Pesty Pests

I constantly get questions regarding houseplant pests. Now that the busy holiday season is over and we are officially in the dead of winter here in MN, I thought it would be a good time to write about my experiences in dealing with common houseplant pests.

Houseplants

Though houseplants can become infested with pests at any time during the year, winter is when they are most susceptible. There are several factors involved here. 

• Houseplants go into a state of dormancy during the winter, which can make them more prone to attacks from pests.  
• Winter growth on a many houseplants is weaker than it is in the summer, making it more vulnerable to infestation.  
• Humidity levels are much lower in the house during the winter, which is the perfect breading ground for pests like spider mites. Plus, your plants don’t get any fresh air.   
• Pest infestations are worse in the house than they are outside because there are no natural predators to control the pest population (unless you raise lady bugs, or other beneficial bugs – which some people do!).

Aphid infestation

Many of you may have already had issues with a pest infestation, and never realized it. 

Maybe you had a plant that seamed perfectly healthy one day, then the next day it started to die and you couldn’t figure out how to save it. 

(On several occasions, I have found infestations on friends or family member’s houseplants that they didn’t even know they had.)

Or maybe you had a plant that you knew was infested, but you didn’t know what to do - so you just threw it out.  

Scale infestation

If you have houseplants, at some point you will have to deal with pests. 

It just goes with the territory. 

The best defense against any houseplant pest infestation is prevention. 

Over the years, I have dealt with many pest infestations, and have learned ways to prevent/manage them.



Here is a list of general pest prevention/management tips...

• Keep it sanitary - Always clean and disinfect pots before reusing them. I like to use the dishwasher for this task.
• Keep it fresh – If you're repotting a houseplant, it's fine to reuse the soil in the new container for the same plant. However, you should never reuse potting soil from one plant to repot another plant. If the plant that you are repotting has recently had a pest infestation, it is a good idea to remove and discard as much of the soil as you can and replace it with fresh soil. This can help prevent a future infestation; however I do not recommend repotting a plant just because it has a pest problem. Repotting can further stress an unhealthy plant, which could ultimately be fatal to the plant.
• Keep it sterile - Always use sterile, commercial potting soil when you pot your plants; and never, never use garden soil! Most common houseplant pests live and breed in soil. Also be sure to sterilize your clippers and other tools each time you use them. You can wash them with soap and water, or you can dip them in rubbing alcohol between uses. Be sure to wash your hands after handling an infested plant.
  
• Keep it in check - Inspect your plants on a regular basis for signs of pest problems, I usually do this each time I water my plants.
• Keep it clean - If you find any pests on your plants, be vigilant in fighting them. Inspect the plant daily and continue to treat the plant until all signs of the infestation are gone. Most common houseplant pests multiply very quickly, and take several treatments to control or eliminate.
• Keep it isolated – If you find that one of your plants has a pest problem, isolate it for several weeks during treatment. Additionally, when you bring home a new plant, make sure that you inspect it closely for any signs of pests; it’s also good to isolate new plants for a few weeks to make sure no infestation shows up. I have brought plants home before and didn’t check for pests, only to have an infestation a few weeks later which, in some cases, spread to surrounding plants.

Mealy bugs

Stay tuned! I plan to write a series of posts that will discuss several common houseplant pests, and my experiences with trying to control or eliminate them. The pests I will discuss in this series include spider mites, whiteflies, scale, aphids, soil gnats and mealy bugs. Yuck, yuck, yuck, yuck, yuck and yuck!

Please feel free to add comments about your own experiences. I find that the best advice comes from fellow gardeners! I am also happy to answer any questions you may have. Thanks for reading!

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