Spider mites on indoor plants - folk remedies. How to get rid of spider mites: drugs and control methods. Rules for treating indoor flowers with industrial preparations

Fighting spider mites on indoor plants is not a pleasant task. To destroy spiders, you can use chemical or folk remedies. Of course, if you treat plants against mites with chemicals, you will get rid of the problem much faster.

However, if you get rid of the spider using folk remedies, minimal damage will be caused to your flowers. Although traditional methods of control sometimes turn out to be ineffective, and it is necessary to use one or another chemical remedy for spider mites.

Chemicals

To remove the pest, there are a number of special preparations for spider mites - acaricides. They are designed specifically to combat such insects that encroach on indoor flowers.

• "Aktellik". Used against spiders by direct contact with them. Makes the process of eating impossible. It needs to be sprayed once every two weeks, and you need to take care of a protective suit, and the flower itself is not treated at home, but on the street or in a non-residential premises, since the product itself is quite poisonous.
• . A biological agent that is much less harmful than its predecessor. It contains aversectins - these are the substances that have a neurotoxic effect that is detrimental to the insect. Despite the fact that Fitoverm is not so toxic, you should not forget about protective equipment.

What to do and how to get rid of spider mites on indoor plants if you don’t want to deal with chemicals that are hazardous to your health? There are simple methods available to everyone, because the insect is afraid of means that can easily be found in any apartment.

However, before starting treatment, the flower must be thoroughly cleaned. To do this, wash it with ordinary clean water without adding cleaning agents (after all, soap clogs the pores on the leaves of the flower). The window sill and the pot itself are also well washed to remove any spiders that might be hiding there. After this, you can begin more serious actions.

1. Garlic infusion. Two finely chopped heads of garlic are poured with a liter of boiled water. The infusion is screwed on with a lid and left for five days (the jar is placed in a dark, cool room). After this, the resulting mixture is diluted with water in a 1:1 ratio and the flower is treated.
2. Onion infusion. 100 g of onion peels are poured with five liters of water and left for five days. After this, the infusion is filtered and used to treat plants.
3. Alcohol. It is good to remove pests using alcohol, but the method is only suitable for plants with dense leaves. A cotton swab is moistened with ammonia and the leaves are wiped. The method may be less effective due to the insects sitting in areas that are difficult to reach.
4. Soap solution. Use any soap: green, laundry or even tar. It is important to treat not only the exhausted plant, but also the pot in which it grows. The foam is left on the plant for a short time (2-4 hours), and after washing it off, the flower is covered with a plastic bag for a day, maintaining an increased level of humidity.

Prevention of infection

1. Regular inspection of your flower garden.
2. Maintaining optimal air humidity (ticks love dry climates).
3. Regularly spray the leaves with a spray bottle.
4. Washing the plant every month under a warm shower.
5. Quarantine newly acquired copies.
6. Steaming the soil to destroy individuals hibernating in the soil.

Video “Getting rid of spider mites”

From this video you will learn how to quickly and effectively get rid of spider mites.

It would seem that flowers growing in a room that are not in contact with the street should not be affected by pests, but they get to them too. The real problem is a colony of spider mites on indoor plants. How to fight? Let's figure it out together.

This microscopic pest is invisible to the naked eye. But traces of its vital activity can be seen by looking at the damage caused to plants. A nimble lover of plant juice leaves punctures on the leaves, which are clearly visible when examined in the light. Over time, they merge, forming spots, and the damaged leaves dry out. The plant stops growing, the leaves turn pale. The cobwebs produced by the pest indicate that the plant is heavily infested with mites. This stage of damage requires immediate action, otherwise the flowers may simply die. In order not to miss the danger, they need to be inspected regularly. Traces of molting that look like whitish dandruff, as well as silvery stripes and spots - the pest's secretions - also indicate that flowers are infested with mites. To search for it, it is better to use a magnifying glass, choosing a sunny, bright day. With electric lighting, the chances of detecting it are slim.

Biologists classify ticks as arachnids, a type of arthropod. This classification is possible due to the special structure of its body. That is why all insecticides against mites used against other insects are powerless. They need other means. There are more than 2,000 different species of ticks in nature. They can be found in every corner of the globe.

