Lately I have begun noticing these tiny insects (the white dot flecks you can see on the central leaf in the pic) coming all over my potted plants - they're on the leaves of my ixora, pentas, marigold, and they're in the soil of my coriander too! What are they, are they bad, and if so, what should i do? Thanks! ( photo / image / picture from swmitra's Garden )
Looks like white flies. Do they fly up when you disturb the area and then settle back onto the plants? Or they could be mealybugs. In any case, the infected plants should be quarrantined so as not to spread pests to other plants. Try giving them a good bath of soapy water. I use a spray bottle to mist the foliage till it runs off, spray the top and bottoms of leaves, then rinse with clean water. You may need to resort to some chemical defense in order to get rid of them; just be sure to read labels and follow directions. Or you can toss the plants and start with new ones. :'( Good luck!
I agree with Kay. You can also add 1 T of rubbing alcohol to 1 gallon of the mixture (or 1 t. for a quart), this is very effective for instant knock down. I have used it for aphids and it worked very well.
Thanks, Kay and Caroline! Just one thing re rubbing alcohol... That's the same thing which we use to remove nail polish, yeah? Swapna
No, it isn't the same as nail polish remover that's usually acetone. Rubbing alcohol is 70% alcohol and 30% oils. You should be able to find rubbing alcohol in a pharmacy/chemist shop, not sure what that type of business is called in India.
Could be sanitary alcool? The blue one? Someone told me here in Romania, it's good to kill white flies. In a mixture with water and a few drops of dish washing soap (this is to form some film on the leaves or something). I tried all kinds of insecticides and nothing really worked, if not... I even found more flies. I was worried cause cold weather was near and didn't want to bring inside the flies as well. This sanitary alcohol worked!
Cal, I would think it is the same thing as rubbing alcohol. It is used to sanitize or disinfect, especially at the doctors office when they are giving shots or taking blood, before they stick you with the needle. But over here it is clear, not blue. It is also called isopropyl alcohol 70%. Hope that helps. The mechanism that makes this and the soap work in conjunction is that the alcohol strips the waxy coating off the pests body and the soap penetrates the "breathing" organs and kills them, removing the bulk of the pests. The plants need to be watched and re sprayed a few days later to get the new crop of eggs that just hatches out and spray them before they can lay another round of eggs. Keep watching them for a few more days to repeat the cycle.
