they
sometimes cause leaves to curl.
Aphids live and work in colonies and are
generally easy to control. Insecticidal soap will kill them on contact. You may
need to repeat applications at least three times to be sure to kill the eggs as
they hatch. Because aphid eggs are air-born, keep an eye out for more, as you
may need to re-apply. Earth-tones insecticidal soap manages this pest very
well.
Fungus
Gnats
· Many people mistake these small flying insects for fruit flies
·
To combat the fungus gnats it is good to know a little about them. The adult
gnat lives for about 1 week, mates and reproduces. They thrive on decaying
organic materials and fungi. Indoors they are attracted to similar conditions
found in moist potting soils that have a high organic content.
· The
adults cause no damage to healthy, mature plants but are a nuisance inside the
house. The female will lay her eggs on top of the soil. The hatched larvae feed
on organic matter; roots and root hairs in the top inch of the soil. Fungus
gnats only eat during the larvae stage of their life cycle. To eradicate the
problem, you must eliminate them at this stage.
· First, isolate the
plant or plants where the gnats are living. Next, cut back on water to make the
soil is less attractive to the adult female gnat. You don't need to stop
watering completely, just allow the soil to dry out between watering.
If you
catch the problem early enough, cutting back on water may be all you have to do.
· If the problem is more severe you should take the additional step of
removing the top 1 to 2 inches of the soil. This can be done with a fork or a
spoon. Do this gently to prevent damaging the surface roots of your plant. Now,
just add a new layer of soil. It is important to buy new, sterile potting soil
for this.
· If complete repotting seems necessary, clean all loose soil
especially around the top root area before repotting it.
· Also adding
Bonides systemic houseplant insect control will help combat them as
well.
Prevention
Inspect plants carefully before purchase for signs of
insect infestation. Always use sterile potting soil to prevent introduction of
fungus gnats. Add Bonide systemic houseplant insect control every 2 months to
your plants soil
Description
Very small, oval-shaped white bugs. Egg sacs appear as white, waxy fuzz
along the stems and crotches of branches.
Their life cycle
A
mealybug produces a new generation about every 30 days. Each egg sac may contain
as many as 600 eggs.
Plants they attack
The mealybug is related to
another houseplant pest called scale, and both thrive on a wide variety of
indoor and outdoor species, including ficus, philodendron, coleus, fuchsia,
begonia, citrus, fern, dracaena, ivy, and poinsettia, and more.
Why
they're a problem
They feed by sucking plant sap, which weakens the plant
and causes leaf drop. They also excrete copious amounts of sticky "honeydew,”
which can lead to the growth of sooty mold.
Damage control
· Start
by isolating the infected plant. Spray as strong a stream of water as the plant
can tolerate; this should dislodge most of the bugs. Repeat if you see new egg
sacs.
· Swab each mealybug with cotton or q-tip saturated in rubbing alcohol,
wait a couple of days, and then rinse the plant with water.
· Spray with
Earth-tone insecticidal soap. As a preventive maintenance try adding Bonide
systemic houseplant insect control every 2 months.
Scale
Insects
· Know what you're looking for. Scales are insects with
piercing/sucking mouthparts. Female scale insects look like small (1/10 to 1/5
inch), oval, legless bumps. The males are minute yellow-winged insects, and the
larvae resemble small mealybugs, which are another plant pest that are white and
fuzzy looking.
· Identify scale insects by looking on the undersides of
leaves and around leaf joints. Scale-damaged plants look withered and sickly and
may have sticky sap or a black fungus on the leaves and stems.
· Move an
infested plant to isolate it from the rest of your houseplant collection. Scale
insects are invasive and will infest other plants.
· Remove scale insects
with a twig or your fingernail. They will scrape off the plant tissue easily.
· If scraping alone doesn't do the job, wash infested plants with a soap/oil
mixture. Mix 1/2 tsp. insecticidal soap, 1/4 tsp. horticultural oil into 1 qt.
of warm water. Wash the leaves individually with the soap/oil mixture. Rinse
well. Eathtones insecticdal soap combined with Bonide’s all season spray oil
work well together.
· Be diligent - examine infested plants for evidence
of new scale every day. It may take a while. As a preventive measure add
Bonide’s systemic houseplant insect control
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