The following species pose the greatest danger to indoor plants:

• The common spider mite is absolutely omnivorous, affecting up to 200 species of plants;
• red spider mite - specializes in indoor plants and is most dangerous for them;
• red-legged spider mite;
• Turkestan cotton spider mite.

The community of these microscopic arthropods has not been fully studied, so the discovery of other species is possible.

The main food of any representative from the above list is plant juice. Indoor flowers deprived of it quickly weaken and die. What is the danger of spider mites?

They are difficult to detect

The size of an adult individual, regardless of the species, is no more than 1 mm, and the color – greenish-brown in different shades – allows it to easily blend into the foliage. Only wintering females are brightly colored. The mite lives on the underside of leaves, so its colony is not noticeable.

They multiply quickly

The tick's reproduction cycle, called metamorphosis, can last from a month to a week and depends on the ambient temperature. At a temperature of about 30 degrees Celsius, the larvae emerge from the eggs within 3 days, and after a few days they are ready to reproduce. Therefore, the tick colony grows very quickly, capturing new territories.

Ease of infection

The pest can be brought into the house with purchased plants or other planting material, with soil, on the soles of shoes and on clothes. Finally, a tick can enter a room through an open window, blown in by the wind, and the number of floors does not play a role here.

The presence of diapause in females

If conditions for development and nutrition become unfavorable, female ticks enter a kind of resting stage, in which they can remain for up to 5 years. But more often they simply settle down for the winter - daylight hours shorter than 17 hours do not allow them to lead an active lifestyle. Mites overwinter on the leaves or in the soil of the pot. They are able to burrow to a depth of 20 cm. Any crack is suitable for them - in a window sill, wall, ceiling, or floor. Females do the same during prolonged heat.

Such features of the life cycle make pest control difficult and lengthy.

Which indoor plants are susceptible to infection?

Most species of mites are omnivores, some have their own special preferences, but most of them do not live on plants of the Gesneriaceae family due to the small hairs covering their leaves. They have their own pest, also from the mite family - the flat beetle, but it does not belong to the arachnids.

This pest does not favor aloe, but it will happily feed on the juices of other flowers:

• citrus fruits;
• arrowroot;
• aroid;
• kutrovykh.

Often mites can be found on ficus, fuchsia, croton, and impatiens. Special gourmets prefer one species: the phalaenopsis mite attacks orchids, and the cactus flat beetle attacks cacti. But the favorite target of this insect is roses. Even with a constant fight against small arthropods, spider mites are found on roses again and again. Some gardeners simply stop growing it because of this.

But you can still cope with this pest.

Chemicals against spider mites

A lot of remedies have been invented for spider mites, and they all belong to the class of acaricides or insectoacaricides.

This pest cannot be destroyed with insecticides; they will not harm it.

Table: insectoacaricides and acaricides for killing spider mites.

First of all, you need to use Bitoxibacillin, Apollo, Akarin, Flumite, since they are less dangerous for humans.

How to get rid of spider mites if you don’t want to use chemicals? There are many folk methods.

Folk remedies for fighting

First of all, these are various decoctions and infusions.

• Boil 100 dried alder leaves or 100 g of fresh leaves in 1 liter of water for half an hour. The infusion steeped for 12 hours is filtered and used for spraying.
• Pour 50 g of dandelion leaves or 30 g of dandelion roots with hot (40 degrees) water and leave for about 3 hours, strain.
• 100 g of crushed horseradish roots are poured with a liter of water. Let it brew for an hour and strain.
• 20 g of garlic cloves are passed through a garlic press and mixed with 1 liter of water. Strain without insisting and process immediately.
• Finely chop a large onion, pour 0.5 liters of warm, soft water, and let it brew for 5 to 7 hours under the lid. Use a strained solution.
• Gently wipe the leaves with medical alcohol with 965 concentration. Particular attention should be paid to treating the leaf axils, where the mite may be hiding.
• If you turn on a household UV lamp with medium-length rays for just 2-3 minutes, the tick will be destroyed. You can do this 3-4 times a week.
• It is possible to use a mixture of acetone and 96% alcohol in a 1:2 ratio. It is better to simply completely dip the plants in this solution. Combine the processing process with replanting, thoroughly cleaning the roots from the old substrate.

