Is this a Mealybug and if so, how do I kill the little ***?

[AnonYMouse]

Whoa. I don't want to start anything but one bug on one new plant does not make an infestation.

And I hate the F'ers, and I don't even have war wounds from them. They get me at a visceral level. Wouldn't mind them being divinely obliterated from this earth.

But some people are not comfortable with pesticides in general so don't push! The option has already been mentioned.

[Leafmite]

Malathion is another very good insecticide. This isn't something you would use in the home but it is pretty effective. If you do spray in the home, always use something that is cleared for safety indoors.

---------- Post added at 09:52 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:50 PM ----------

There is also other options to be tried. I like the idea of lady bugs. Usually, in the summer, we get plenty of these (being not too far from soybean fields) and they do a very good job of cleaning off my plants.

[nikkik]

I grow indoors in the winter too. I have two small children, two dogs and two cats, so I'm not comfortable spraying any plant indoors because a systematic makes that plant toxic for a period of time. And I have to many living beings that sometimes taste test my plants.

I have been very lucky that I have only had a few plants come with "travelers". On most of those I have used diatomaceous earth (food grade) and it has solved the issues. I have gotten rid of thrips and mealy bugs this way. It's completely nontoxic to us and pets, but apparently it causes bugs with exoskeletons to parish because it scratches them and causes dehydration. If it is wet it becomes much less effective, but I give my plants a good soaking and then a dry rest for a week while their coated in the powder and repeat.

Here's what I did: 1) soak the plant out of it's media for at least an hour (give a good spray of water to flush out any other pest; 2) repot; 3) sprinkle the diatomaceous earth on all the crevices of the plant and around pots with pests as a line of defense; and 4) as you water your plants you may need to repeat step three until the problem is resolved.

This may be slightly more tedious then chemicals, but I always try more of a green solution than pulling out the big guns and it has worked for me. I wish you much luck and I am sorry you received plants with pests, it is SOOO frustrating!

[No-Pro-mwa]

Yep that's Mr. mealy, Mrs. mealy will be wrapped in cotton looking patches. I had a big infestation one time when I got a huge Jade plant from a friend in Colorado. It took this thing a long time before it burst with them.

Then I got my orchids a bit to close they got on some of them. So here is my 2 cents. I kept them at bay for a long time, when they did finally move onto the orchids I finally had to throw out my Sherry babys, oncid's are a pain because they can get deeper into them.

I got great pleasure in squishing them. The only thing I would sometimes spray them with was neem oil. I don't like to use the chemicals unless I have to either. I was told neem when used on the soil will act like a systemic. I am not sure of this but I would put it in the water when I watered them sometimes. I'm sure it will kill the eggs. I isolated the orchids and just went over them every day and squished them. Also the jade plant.

And not sure if this helped but the one spider I let live in my house is the little jumping spiders. For some reason I like them so they live around my plants. I really do think they ate them but I guess I don't really know for sure. I just did a quick squish every day for a month or so and no more mealy's.

I even still have the huge jade plant and I haven't seen a mealy in over 2 years. I still haven't re-potted the jade plant as it is going to be such an undertaking. I'm not sure where to begin.

That Masde is going to be very easy to get under control. They just don't have to many places to hide. Not sure about all the others but I didn't think that phal's were to bad either.

Good luck, but don't throw them out just yet.

[RandomGemini]

I found another bug on a different plant that came from another vendor. I have moved it in to the kitchen window sill, as it's a mini Phal. It should do well there by itself. These two plants were sitting very close to each other when I boxed them up to bring them home and when I set them on the table in the dining room, they were sitting next to each other. Hopefully, that will be the end of my problems with these. I will continue checking the other plants daily for signs of mealy bugs for the next eight weeks.

I'm going to talk to my hubby about using insecticides on the plants. After finding bugs on two plants, I'm not sure that I can call this a light infestation now, but it's also too cold to leave these plants outside to dry so we'll have to come up with a plan.

Would it be warm enough in the garage for the orchids? Mostly I'm looking for a place to set them so they can dry overnight before coming back inside. My garage is attached and insulated, but not heated. Expected low tonight is 34.

Thanks!

[Orchid Whisperer]

Treat early in the day on a relatively warm day outdoors (if your nights dip to 34F, probably your daytime is OK). You should be able to safely bring them in by nightfall.

[Dub3]

I can loan you my sledge

[dounoharm]

throw them all out and buy plastic!

[RandomGemini]

OMG no! I have a neighbor that puts out plastic flowers in her planter in the spring. It's so tacky, but she's retired and was never a gardener so I forgive her. LOL!!

I picked up some insecticide yesterday. I will treat both plants in a few minutes, as we're supposed to have a nice day today.

[dounoharm]

its really funny....my mom killed every plant I ever gave her....all my life....till I gave her an orchid....that's the ONLY flower she can grow! she is terrific with phals and paphs, but there isn't enough light for her to grow cats....she still cannot grow a geranium!