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"Only water once the top two inches of soil are dry and infrequently during the cold months," suggests Clark. Also, it's essential to catch the adult gnats so they won't lay new eggs in the soil. A yellow sticky trap is the most effective way to catch them. You may have to use them for several weeks to ensure you get the adult gnats. Fungus gnats are attracted to high humidity and moisture. Most houseplant owners notice the pests when they spot the adults flying around houseplants or gathered at a nearby window.
Leaf Miners
The best way to keep your houseplant bug-free is to treat every new plant like a potential pest hub. Even if a plant looks pristine, there might be bugs hiding between the leaves and in the soil. Repot any new plants you bring home with fresh soil, inspecting them for signs of pests as you go. This simple precaution can keep you from the headache of a mass infestation later on.
Brown Marmorated Stink Bug
Indoors, where it remains warm year-round, aphids continually reproduce, spreading far more rapidly between houseplants than they would in your backyard. Thrips can be picked up from exposure to the outdoor environment. Thrips are the worst pest infestation your plants can suffer.
– Apple Cider Vinegar is Effective at Killing Adult Gnats – Stopping Reproduction
Pest-Resistant Houseplants That Stand Up to Spider Mites, Aphids, and More - Martha Stewart
Pest-Resistant Houseplants That Stand Up to Spider Mites, Aphids, and More.
Posted: Tue, 28 Nov 2023 08:00:00 GMT [source]
Thrips, which are also known as thunderflies, are wheat-colored or black and cause damage to a plant by sucking its juices. Sticky traps are one of the best ways to catch adult fungus gnats, preventing them from laying eggs in the soil. Unfortunately, if your soil is already infested, you’ll need to target this area for treatment to remove the problem altogether. Although they are more closely related to aphids and mealybugs than actual flies, whitefly perfectly describes the look of these tiny bugs.
Encouraging beneficial insects is one of the best ways to tackle recurring whiteflies. Unfortunately, that’s a little tricky to do indoors, so you’ll need to take matters into your own hands. Once you’ve removed the scale you can see, apply an insecticidal soap or horticultural oil to tackle those you might have missed and to remove any young insects. Keep the plant isolated for a few weeks until the scale problem is gone. Scale can be armored or unarmored, with the hard shell scales the hardest to treat and remove.
Bed bugs are disgusting flat reddish-brown insects about the size of an apple seed. These tiny flat, parasitic bugs are hard to find at homes because they live in dark crevices of bed frames, box springs, the seams of mattresses, and behind baseboards. The tiny brown bugs measure 0.2” to 0.27” (5 – 7 mm) long. The yellowish moths measure 0.47” to 0.66” (12 – 17 mm) long and tend to inhabit dark areas. A drain fly is a furry flying bug with a gray or brown-colored body and wings covered in long, thin hairs.
Treating Mealybugs
When you see an eclipse of moths swarming your lights, don’t hesitate to call for professional help. Moths are nocturnal creatures, and they are most active at night. They are attracted to light, so you can usually find them swarming your lights at home. Moths are herbivores, and they feed on a variety of plants. Some moths are known to eat the leaves of trees, while others are known to eat flowers.
Whiteflies damage leaves, causing curling, yellowing, and other distortion or discoloration; reduce yields; and encourage growth of unattractive sooty mold. They normally kill plants only in cases of severe and prolonged infestation, or when plants are already weakened or stressed. All houseplants are susceptible to pests, however, bugs that find a home in your houseplant’s soil can be hard to spot and could be tricky to remove.
FAQ: Getting Rid of Common Houseplant Pests
Unfortunately, dealing with bugs or tiny flies indoors can be more problematic than outdoors. The best way to treat an aphid infestation is to catch it early. "Examine the opening of leaves and flower buds carefully," says Clark. If the infestation is partially bad, follow up with an application of neem oil or insecticidal soap for several weeks to ensure you have killed all eggs.
Though bee stings deliver no serious complications, they can be quite painful. So if you see them, do not disturb them, or it’s best to call a bee control expert to have the hive extracted or moved to a bee sanctuary. They are typically found in warm, humid environments such as hotels, motels, residential properties, and other places where people sleep. Bed bugs can be difficult to detect, as they often hide in seams and crevices during the daytime, not to mention they are too small for the naked eye. By knowing how to identify these critters, you’ll be able to understand their behavior better and assess whether or not they can cause any harm to your home or family.
Over 27,000 different insect species live in California, according to the University of California’s Environment and Natural Resources. While insects may all look different, they can be difficult to identify if you’re not familiar with their features. “Also, establish a schedule to regularly clean drain lines, garbage disposals, and any location where food waste accumulates,” he says. Unless you have a serious infestation, cockroaches won’t bite you. While cockroaches don’t give people diseases through bites, they can transmit food-borne illnesses from one place to another.
Houseplant expert Madison Moulton gives you tips on how to grow plants in water indoors – no soil needed. Tired of watching your pets like a hawk and checking for chew marks to avoid problems with toxic houseplants? Houseplant expert Madison Moulton discusses the methods you can try to keep your pets safe from toxic plants indoors. Although they aren’t as damaging as some other pests, young larvae can feed on young, tender roots beneath the soil, potentially slowing growth. They can also spread quickly around your home, filling the space and becoming a huge nuisance.
Aphids are pests that suck the sap of houseplants and can damage indoor plants so much that they die. These common houseplant pests are from the superfamily Aphidoidea and are commonly called greenfly or blackfly. Other treatments like neem oil or insecticidal soap are also effective.
Most smaller insects prefer the dark, so you’ll find them on the underside of the leaves. For best results with minimal risk (not saying there’s no risk), spray the liquid soap directly at the bugs you see rather than coating the entire plant. After flushing bugs out from your soil, it is a good idea to dry it out thoroughly to ensure your soil health. Placing the plant outside in the sun for short periods is a great way to do this, as well as holding off watering for a few days. Moist soil is the ideal location for larvae and eggs to thrive.
These crawling or flying pesky insects can quickly infest indoor plants. You might see them emerging from the soil, flying around your plant, or sticking to stems and not moving at all. Getting rid of whiteflies starts with suppressing the adult population. Blasting the flies with a strong water stream or using yellow sticky traps helps reduce pest numbers. For heavy infestations, apply insecticidal soap or neem oil.
Spray them with lukewarm water or a little diluted dishwashing liquid in the sink and rinse them off. Dust plants that don’t like their leaves to be wet with a cloth or soft brush. Other signs of a thrip infestation include brown stripes on leaves, leaf drop, or parts of plants start dying.
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