How to properly process plants and flowers

A haphazard fight against spider mites will not give the desired effect; on the contrary, it will form a strong immunity to poisons.

Therefore, in the fight against such a dangerous pest, you need to be consistent, methodical and not forget about some little things that can reduce all efforts to zero.

• What do we have to do?
• It is necessary to treat not only the affected plant, but also all the other flowers standing on this windowsill, and possibly in the entire room.
• Trim off all damaged leaves and destroy.
• Arrange a shower for the plants, you can even wash the leaves with soapy water and rinse. For those plants for which water procedures are contraindicated, a steam bath is arranged. To do this, place them in the bathtub and turn on very hot water for a quarter of an hour without closing the drain. But the doors, on the contrary, are closed.
• Thoroughly disinfect all trays; you can keep them in boiling water.
• Treat the leaves with the selected preparation, wetting the entire surface. They spill the soil in the pot.
• Place a plastic bag over the flower and tie it, creating an enclosed space. The package is not removed until 2 days. The plant should not stand in the sun, otherwise it will simply cook.
• While the spider mite feeds on poisons, carefully treat the outer surface of the pot, window sills, frames, glass with alcohol or soapy water, without missing a single crack. It wouldn't hurt to wash the curtains.

To completely destroy mites, treatments must be repeated 2 more times with an interval of 6 days, but no more. It may be necessary to change the folk remedy or acaricide so that the ticks do not become addicted.

In order not to start a tedious struggle again, you need to take preventive measures.

Prevention of occurrence

A good preventive measure can be a hot shower every 3 weeks. Many plants can easily tolerate temperatures up to 45 degrees.

Everything related to plants and brought into the house from the outside must undergo strict control and, if necessary, treatment. The new flower is washed in the shower and placed on an empty windowsill, where it must undergo a two-week quarantine. Soil for plants needs to be steamed, like all other components used to prepare planting mixtures, including drainage.

Spider mites are a very dangerous and insidious enemy. It can quickly destroy an entire collection of indoor flowers. Therefore, you need to fight him mercilessly, only then can he be defeated.

As a rule, the main reason for the appearance of spider mites on indoor plants is the purchase of another flower at a flower shop. Larvae or even adults remain on plants as a result of improper plant care.

That's why! Every time you buy a new flower, you should carefully examine each leaf of the plant, as well as the soil for the presence of harmful insects. To be on the safe side, it is better to place purchased flowers in a separate place, for quarantine. After 2 weeks, if no signs of pest activity appear, the flowers can be placed in their permanent place.

The first signs of mite infestation of plants:

• The leaves begin to turn yellow from the bottom. Affected areas lose chlorophyll, become discolored and dry out.
• Since the leaves do not receive the required amount of nutrients, they curl and fall off.
• The places where the spider mite colony has settled are covered with a thin web.
• If you do not start fighting these pests, the plant gradually weakens and may die.

The infected plant is immediately removed from its place and quarantined.

Help against spider mites:

• Vermitek.
• Fitoverm.
• Aktofit.
• Akarin.
• Mites.
• Agravertine.

Interesting! After treatment, it may take from 3 to 7 days before the pests die. These compounds are less toxic, and they act differently. Therefore, you should not expect instant destruction of pests or doubt the effectiveness of the drugs.

If mites multiply very quickly and biological products, and even more so traditional methods, do not cope with their task, then it is better to resort to the use of chemicals, so-called acaricides. Some types of mites have already managed to adapt to the action of chemicals, so you have to use 2 or even 3 different drugs. In any case, an effective remedy can always be found.

The use of chemicals requires the use of personal protective equipment, along with certain rules. For example:

• Wear long sleeves, a hat and gloves.
• To treat indoor plants, it is permissible to use drugs of toxicity class 3-4. More toxic products are intended for outdoor use.
• Before spraying, the root zone is closed so that the chemical composition does not get on the roots. Alternatively, you can use a plastic bag.
• Processing of the plant is carried out strictly according to the instructions. If the flower is seriously affected, then more than one such treatment will be required, but possibly all four, to ensure that the pest is destroyed.

The following drugs have this effect:

• Sunmite.
• Floromite.
• Flumite.
• Apollo.
• Oberon.

