Spider mites!? Help
 

Hello,
I have a collection of about 20 orchids and recently noticed a tiny spidery red thing or 3 crawling around an orchid. (Bht only one so far ) I’m planning to do a big repotting this year anyways and I thought it be a good time to treat the orchids for pests… I’m hearing a lot about neem oil, soapy water .. I’m just wondering what kind of insecticide would be safe to use on my phals, oncidium, bulbophyllum, psychosis, and vanilla plantafolia? Im not a huge fan of neem oil treatment so alternatives would be really helpful
Also
( they’re all in a tent, I heard raising humidity helps die off spider mites I’m hoping this holds them off until I can do the repotting in a few days, But how high? )

Nothing works better than mild soap spray, about a teaspoon per quart of water. You need to spray all surfaces of all plants and the growing area. They will always come back because they are in nature outside your house, so you must be careful. I wouldn't use pesticides in a home.

hey, seems like the mite thing is coming up a lot lately! i know that one of the members here has a youtube and he just made a vid on it (maybe out now or later today) so i am curious to see his approach.

we rely on the soap spray method as we have described before. if you are repotting, that is a great time to get rid of old media and spray the whole plant and all the roots really really well. of course rinse well with plain water to get rid of all soap. finally try to not get water down in the crown when you are spraying and rinsing (basically hold the plant upside down the entire time).

also, we continue the soap spray for up to 3 weeks, spraying and rinsing every couple of days when new bugs appear. when in media, we hold the plant updside down and hold back as much as we can with our hands, and then finally spray the top of the media with soap so it goes all down in.....then rinse the crap out of it. many flushes. best of luck with the eradication!

Thanks for the reply!
What kind of soap and how much do you use? Just plain old dawn? Or should I get a more natural soap? What’s the concentration? I’ll definitely wash down all orchids and the tent to see if this kills them

hey, yeah, just regular dish soap seems ok. and no precise measurement! 1 or 2 drops in a small spray bottle is our normal range. enough to get suds when it sprays

Let me be harsh :(.They might say "but they will be back cause they live around" that is only because they never went away .Soap is good for human cleaning bodies
:)

If you wish to eradicate spider mites use Acaricide combine with 'summer oil' (like Virotar)

Or Azamax, which is a concentrated azadirachtin (the active ingredient in neem, but without the issues with oils) product that is a miticide, insecticide, and nematicide that affects eggs, juveniles and adults. It has a mild odor, and once dry, is non-toxic to people or pets.

Spider mites live outside in the landscape. They will always come back and it's impossible to eradicate them.

Well, like all other pests. Target is to get rid of them at your site (whatever /wherever it is) and not just wash & clean them with soap.:biggrin:

Soap will treat spider mites but only the ones it comes in contact with. That’s why it’s called a contact insecticide, and also why repeat treatments are needed to catch the ones that evaded the prior treatments. Same is true of oils and many other products that treat mites.