Re: Spider Mites?

countrynaturals 5/2/2017, 10:46 am

BeetlesPerSqFt wrote:Spider mites like hot, dry conditions. I'd go for either boiling water poured into/over the pots, or once it gets really hot out, each pot+dirt gets to spend a few days in the freezer. Spider mites survive the winter because daylight changes let them know it's coming and they make physiological changes accordingly - but a sudden change without warning seems likely to be lethal.
Make sure your infected plants aren't where winds can blow from them towards your growing areas. The mites use their webbing to windsurf.

GRRRRR! Windsurfing? Really? Spider Mites? - Page 2 671790

I like the boiling water idea. I may try that multiple times. Twisted Evil

If nothing else, it will be good therapy as I remember each plant that succumbed to the little monsters.

My deck is a long way from any regular growing areas, but very close to my potted citrus trees. Will the little #$%s get on them?

BeetlesPerSqFt 5/2/2017, 11:48 am

countrynaturals wrote:
My deck is a long way from any regular growing areas, but very close to my potted citrus trees. Will the little #$%s get on them?

Probably -- but if your citrus trees have been in that location for awhile and were susceptible I'd think they'd already have them. The spider mites came from somewhere (outside?) after all. Misting with water once or twice a day might help since the mites prefer dry (and especially stressed/under-watered) plants.

countrynaturals 5/3/2017, 4:52 pm

BeetlesPerSqFt wrote:
countrynaturals wrote:
My deck is a long way from any regular growing areas, but very close to my potted citrus trees. Will the little #$%s get on them?
Probably -- but if your citrus trees have been in that location for awhile and were susceptible I'd think they'd already have them. The spider mites came from somewhere (outside?) after all. Misting with water once or twice a day might help since the mites prefer dry (and especially stressed/under-watered) plants.

, Beetles. It looks like I'm losing every plant I grew inside over the winter. Sad

**sanderson** 5/4/2017, 1:22 pm

CN, Have you sprayed them with Neem oil solution? Mist with water between spraying? You, Audrey and I all suffer from spider mites.

countrynaturals 5/4/2017, 1:38 pm

sanderson wrote:CN, Have you sprayed them with Neem oil solution? Mist with water between spraying? You, Audrey and I all suffer from spider mites.

Can't find Neem oil or seaweed. Today I used that Garden Safe 3 in 1 spray and I read a recipe that calls for cinnamon, cloves, Italian seasoning and fresh garlic, but I don't have any garlic, so I can't try that one, yet. I lost most of my ground cherries, all of my purple basil, and most of my lemon balm, bee balm, and too much else to list. I had to buy plants to make up for what I lost in cukes and melons. Sad

I am going to replant all seeds, lick my wounds, and move on. Note to self: BE MORE VIGILANT! If I had identified the problem sooner, I could be winning this war by now. Mad

**sanderson** 5/4/2017, 1:54 pm

Garden Safe 3 has Neem oil as an ingredient. I have Green Light Neem Oil concentrate and make up a batch as needed. I have a small basket of spray bottles marked for different products, i.e., milk, Neem oil, Dr. Bronner's soap, etc.

BeetlesPerSqFt 5/4/2017, 2:11 pm

countrynaturals wrote:
BeetlesPerSqFt wrote:
countrynaturals wrote:
My deck is a long way from any regular growing areas, but very close to my potted citrus trees. Will the little #$%s get on them?
Probably -- but if your citrus trees have been in that location for awhile and were susceptible I'd think they'd already have them. The spider mites came from somewhere (outside?) after all. Misting with water once or twice a day might help since the mites prefer dry (and especially stressed/under-watered) plants.
, Beetles. It looks like I'm losing every plant I grew inside over the winter.

I'm so sorry you lost so much. Sad

**sanderson** 7/7/2019, 4:14 am

It was bound to happen. The red spider mites devastated the Dragon Tongue beans. Sad

I started cutting the plants down this evening to the second nodes, and will spray with Neem Oil at sundown on Sunday. Sometimes they send out laterals and I can get a second flush of beans.

countrynaturals 7/7/2019, 10:29 am

sanderson wrote:It was bound to happen. The red spider mites devastated the Dragon Tongue beans. I started cutting the plants down this evening to the second nodes, and will spray with Neem Oil at sundown on Sunday. Sometimes they send out laterals and I can get a second flush of beans.

There's always something, and those little monsters are the worst! Sad

**sanderson** 7/7/2019, 2:09 pm

Twue. My main goal right now, besides keeping up with harvesting and processing, is to keep the plants alive until Sept.

**sanderson** 7/30/2021, 1:08 am

It's that time again. I'm not able to do much in the garden besides harvest, and now I see that the cucumbers are loaded with red spider mites. I've use Neem oil in the past but it seemed to burn the leaves. This year, I'm trying spinosad. I sprayed per instructions this evening and am curious so see the results tomorrow.

The tell tale sign of webbing.

yolos 7/30/2021, 9:56 am

sanderson wrote:It's that time again. I'm not able to do much in the garden besides harvest, and now I see that the cucumbers are loaded with red spider mites. I've use Neem oil in the past but it seemed to burn the leaves. This year, I'm trying spinosad. I sprayed per instructions this evening and am curious so see the results tomorrow.

The tell tale sign of webbing.

That second picture does not look like spider mites and the damage does not look like spider mites. My spider mites are very hard too see (almost invisible) so I do not think your main problem is spider mites. I see the webs, which may indicate spider mites, but you may have more than one insect attacking (maybe aphids on the second picture).

**donnainzone5** 7/30/2021, 12:51 pm

Your cukes certainly have been attacked! Yes, it looks like aphids in the last two pictures.

**sanderson** 7/30/2021, 5:03 pm

Yes, you are both right about the aphids. Under the loupe I can see both. Plus, there may be white flies that fly away when I spray. I noticed this morning that the second cucumber bed is starting to be infected, plus the oldest bean bed. I wish I had the surgery a month earlier so I could water and be more proactive during this extended heat wave. Ken said he would help clean out the beds. I want to first kill the pests, second wet down with Dr. Bronner's soap so any live ones can't fly away in the wind, and third get a cold drink and chair to watch Ken have more fun gardening. (Not his thing) rofl

PS: the spinosad seemed to work well.

Sponsored content


	Hello Guest! Welcome to the official Square Foot Gardening Forum. There's lots to learn here by reading as a guest. However, if you become a member (it's free, ad free and spam-free) you'll have access to our large vermiculite databases, our seed exchange spreadsheets, Mel's Mix calculator, and many more members' pictures in the Gallery. Enjoy.