You can prepare the following compositions:

• Onion infusion. To do this, you need to take a medium-sized onion and cut it into strips or cubes, then pour boiling water over them. After 4 hours, the infusion is filtered, poured into a spray bottle, and then the leaves are sprayed with this solution.
• Potato tops infusion. Green raw materials are crushed and poured with 1 liter of boiling water. After 4 hours the solution is ready for use.
• The use of celandine. To prepare the infusion, take 1 liter of boiling water and pour it into 2 tablespoons of green or dried celandine leaves. After 4 hours, the solution is ready for use.
• Yarrow decoction. You need to take 1 liter of boiling water and 100 grams of yarrow. Boil the solution for 3 minutes, let it sit for 4 hours and it can be used, but before that it should be filtered.
• Dandelion infusion. You need to take the leaves and roots of the plant, chop them and take 3 tablespoons, after which the raw material is poured with boiling water. After 4 hours, the solution is filtered and used for its intended purpose.

Instructive! Only the upper surface of the leaves can be treated with a soap solution. The respiratory pores are located at the bottom of the leaf. If these pores become closed with soap suds and then dry out, gas exchange may be disrupted and the leaves will wither.

• Every three days it is recommended to wipe the leaves of indoor flowers and other ornamental plants with a damp cloth. To do this, you need to take hot water and rinse the rag well each time.
• Do not allow the soil to dry out.
• Constantly remove fallen leaves from the flowerpot, which can serve as a hiding place for ticks.
• Flowers are regularly fertilized and the desired temperature and humidity are maintained. If the plant is strong and healthy, then even ticks may find it too tough.

Novice gardeners believe that they can get rid of mites if they completely immerse the plant in water. Actually this is not true. Firstly, you can damage the flower itself, and secondly, an air bubble forms around the mite. Of course, if you keep a flower in water for several hours, the effect will be obvious, but it is unlikely that any flower will be able to withstand this. The most effective way is to wipe the leaves with hot water, but this method will not be effective if many spider mite colonies are found on the plant.

In order not to spend a lot of effort and energy fighting flat pests, it is better to adhere to certain rules for caring for indoor plants. If you really like flowers so much and can’t live without them, then you need to care for them properly.

Spider mites are considered one of the most tenacious and insidious pests of indoor plants. This arthropod pest multiplies quickly and can spread to all house plants in a short time. With a lifespan of about a month, the female lays up to a hundred eggs of offspring every three to four days. If the affected leaves are not detected in a timely manner, it is very difficult to rid the plant of the mite and save it from death.

Types of spider mites

Spider mites have a wide habitat. Their colonies are found almost anywhere on Earth except Antarctica. It is very difficult to see mites on the plant due to their small size and faded color. Only adult females have an orange-red body color. You can see what the larvae and adults look like in a photo or under a microscope.

Ways to combat spider mites at home

Fighting a pest can be long and not always effective. Females hibernate when unfavorable conditions arise, and the eggs remain viable for five years.

The fight against spider mites at home should be comprehensive and systematic. If at least one plant from a home collection is damaged, all specimens in the house must be treated. The infected flower is immediately quarantined to prevent further spread of pests. Not only plants, but also flower pots, plant pots, windows, window sills and other surfaces where ticks can hide should undergo anti-tick treatment.

Among the ways to combat spider mites are the following:

Washing the leaves with hot water is carried out at a temperature of 45-46 degrees on both sides for a couple of minutes. The stems and top layer of soil are also watered. The treatment is repeated every 3-4 days in the first two weeks. Then for another two to three weeks, indoor plants are given a hot shower once a week.

For violets and other flowers with fleecy leaves, water procedures are carried out in the form of a sauna. In the bathroom with flowers, hot water is turned on at maximum temperature. Within 10-12 minutes the bathroom should be filled with steam. The total time spent in the steam room for plants should be no more than 20-25 minutes from the moment the hot water is turned on. The frequency of the procedure is similar to the above-described rinsing with a hot shower.

2. Treatment with soap solution. To prepare the solution, shavings of laundry or tar soap are dissolved in water at room temperature. You can also use a mild dishwashing detergent. Soapy water is whipped into a thick foam and applied to the leaves and stems from all sides, being careful not to get on the ground. The top layer of soil can only be lightly sprayed with a spray bottle without affecting the roots. The soap solution is left on the plant for 3-4 hours and then washed off. The regularity of washing with a soap solution is the same as with conventional wet treatment.

