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**** The Gardener's Forum ****]
Little white bugs
April 19,1998
Anthony wrote:
HELP !! I have several house plants with soil pests. They are white, thin
and approx. 1mm in length. They crawl around on the top of the soil
when the plants are watered. Can I get rid of these pests, and can these
spread to my furniture or infest other areas of my house? THANKS!
Springtail
Thrip
From your description, I would say that you most likely have springtails living
on the soil. Essentially, they live off of the decaying organic matter
that is present in the dirt, and are more of a nuisance to the humans in
the house than to the plants themselves. There is also a possibility that
the insects could be thrips, however, and they can and will do damage
to the plants. Thrips usually are only found on the underside of the leaves,
so I don't think that they are your problem, but I can't eliminate that
possibility. Thrips rasp the leaves, and then suck the juices from the
plant. Evidence of thrips include small silverish streaks on the leaves
where they have been scarred, as well as little black micro-poopies on
the underside of the leaves.
Both springtails and thrips can be controlled naturally if you wouldn't mind
having a few lady bugs in the house. If that's not an option, they can
be killed with malathion, diazinon, or preferably... insecticidal soap
sprays.
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