Spider mites

[elitebettas]

Hi guys,
I know you must be tired of hearing about my sharrybaby but here goes. It gets sun but in a south eastern window sill that is shaded-not enough to get sunburn. I purchased it online and it came robust, fat psuedobulbs and six strong new growths which are growing nicely however....it had red spider mites. At the time i repotted, washed with lots of water and cleaned leaves, but didn't treat with any chemicals-i have not used any chemicals on any of my orchids so far. Take a look at the attached pic. Did eggs hatch? Look at all the loss of color in regular circular patches in the leaves-Spider mite damage? I've also noticed slight pitting/stippling on a nice phal and phaph in the same room.

Can you guys please tell me if Safters soap is a good option here? I want to treat my plants. Also, is it okay to treat the potting medium with Safter's soap spray? So i guess my question is, what can i use to get rid of spider mites and little critters in the potting medium?
Thanks

[kmarch]

To my eye it looks like it could be mite damage of some kind. I have had good success against spider mites with Safer's Soap. But spider mites usually have webs too. If you haven't found any webs it may be a different type of mite. I dont' think washing with water is sufficient to remove them. Other members will be able to tell you how they have gotten rid of them. Until you treat the plant I would isolate it somehow, away from your other plants.

[jerrymeola]

I am a big fan of Worm Tea. I find one spraying kills all mites, scale and many other problems. Since it is organic it is totally safe (I even spray open flowers).

It will go into the medium and roots of the plant, killing anything growing in the medium and building a natural immunity in the plant.

[Anton]

Jerry, out of curiosity, will it repell catapillers, slugs and snails ?

This morning I found some newly opening cym Volcanic Flash 'Tim Tam' petals munched upon, but was definately from a larger creature than mites.

[Cynthia, Prescott, AZ]

Could you see the mites with a magnifying glass? Spider mites are fairly active, and looking at them for a minute or so should show movement. Red/flat mites are a little different in that they find a spot and just park there, not moving at all. The biggest difference is the life cycle is about 4 times as long, and they prefer different hosts, tho I am not sure what red/flat mites like beyond Phalaenopsis leaves. When you look for mites, always check the backside of the leaves. I have used neem oil for mites by spraying the entire surface of the plant. For good measure, repeat it a week later for spider mites, and 4 weeks later for red/flat mites. Always keep the sprayed plant out of heat and strong light for a few days. Neem is used in tooth paste, I don't think I would worry about it being toxic.

[elitebettas]

Thank you guys, I am going to purchase some worm tea and some safer's soap? Where would i purchase the worm tea? Until then, I have heard that mites like it dry and warm, I will wipe down the leaves several times daily with water. It's a lovely plant, i'd hate to have it damaged by bugs.

[fred]

this link may help you with worm tea
Worm Tea (Wee) Usage

it also might be a good idea if you can go into your user settings and update your Profile with your Location

[Cynthia, Prescott, AZ]

The part about liking it dry just means that if you put a plant with mites in front of a mister, they MIGHT move on to a different plant. I am convinced that at least spider mights can smell the plants that taste the best, because they always are found on certain types of plants and no where else. In other words, they must travel very directly to these plants, as I see no evidence of them wondering around a bit.

[kgately]

Hello - I'm having a similar issue. I have a large phal potted in a clear plastic pot and while watering this morning I noticed that there are tiny white bugs, I assume mites?, marching all over the roots. The roots look healthy, and I'm not seeing any munching on the leaves but I'm concerned that it will turn into something over time. What steps should I take to get rid of the bugs? Is repotting necessary? Will these same chemicals work on these tiny white bugs?

[Sharyn]

Originally Posted by kgately

Hello - I'm having a similar issue. I have a large phal potted in a clear plastic pot and while watering this morning I noticed that there are tiny white bugs, I assume mites?, marching all over the roots. The roots look healthy, and I'm not seeing any munching on the leaves but I'm concerned that it will turn into something over time. What steps should I take to get rid of the bugs? Is repotting necessary? Will these same chemicals work on these tiny white bugs?

Sounds more like mealy bugs or perhaps white flys. Perhaps you can post a picture. I've been using worm tea since early spring, which works quite well and has kept away all the pests. However, if you need something right away, try the Safer's Soap or the Bayer's Rose in the spray bottle. Do this early in the day and out of the sunlight. Either of these products are found readily at most garden and home improvement stores.

[kgately]

Thanks for your suggestion! The bugs are very tiny but I'll try taking some pictures tonight.

[Cynthia, Prescott, AZ]

Mites are so small, you will not see them without a jewelers loupe or microscope. Since spider mites often make webs you can just barely see, you can sometimes see a speck of dust moving slowly along the web. That is a mite.

I would guess you are seeing gnat larvae. Any tiny fruit flies around? For that, I recommend mosquito dunks from a home-center. A chunk in the water that you give your plant will clean up the problem for a while. It is a biological control, with organisms that eat the larvae.

[Hummer344]

Cynthia,
Mosquito dunks as a contol for critters in potting medium!!!!!!!! I had never heard that before. do you think it would work on ants? I will have to file that in my gray matter for future reference. On second thought, I am having trouble with retrival from that area so I had better write it down. Thanks for the tip.