INTERIOR PLANTS
“PLANT PESTS”
PREVENTION
 Monitor
Regularly
 Sanitation
 Supplier
 Quarantine
 Alter Conditions
CURES
 Chemicals
Lots
of federal, state and
industry regulations
Uniform application can be
effective
 Soap - limited effectiveness
 Hand Removal - Time consuming
CURES, 2
 Cotton,
alcohol swabs - time
consuming, homeowner
 Biological Controls - Knowledge
base needed, $, must be prepared
with sources
 IPM- Use pesticides, bioloicals,
cultural methods to gain control,
detect early, monitoring, sticky tags
BIOLOGICALS
 Program
Design- We will look at this
in depth in the future
 Chemical Use- Limited, use 30 days
before release
 Timing- Before population explosion,
may take 6-8 weeks to see results
 Insects- Specific insect for each crop
SUCKING INSECTS - APHIDS
 Aphids:
“Plant
louse” in shoots and on
backs of leaves
Curl and discolor foliage
Honeydew harbors black mold
Chemicals include microencapsulated, foam, bombs,
etc.
TWO SPOTTED SPIDER MITES
 Spider
Mites - scourge of the
interior industry
Mottled or sandblasted
appearance, check undersides
Fine webbing
Magnifying glass & white paper
Dry air, estivate in wood
SCALE
 ScaleOval,
undersides along veins
Plants yellow and die, inject toxin
Notoriously hard to eradicate
6000 species, Soft waxy shell
produces honeydew, armored
don’t. Denatured alcohol helps
MEALY BUGS
 Mealy
Bugs
Looks like pink to white cotton
Found in leaf axils and crevices
Alcohol dehydrates them
Leaf distortion, yellowing, stunt,
and honeydew, injects toxin
Remain in soil and thatch
WHITE FLIES
 White
Flies
“Flying Dandruff” Size of fruit fly
Leaves yellow and drop
Reproduce in 3 days so spray
multiple times a week
Waxy coating repels chemicals
FUNGUS GNATS
 Fungus
GnatsSize of fruit fly
Lives on organic material
Larvae of small worms found in
unsterile soils
Low pH limits
LEAF MINERS
 Leaf
minersFound on wide array of
ornamentals & vegetables
Rapidly develop resistance to
insecticides
Neem seed extracts seem to be
useful
THRIPS
 ThripsTiny
with two pair of wings, tan
Streaking or browning, stunting,
and distortion
Transported by wind and carry
virus organisms
Target buds, flowers, and foliage