The use of plants in the interior of the house is a long-familiar and beloved pastime by many. They decorate rooms, purify the air and delight the eyes of the owners. Florists make a lot of efforts so that their pets are not exposed to diseases and pests. However, this is not always possible, and one of the most dangerous insects for plants is the spider mite (the photo is present in the article). This small arthropod from the arachnid class forms extensive colonies with its own kind. Pests use the juice of the plant on which they settled as food. From their bites, tiny dots remain on the leaves, which turn into spots over time. From a lack of nutrients, a representative of the flora begins to wither, and if appropriate measures are not taken, it eventually dries up. What does a spider mite look like on indoor plants and how to deal with it? We will explore these issues later in the article.
Pest development cycle
The process of arthropod development is called "metamorphosis". It includes the following phases:
- eggs;
- prelarvae;
- larvae;
- protonymph;
- nymphs in the breeding stage.
These stages may be partially absent in certain types of ticks. During each of the phases, the process of molting occurs.
What does a spider mite look like on indoor plants and how to detect the presence of a pest?
It is almost impossible to see insects because of their very small size. The maximum length of an adult is no more than 5 millimeters, and usually their size does not exceed even a millimeter. Most often, spider mites (a photo of pests is attached to the article) are green in color, but sometimes there are red, brown and orange individuals.
They often hide in leaves or soil. If there are too many pests, they will be quite noticeable. You should look not for individuals or their thin, barely noticeable cobweb, but for the skin that they leave after molting. You can find them on the back of the foliage, which is a favorite place for these arthropods.
Outwardly, the skins resemble small scales of dandruff and have a grayish or white color.
Signs of a pest
There are several clear signs by which you can determine that a green pet was attacked by a spider mite(control and prevention measures are described in the article):
- appearance of light or pale yellow spots on the leaves;
- presence of small scales on the wrong side of the sheet;
- thin cobwebs on leaf plates.
If the flower is completely covered with cobwebs, then it can no longer be saved and it will soon dry up.
Pest species
Spider mites on flowers come in several varieties:
- Ordinary. The most common and dangerous type. From prying eyes, ticks hide on the back of the leaves. When their number increases rapidly, plants that are close to the affected become victims. What does a spider mite look like on indoor plants? Insects are light in color, and spots and cobwebs appear on the leaves of an infected specimen.
- Red. A very dangerous, but less common tick. Differs in small size, and in his preferences - orchids, roses and lemon plants.
- False. Because of its miniature size, it goes unnoticed until the moment when the flower is already covered with cobwebs and begins to die.
- Atlantic. Likes high humidity and prefers exotic plants.
- Cyclamen. It hides in both tubers and leaves, is difficult to hatch, and can also form large colonies. As a rule, the florist discovers the defeat of this mite when the plant can no longer be helped.
Where do pests come from
Sadly, most amateur gardeners are familiar with these arachnids. Where are they fromcome from? The most common way of infection is an infection brought from a store with a purchased flower. Therefore, when a new copy appears, it must be quarantined, that is, put on a completely empty windowsill. There the plant should spend at least two weeks, and if nothing suspicious has happened, then you can transfer it to the "collective".
Another way to defeat this muck of a domestic representative of the flora is a hit from the street. If there are trees under the window or balconies where the flowers are located, then the parasites can descend directly from them with the help of their cobwebs to our green pets. In addition, females living in the soil can wake up after their long hibernation at any moment, sensing favorable conditions for life. And in the eggs of this scourge, the sleep phase can reach up to 5 years.
Pest Life Facts You Should Know
There is an expression: forewarned is forearmed. It is the best fit for this issue. After all, knowing some facts about the life of arachnids, you can simply avoid their appearance and spread:
- Ticks need a warm environment with low humidity to live well;
- the life cycle of a female does not exceed 1.5 months, but during this period she manages to lay a couple of hundred eggs;
- treatment with poison is more effective at the time of the release of new individuals, since a very small amount of funds can cope with eggs.
So, we have examined what a spider mite is on plants. How to deal withpest chemical and folk remedies? This will be discussed further.
Pest control
Defeating an insect is worth a lot of work and time, and methods of struggle are both with the help of chemicals and folk. Of course, it is more likely that special preparations will help to cope with this scourge. Although some flower growers are afraid of causing more harm to the plant and resort to folk methods. Not having enough effect, they still resort to chemicals, but sometimes it's too late.
