Saturday, November 19, 2011

What can I cure my hibiscus?

Mi hibiscus has spider mites on the soil, how can I treat it? I already treat the leaves with Insecticidal Soap.

What can I cure my hibiscus?
Remove the first one inch of soil and spray remaining soil area with the insecticidal soap and top up with fresh potting soil and discard used soil.
Reply:Can you increase the humidity where you keep it? Spider mites hate that...
Reply:Spider mites are hard to get rid of, but it can happen. First, take your plant outside and spray it hard all over with a hose, especially under the leaves and on the stems.That will wash away a lot of them and perhaps delay their egg laying cycle by washing away the webs. They lay eggs every few days, so your next step is the insecticidal soap. Only use it every couple of days, to get the new ones as they hatch. Be sure you saturate the under surface of the leaves. If you see webs forming, wipe them off with a damp cloth. If you think they are in the soil also, repot it in new soil. Be sure you clean up every fallen leaf, and pick off the yellow ones as they appear. If you have other house plants in the vicinity, treat them also, and isolate the infested plant from them. If this treatment doesnt work, there are specific miticides that are labeled for treatment of red spider mite. Kelthane is the one I have always used as the last resort, and it works well for me.
Reply:You can spray the surface of the soil with the soap, just don't saturate it. You can also repot the plant and that should help greatly.


Good Luck


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