This method has a lot of opponents who believe that soap clogs the pores of plants. In this case, the development of the plant is disrupted due to the blocking of the photosynthesis process.

3. Spraying with infusions from folk remedies. Folk remedies in the fight against spider mites are in most cases ineffective. You can get rid of the pest with their help at an early stage of infection, when the mites have just begun to reproduce. But they are safe for plants, people and pets.

4. Treatment with chemicals. Since ticks are not insects, not insecticides are used to kill them, but acaricides or insectoacaricides. All these drugs, to one degree or another, pose a danger to humans and animals, and therefore require special processing conditions.

The specificity of the fight against spider mites is that these pests very quickly acquire immunity to pesticides. After only 3-4 treatments, the tick stops responding to the active ingredient in the drug. Therefore, acaricides have to be constantly alternated.

Folk remedies for fighting spider mites

Each fight with spider mites at home has individual characteristics. A folk remedy that turns out to be effective under some conditions may be useless in other situations. For plants with delicate and pubescent leaves, such actions are practically useless; it is better to immediately begin chemical treatment.

Popular and effective chemicals for killing spider mites

To get rid of spider mites using acaricides, you need to know the main active ingredient of the drugs and change them periodically. For processing it is also necessary to know the toxicity class. Drugs with toxicity class 3-4 can be used in the bathroom, and class 1-2 only outdoors.

Rules for treating indoor flowers with industrial preparations

Treatment of the plant with chemicals is carried out in 3 stages with a difference of 5-8 days. The hotter the air in the room, the faster the spider mite larvae hatch from the eggs and the smaller the difference between treatments should be.

When using the drug for the first time, its effect must be checked on one piece of paper. If after a day of observation the plant has not reacted negatively, then the treatment is carried out on all plants of this species.

The treatment is carried out at an ambient temperature of about 26-28 degrees, generously spraying the dry plant. Small specimens can be completely immersed in a 50% solution of the drug. To enhance the effect, add soap to the solution.

Spraying is carried out up to 12 hours on a sunny day and up to 14 hours in cloudy weather. Until completely dry, the plant should not be exposed to direct sunlight.

Prevention measures

The best protection against the death of flowers from this pest is timely prevention:

• All new plants should be quarantined for several weeks;
• Regular spraying, maintaining high humidity of leaves and soil, ventilation of the room;
• Monthly inspection and treatment of flowers with hot water or steam.

Following these simple preventive measures will help maintain your houseplants and minimize the risk of spider mite infestation.

Indoor plants, which decorate the room and help purify the air, can be susceptible to various diseases, and pests often settle on them. The spider mite is one of these quite dangerous harmful insects. If it settles on a plant, then a web appears on it.

The spider mite is very small in size, making it extremely difficult to see with the naked eye. The largest adult individuals have a body length of no more than 5 mm. Depending on the species, the insect may have different colors. Most often you can find green ticks, but they also come in orange or red.

These pests can hide in the soil, in a flower pot, or in the leaf axils of a plant. If there are a lot of ticks, then it will not be very difficult to notice them.

If this pest has settled on your indoor plant, then light and pale yellow spots will form on the entire surface of its leaf blades. If there are a lot of pests, then examining the underside of the leaves, you can see a thin web on it. If the flower is completely covered with cobwebs, it will dry out quickly.

There are several types of spider mites:

1. Ordinary. This species is the most common and poses a great danger to plants. As a rule, such a pest takes refuge on young shoots or on the underside of the leaf plate. Over time, when the number of mites increases, they will begin to settle on new plants located near the affected one. Such insects have a light color. Cobwebs and yellow spots appear on the leaves of the affected specimen.
2. Red. This very small pest has a deep red color. This type of tick is the most dangerous of all, but it can not be seen as often as an ordinary one. It prefers to live on orchids, roses and lemon plants.
3. Atlantic. This pest prefers to settle where there is a high level of humidity. As a rule, he chooses exotic plants, such as palms or citrus fruits.
4. False. This insect is very, very small, so it is almost impossible to notice. Most often, its presence on a flower is discovered only when the plant becomes covered with a thin web and begins to fade very quickly.
5. Cyclamen. Such a soil mite can hide both on tubers and on the leaf blades of the flower. Because of this, this pest is somewhat more difficult to get rid of than its counterparts. This species is capable of forming large colonies, which are often mistaken by gardeners for simple dust. In this regard, it is often too late to understand that the plant is affected by such a mite. This pest prefers high humidity.

