Mealy bugs and other unwelcome guests...

[Flobish]

Have had some recent sightings (and killings) of isolated mealy bugs, always on my mini phals.
The tricky buggers tend to hide under the clips which hold the spikes to their supports, so for people even MORE inexperienced than I: close inspection every day has been the key in keeping their numbers minimal for me.
I've swabbed with alcohol, which keeps them gone for a few weeks or so. Today I sprayed with my d. I. Y. bug soap (water, dish soap, a little cinnamon) and I'm wondering if anyone has: 1. A soap solution which has worked better than others ; 2. Another solution (literal or figurative) which has proven better; and 3. Opinions on these and/or insect pests in general re: insectivorous plants, etc.
I've also seen, only once, what was either a true or false (difference?) red spider mite, which I dealt with similarly, E. G. Swabbing with alcohol, then bathing and spraying with the soap.
Any suggestions would be welcomed, and I finally feel confident in my mould/mould fly treatment methods, so if you're not sure I may be able to help.

Also, I believe I've almost perfected my preparation of d. I. Y. Self-harvested deep- furrow Douglas fir bark, so if anyone happens to be as fortunate as I am in having huge quantities of the stuff available and doesn't know what to do with it, ask me! ;-)

[cbuchman]

Scale and mealy bugs are my problem too. I am diligent with the Q-tip and alcohol and regularly go on “bug patrol” to keep ahead of the little critters. I think the diligence also helps we keep tabs on my orchids (about 60) and note nay other problems, news growths, etc. I haven’t tried a soap/cinnamon spray but intend to give it before I migrate everybody indoors this fall. For really bad infestation, I use Safer’s soap

[Leafmite]

Mealy bugs are difficult to eliminate. If you use bark, granular rose systemic works. It takes a few weeks to work but then lasts six. I use it on many of my non-orchids. Lava rock and slow-releasing things don't work too well.
Butterworts, I have just read, attract fungus gnats by smelling like fungus(?). True or not, the leaves do get covered by them. They also get the whitefly, I have noticed. I have a pitcher plant and, on occasion, the mealy bugs do seem to get trapped but not often enough. I use alcohol to eliminate the mealies as some of my plants cannot tolerate the soap treatments (orchids are surprisingly tough compared to many other plants). For mealies, aphids, spidermite and many other sucking insects, keeping other houseplants clean of problems is a must. Good luck!

[orchidsarefun]

drosera and bladderwort are the best for fungus gnats -they cleaned them up so completely that I now have to supplement feed the carniverous plants with dried blood worm. DO NOT EVER think that you can feed mealy-bugs to either of these carniverous plants. I tried- and they ended up eating the plants!
After having a mite problem I am spraying all my orchids with a mix of rubbing alcohol, water and dish soap. So now I have a physan routine + a bug routine - each once per month. I never had these issues when I only had 10 orchids !

[Flobish]

I never hear about Venus fly traps in relation to these issues. Just curious cuz i used to love them as a kid, though I could never keep them alive or even get them to feed! :-( maybe that's why nobody recommends them...

[Flobish]

And can these others which were mentioned be gotten at your run-of-the-mill home depot garden center? Probably not, I'm guessing... Prices?

[orchidsarefun]

Originally Posted by Flobish

And can these others which were mentioned be gotten at your run-of-the-mill home depot garden center? Probably not, I'm guessing... Prices?

each under $10 - try orchid shows or orchid nurseries.

[Ashby Chadburn]

I recently had a major infestation of mealy bugs and some scale as well. I tried the alcohol, soap and Q-tips. They were not under control. I tried a new product called Sucrashield. It helped, but they were not eradicated. Then I used Merit. It kills on contact, but it is also absorbed through the roots. It did the trick within a few days. I highly recommend it. It is available on-line from several vendors. Best of luck with those orchid killers.

[Flobish]

Merit, sounds familiar. Thanks I'll check it out.

[Flobish]

It seems these pests have come upon me in the past few months, for the most part. Is it others' experience that this is predominantly a summertime phenomenon?