Mealybugs!!!

[JennS]

I have a orchid that keeps getting infested with mealybugs. It is some type of cattleya (a minature) and I am getting very frustrated. I usually treat with alcohol swabbed cotton balls, but these mealys just keep coming back. Any suggestions? I've also heard that they live in soil so could they be living in the bark?

On a side note, what medium to cattleyas like best? My other one is in bark and seems pretty happy. Not sure why this one just hates me!

Does anyone ever use Malathion? I have only used it on orchids once when I had a severe spider mite infestation. It worked great, but I was wondering if it would hurt the roots if I gave them a spray if repotting is needed. Thanks. I can post pics of the plant too if that helps. It is looking pretty miserable..

[BikerDoc5968]

I have had mealy also on paph's and used Bayer Advanced 3-1 Insecticide. Comes as a concentrate that you dilute and spray....works great for all kinds of things and is available at almost any big box store or garden center.

[JennS]

Thanks for the help!

[BikerDoc5968]

The other insecticide that works very well for mealy and is "reatively" safe is pyrethrins.

[epiphyte78]

Mealybugs and slugs/snails are contenders for causing my orchids (all mounted outdoors) the most damage. What's difficult is that orchids have so many nooks and crannies for the eggs and baby mealybugs to hide.

A couple months ago I purchased a potted Dendrobium hercoglossum at a moving sale. Turned out it had mealybugs and even though I thoroughly sprayed it using a generic insecticide, the mealybugs would continue to return. When I finally got around to mounting it, I discovered that the mealybugs had been laying eggs an inch or two deep in the medium sized bark. The spray didn't manage to soak that deep into the bark.

Recently I purchased gloves and a utility belt to wear when I inspect my orchids. It carries snail bait pellets, tweezers to apply the snail bait pellets, insecticide spray, water bottle and other tools of the trade. I feel a little bit silly wearing the belt but it's important to be able to quick draw on the first sign of mealybugs.

Right now I'm trying out some supposedly natural insecticide spray that I found at Home Depot. Not sure how effective it is yet but the crazy, and somewhat disturbing thing about it is that it smells absurdly good. I'm almost tempted to give it to my girlfriend to wear as her new perfume.

[JennS]

I like the utility belt idea. I wear one when I work at my brother's garden center on Sundays. I love having all my tools at my fingertips. I guess I should get one for the house and get the necessary tools.

I try to inspect whenever it rains to check for slugs and snails. I should probably kill them but instead I pick them off and throw them into the ditch by my house and the probably just crawl back over to my orchids.

As for the mealies, I had one catt that may have already lost it's life, but I am going to try to revive it one last time. I already removed all the medium so I will just try to clean it with alchohol and spray the rest of the plant except the roots with insecticide. Hopefully that will help. I might have to try something more serious though because it is down to just a few roots left... (Sigh)

[kiki-do]

I too have mealybugs on occasion. Seems to happen more in summer and when the air isn't circulating enough. I have alcohol in a spray container and spray the leaves, stems with it. If I have blooms, I use alcohol with a q-tip. Takes alot of patience, but the orchids are worth it.
Something else I do when mealybugs or scale seem to be nesting under the medium is use a used up cigarette filter. I take the paper off the filter and stick the filter down into the medium. It acts as a natural insecticide. It stinks like the dickens, but okay once it's buried in the medium. The nicotene residue on the filter is the insecticide.
I mentioned this once before and got alot of negative feedback about it, but it worked very well for me several times. (Mention was of a tabacco (sp) virus)....but
I don't know, I found out about using this natural insecticide in an orchid book I have. I certainly don't have a problem using this method over store bought chemicals. But that is just my choice.

[susiep]

Wow, Kiki! I'm going to try the cigarette filter insecticide technique. My husband is a smoker and here is a use for those terrible smelling butts. I will make him separate the filters for me and try it! Other than that I have just been using alcohol in a spray bottle with a little paint brush to scrub the bugs away. I am getting my problem under control without pesticides (they weren't working anyway).