Is this what they call "mealybug"?
How do I treat for whatever it is?
Thanks,
Caroline
Fuzzy White Stuff on plant stems
just squirt with soapy water.
If it is dry fuzzy white stuff and it jumps when you reach out to touch it, yes ~ it is a mealy bug. I use a diluted solution of rubbing alcohol and water in a spray bottle. It will give the little buggers a bath and not hurt the plant. I would do it early am or pm and not in full sun. If it is a wet white fuzzy it would be spittle bugs.
This link shows a mealy and treatment. http://www.gardeners.com/on/demandware.store/Sites-Gardeners-Site/default/Page-Show?cid=5317&utm_term=PDD
This message was edited Jun 4, 2010 6:42 AM
Oh, man, if it's mealy bugs, treat right away, don't wait or they'll be on everything in the garden. I battled them a couple of years ago and like to have never got rid of them. The alcohol and water with a squirt of dish soap really works though.
Crow
Never got rid of them??? I think they are a way of life in TX.... lol
I've seen a few mealy bugs lately, too. I squash 'em. I agree to nip them in the bud. They'll be on everything before you know it, and then, the only thing to do is throw out the plant before they spread even more!
I just found it on about a dozen different plants in my yard. That is the worst I have seen it.
I just found a coelus plant covered in mealy bugs... and a few on a neighboring (recovering from winter) hibiscus. I swabbed them with alcohol. Funny...they turned brown when touched by the alcohol. It imobilized them, then I squirted full blast from the hose to knock them off. I checked later and found several that I missed -- they must've been hiding from me! I had a bad mealy bug infestation several years ago, and had to just throw out several hanging baskets. I hope this is not going to be another bad year!
This is what I have.
That's it. If you touch that mess with a swab dipped in alcohol, you'll see individual brown bugs. Now, get to work! :) Good luck!
I have some on my Turk's Cap, too. Guess I'll be spraying soon.
I just read about using ammonia + water to spray them. Haven't tried it yet.
What are you spraying with Stephanie?
C
I'll use a mixture of water, Murphy's Oil Soap, and rubbing alcohol. I know that rubbing alcohol applied directly to mealy bugs dries them up and turns them brown. I've experimented with this using a q-tip! LOL Maybe I'll add a bit of ammonia to the mix just for fun.
Any ideas about the ratio of alcohol to water?
Remember everyone....butterfly caterpillars and ladybugs will die also if you do a mass spray. Here is a page from the link above.
http://www.gardeners.com/Beneficial-Bugs/7326,default,pg.html
All though I disagree that tachinid and syrphid flies are beneficial since they parastise the butterfly caterpillars.
I use about a cup of alcohol to a half gallon of water and a good squirt of Dawn dish soap. I haven't tried the amonia, but would think you'd need to be careful with it because it might burn some plants. Also, the alcohol mixture should be sprayed on in the late eveing so it has time to dry before the sun hits it full blast the next day, otherwise your plants can cook. This has worked well for me, and I had a horrible infestation of them a couple of years ago. This year, I spotted them early on Turk's Cap and sprayed the heck out of them. I haven't seen any of them since, and none on other plants.
Crow
Cheryl, I use "some". LOL You can also use this spray for aphids.
I have a friend who is a master gardener and she says a hard spray of plain water will do it for the mealy bugs. We are seeing them here this year too in the piedmont of NC. It isn't typical that I see mealy bugs in our garden --at least not for the last few years but this year the lilacs got the bugs and I saw some infestation on sage and the grandfather's beard tree (chinese fringe) - I am sure there are others out there with issues but I haven't looked very closely.
I bought a flat nosed spray head for my hose that sprays up, I saw it on some show several years agos. If you get up under you get most of them with just water, if stubborn, I've used the alcohol in dilution as well.
I sprayed with the soap and alcohol formula this evening. Will check tomorrow to see if it made a difference.
I'll look for your results, I haven't had any yet this year. Knock on wood! :)