Nevertheless, any struggle must begin with getting rid of the yellowed leaves, because they will not recover, and the bulk of the parasites are on them. By removing the damaged plates, you can free the plant from 25% of the parasites at once.
After that, it would be nice to arrange a warm shower for the flower, flushing another part of the ticks down the drain. Now you can choose the processing method.
If a spider mite settled on houseplants, how to deal with chemicals? Let's look at this later in the article.
Chemical pesticides
There is an extensive selection of special products against spider mites on the market. They were combined into one group called acaricides. They will help to cope with these pests that have settled on indoor flowers.
It is important that the result is obvious, follow all the rules and recommendations prescribed in the instructions, you can not conduct experiments with more frequent use, or, conversely,ignore the repeat procedure. Also, you can not neglect the safety rules, as the funds are extremely toxic.
Aktellik
Poisonous chemical that has a contact effect on insects. The essence of its action lies in the fact that it disrupts the process of feeding the tick and makes it impossible. Treatment for spider mites is necessary once every two weeks. The flower grower should put on a protective suit before using the drug and carry out the treatment on the street.
Neoron
The drug is one of the most effective. When spraying, not only adults are destroyed, but also larvae with eggs.
Fitoverm
Has a detrimental effect on spiderlings. The active ingredient is aversectin.
Flumite
Toxic agent that destroys both adult insects and their eggs. Spraying is carried out once a month.
Skelta
Has high efficiency. Just one spray is enough.
Terms of Use
For a better result, in addition to treating the plant with acaricides, the following rules must be observed:
- Alternate chemical treatment and hot shower.
- If mites have infested a large area of the plant, then alternate use of different preparations is recommended.
- It makes sense to process all the flowers in the house.
- During arthropod baiting, be sure to clean the window orshelves where the plant lives. Use soapy water first, then alcohol solution.
- Disinfect the soil during transplantation.
Folk remedies against pests
If for a number of reasons the grower does not want to use products with a chemical composition, then folk methods can come to the rescue. They are easy to prepare and use.
Before you deal with spider mites, you need to prepare a flower. The first step is to clean it well by washing it in the shower. Next, you need to do a thorough cleaning of the windowsill and pot. This will help remove those ticks that may be hiding there. After all these manipulations, you can proceed directly to the processing of the flower itself. To do this, choose one of the folk remedies below.
Onion infusion
We need to take about 5 liters of water and peel about a kilogram of onion. Then combine the ingredients and let it brew for 5 days. When the specified time has passed, the infusion should be well filtered - and you can begin to process the affected flower.
Garlic infusion
This is a very effective and fast way to deal with spider mites, reviews of which are only positive. Take a few heads of large garlic and chop. The resulting garlic mass must be mixed with a liter of boiled water. Then tightly cover the dishes with a lid and hide in a cool place for 5 days. When the right amount of time has passed, the mixture can be usedlike poison for ticks. But just before use, the infusion should be diluted with water in a ratio of 1:1.
Soap solution
You need to take any cute and process the flower along with the pot. The foam must be left for 3 hours, after which it can be washed off. Next, a plastic bag is put on the plant for a day to maintain the required moisture.
Alcohol
This is the most effective of all folk methods, but it is only suitable for plants with a dense leaf texture. Just take a cotton pad and soak it in ammonia. Next, all sheet plates are wiped. However, if ticks are wound up in places to which access is limited, then the remedy will not produce the proper effect. Also, a couple of drops of acetone can be added to the alcohol solution for greater efficiency.
Let's take a look at what preventive measures are.
Pest prevention
There are some measures that can save a flower from defeat:
- permanent inspection of indoor flowers;
- compliance with the level of humidity, since the spider mite prefers dry air;
- give a warm shower for the plant at least once a month;
- freshly purchased flowers must be quarantined for at least two weeks;
- steam the soil, because insects can be hibernating there;
- spray the leaves with clean water every day.
So, we looked at what a spider mite looks like on indoor plants and what are the main methods of dealing with it. It is quite possible to get rid of the pest, but you will have to approach the process thoroughly and wisely. You can not neglect the rules of re-baiting, processing neighboring plants and thoroughly cleaning the place where the affected specimen is located. Compliance with preventive measures and a thorough examination of the plant will help to notice and avoid the mass spread of the pest in time.
