Is something bugging your plant? See if it might be one of these pests below.
Fungus gnats look like fruit flies, and are actually harmless to you and your plant collection. They populate very quickly and can be hard to get rid of.
Adult Fungus Gnats are caught with sticky traps. The larva are hiding in the top 2” of your soil, so it is best to replace the top soil of all your plants for the most optimal results. Other things you can try include mosquito dunks (found at plant stores), beneficial insects, and bottom watering your plants. As they are attracted to moist soil, so bottom watering avoids the top soil being moist and inviting to the pests.
Thrips are slender, fast moving pests with wings. Younger thrips are a yellow/green, while the adults are very dark coloured.
Thrips feed off the sap in your plant, killing it by taking the plants nutrients. You may notice dark brown streaks in your leaves, evidence of thrip feeding.
You can try to catch thrips with yellow sticky paper (like fungus gnats), rinsing the leaves off, or can try insecticide soap.
Thrips are devastating to plants, and hard to kill due to their ability to move around. It is often needed to just get rid of the plant to be sure the infestation can’t infect other nearby plants.
If you see little neon green bugs roaming around, it is most likely aphids. They are more common in outside gardens, but can find their way inside too. While green is the most common colour, they can also be white, black, brown, grey, yellow, or even redish.
Aphids are easy to get rid of, but do populate very quickly. Try dislodging them off the plant with water, or by using a soap based solution spay.
Ladybugs feed on aphids, so if you have an infestation be sure to move any ladybugs you find over to your aphid population.
Spider mites can be orange, white, or brown and will feed on your plants, leaving behind damage. These pests are very small, so often you may notice leaf damage or spider webs before you notice the spider mites themselves.
The best way to get rid of them is to spray down your plants with insecticide soap. This product can be found at all plant/nursery stores, and chain stores such as Homedepot or Canadian Tire. For best results spray down your plant with insecticide soap, then rinse off your plant (I take mine into the shower for this), and repeat a couple times a day until you no longer see signs of the pests. Be sure this plant is isolated from your other plants, spider mites populate very quickly.
Mealybugs are white, fuzzy, soft body bests who suck the sap from your plants, ultimately killing your plants. They hide in crevasses of your plants, and can populate quickly. This makes them hard to get rid of, but not impossible. I recommend using rubbing alcohol to dap, or spray down the insects. This destroys their outer skeleton, allowing you to wipe or rinse them away. Keep a daily eye on the infected plant, and keep dabbing away the mealybugs until you no longer see them.
Brown scale are slow moving or stationary pests that have a hard brown shell. They, like mealybugs will suck the sap (plant nutrition) and destroy your plant.
Due to their hard shell, it’s easiest to get rid of these pests by scraping them off with your finger nail. You may also try insecticide soap, or rubbing alcohol to rub off the scale bug. Like all pests, your surrounding plants are at risk to become infected. It is best practice to isolate your infected plant from your healthy ones.
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