I found this while I was watering my indoor hibiscus today. I keep a pretty close eye on this plant because it's been blooming lately and it was one of my moms so I'd be crushed if anything happens to harm it or kill it. Not sure what this is, Spider mites, white flies, etc.... any help you can recommend will be greatly appreciated.

TIA,
Lin

Here's an even more close up to show you the prob area. Luckily it's confined to a small area at the present, so hopefully I can rid of these pests soon. I don't see a lot of lil bugs, just a few but they sure have been busy,,ewwwwwwwww! HELP ASAP!!!!!

TIA,
Lin

spider mites..... if you cut this whole branch off, will that be the end of them?.... is it one you can bear to lose off the plant?... remember it will give you lots of new growth in summer!!???.....inspect it VERY carefully to see if indeed this is the only place they are living!!!...

let me know what you find.....

Sorry it took so long to get back to you Toots but I've got the darn flu somethin awful....have to wait til my stomach cooperates, if ya know what I mean! LOL!

Well after closer inspection I have learned that it IS NOT confined to only the small area that I first thought, it is in a few other areas, just not as bad yet. I guess I'll probably have to get an insecticidal soap tomorrow if possible. Still have no clue what I'm dealing w/tho, spider mites, white flies, etc....but I'm hoping that the ES will do the job. It should eh? Thanks for looking, guess being sick just helped my panick even further LOL!

To start, I would recommend if you could thourghly wash/spray the plant, it would be a start. If you have to, put it in the shower,I have to say this for those that don't know - lukewarm water! Cover soil w/foil. If you have a handspray attachment all the better. Do it everyday. It won't make the problem worse. The plants will actually enjoy the foliage washing.I got rid of scale this way on a bay tree, water and a small brush. If you want further help: http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/

This is from their forum, it say's orchids, but the advice would still apply. This can be your next step.

What are Spider mites or mites, and what should I do about them?
Mites damage orchids quickly and quietly—often their presence is not noticed until significant damage has occurred. Mites are visible, but their presence is easily determined by rubbing a white cloth over the area that is damaged. If mites or their eggs are present, a brownish residue will be left on the leaf. This will come off and be visible on the towel. Some spin light webs which are visible on the plant or at the base of the plant.

A very good natural remedy is an oil/soap treatment. Dr. Martin Motes recommends using a light oil--such as vegetable oil. Olive oil is very heavy and could potentially damage plants. Using 2 TBS oil/gallon is sufficient, you can add a teaspoon of baking soda for a bit of antifungal. Remember to keep shaking the solution in the container to keep the oil mixed with the water. Spray thoroughly on all sides of the leaves.


FOLLOW UP with a soap solution about 7 days later. Using 2 tsp/gallon of Joy or Dawn (dog shampoo is great too) not only does a number on the pests, it helps clean off the oil treatment. I actually follow up with a third treatment in another week with the same soap solution.

The soap/oil mixture remedy has been shared in the past, but the University of Florida recently discounted it as the two agents act in direct opposition of each other and essentially decrease the effectiveness of the effort. Just like the TV ads say, the dishsoap is designed to cut grease (oil) in its tracks!

AOS recommends Malathion, or Volk Oil/Sunspray for scale. Also Knox Out 2 FM or Orthene Turf, Tree and Ornamental Spray. Mites are nasty buggers to get control over. If the infestation is confined to one plant, isolate it to prevent spreading--watch for that carefully. Be careful to follow the label on preparations TO THE LETTER to avoid damage to plants.

One tip for success is to make sure you do TWO treatments of your selected poison about 7-10 days apart in order to catch newly hatched pests.


Submitted by Rhonda Heide

Entered by Michigoose

This message has been edited. Last edited by: sheetmoss,

To control any pest you need to understand a little bit about them. Spider mites are tiny, red, spider looking thingys, not really spiders, that suck your plants sap. In a drier environment they drink more and that is an aphrodisiac to them so they mate more and produce more spider mites, so the first thing to do in treating them is to increase the humidity around the plant by misting a couple of times a day. Control can be achieved by spraying the spider mites, not the whole plant, with an insecticidal soap, a real soap solution not a detergent like Dawn, something like Ivory, Fels Naptha.
If this is in the house do not spray with any kind of insecticide other than the insecticidal soap.

Thanks for all of the great advice. My hibiscus is in the shower as we speak and I'll cont the process and hope and pray that it works real soon. Luckily I do have the detachable shower head and this helped tremendously to spray the entire plant from all directions. I'm still not sure what I'm dealing with but hopeful that all of your great info and help/advice is going to do the trick. Like I said before, I simply panicked because I have soooooo many houseplants and this one in particular was one of my moms. I would hate to lose it and sure don't want to spread these buggers to any of my other plants. I haven't had to deal with any big pest probs in so long I guess I got a lil green! LOL! and I generally just take them all outside before it gets too cold out and really spray them off good with the hose and if need be a lil soapy water to give thema good cleaning and hopefully rid of any pests, so far so good til now. Thanks again and I'll let you know how we're doing in a day or so.....

Many thanks,
Lin

Good luck
If everyday some of the bugs go down the drain, as with my bay tree, you will elimiate them!

If your not already doing a pebble tray under plant I would encourage you to do so.

For those that don't know, a pebble try provides
extra humidity around the plant. Any waterproof, nonrusting,nonporus, tray, dish, pan will work.

I like to use the Hormel entree dishes, They're black and look nice. Simply fill container with pebbles, fill with water so plant isn't sitting in it and replenish as needed to keep water levels up.



Good for plants and for you. It evaporates quickly during heating season that stagnant water is not a problem. A half tsp of bleach could added occasionally.

Bagged pebbles/gravel can be found in pet depts. In witer I buy mine at WalMart. In summer garden centers.