Methods for controlling spider mites

It is quite difficult to fight spider mites that have settled on an indoor flower. To destroy it, flower growers often resort to using folk or special chemicals. It should be taken into account that it is chemical preparations that are more effective.

But if you are afraid of harming the plant, then in this case it is better to opt for time-tested folk methods. However, in this case, it should be taken into account that these funds are often low in effectiveness. And, in the end, the grower still has to use chemicals.

A fairly large number of chemicals have been developed that can cope with spider mites. Such agents are called acaricides. With their help, you can destroy various types of mites that can settle on flowers grown indoors. For example:

1. Aktellik. It is used to combat ticks, and this product has a contact effect on the pest. It disrupts the feeding process of spiders, making it impossible. Treatment should be carried out 2 times a month. The florist must wear a special protective suit, and spraying the flower must be done either in a non-residential building or on the street, since this drug is very poisonous.
2. Fitoverm. This biological drug is much less harmful than Actellik. This product contains aversectins, which have a neurotoxic effect, and it has a detrimental effect on ticks. When processing, you should also take care of protective equipment, because Fitoverm is also a poisonous product.
3. Neoron. This remedy is most effective. During treatment, both adult ticks and eggs, as well as larvae, die.
4. Flumite. This drug has a detrimental effect on the eggs of spider mites, due to which new individuals are not born. Adults also die from this product, so you will be able to completely destroy the pest in a relatively short time. You can spray the plant only once every 4 weeks, since Flumite is highly toxic.
5. Skelta. This product appeared not so long ago, but has already become popular among gardeners. It destroys both adult insects and larvae. However, it should be remembered that after treatment, adult ticks will die only after 7 days, and larvae - after 5 days. Despite this, Skelta is highly effective, and just one spray is enough to completely destroy the tick.

It happens that a gardener does not want, for various reasons, to resort to using chemicals to get rid of spider mites. What to do in this case? There are many folk remedies, the preparation and use of which are not difficult.

Before you start fighting spider mites using traditional methods, you need to prepare the plant; for this you need to thoroughly clean it. To do this, you need to wash the flower with plain clean water; it is not recommended to use detergents, as they help clog the pores on the leaf blades. Then you need to wash the windowsill, window and pot very thoroughly to remove all pests that may be there. Only then should you treat the plant with your chosen folk remedy. For example:

1. Garlic infusion. To prepare it, you need to finely chop a couple of heads of garlic and mix the resulting mass with 1 liter of boiled water. The container must be tightly closed with a screw-on lid and placed in a cool, dark place for 5 days to infuse. Before use, the infusion is diluted with water in a 1:1 ratio. Then the plant is treated with it.
2. Onion infusion. 5 liters of clean water should be combined with one hundred grams of onion peels. This mixture should be allowed to brew for 5 days. The finished infusion must be filtered, and then it can be used to process flowers.
3. Alcohol. This folk method has shown relatively high efficiency. But it should be taken into account that only those flowers that have dense leaf plates can be treated with it. Take a cotton swab and moisten it with ammonia. Then they need to thoroughly wipe the surface of the sheet plates. The effectiveness of this method may be reduced if ticks are hidden in hard-to-reach places.
4. Soap solution. To prepare such a solution, you can take any soap, for example: laundry, green or tar soap. Both the affected flower and the container in which it grows should be treated. The foam must be left on the surface of the flower for 2–4 hours. When it is washed off, the flower must be covered with a plastic bag, which is removed only after a day. This will maintain the required increased level of air humidity.

Prevention of infection

To prevent plants from being damaged by spider mites, preventive measures should be taken:

• systematically inspect all indoor plants;
• this pest prefers dry air, so it is important to maintain an optimal level of humidity;
• it is necessary to systematically spray the leaf plates from a sprayer with clean water;
• Once a month the flower needs a warm shower;
• recently purchased flowers must be quarantined;
• Be sure to steam the substrate, as it may contain individuals that hibernate in the ground.