Damn Spider Mites!!!

[SprigOfTheLivingDead]

So I was doing some daily maintenance on some plants, as well as putting some seeds to soil, when I happened to look under one of the leaves of my musa basjoo banana and it was COVERED with spider mites; their webs making a beautiful cloud. I gasped, looked at another and another and they were all covered. I then looked at my other banana plants and they too had them . I made quick work of the clensing, but in order to be sure, because I've been fighting them for months on some other plants (willows) I did a clean cut of the pseudostems.

The plants will come back, but this is a sucky setback

 

[baymule]

Have you tried Insecticidal Soap Spray or is it best to just cut them back? That stinks about the spider mites getting all over your plants.

 

[catjac1975]

So I was doing some daily maintenance on some plants, as well as putting some seeds to soil, when I happened to look under one of the leaves of my musa basjoo banana and it was COVERED with spider mites; their webs making a beautiful cloud. I gasped, looked at another and another and they were all covered. I then looked at my other banana plants and they too had them . I made quick work of the clensing, but in order to be sure, because I've been fighting them for months on some other plants (willows) I did a clean cut of the pseudostems.

The plants will come back, but this is a sucky setback

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I know ced-o-flora works on them but it is quite toxic.

 

[so lucky]

Spider mites are such a destructive PIA. The only time I had a banana plant inside, it got spider mites.

 

[SprigOfTheLivingDead]

Have you tried Insecticidal Soap Spray or is it best to just cut them back? That stinks about the spider mites getting all over your plants.

I did try some on my willow cuttings but these guys were some super vsriety and were thanking me for the shower and asking for a razor and some bath toys.

 

[SprigOfTheLivingDead]

Spider mites are such a destructive PIA. The only time I had a banana plant inside, it got spider mites.

This is not the first time I've had bananas inside but it is the first time I've had mites. I think they hitched a ride on some corkscrew willow cuttings

 

[flowerbug]

yikes!

get some predatory mites that will eat them.

 

[SprigOfTheLivingDead]

yikes!

get some predatory mites that will eat them.

I saw that mentioned elsewhere the other day but immediately though of the mongoose and snake situation

 

[flowerbug]

i've never had to use that sort of solution as it seems the woodland hedge has supplied a balanced mite/predatory mite population. i have plenty of mites around in the gardens but they don't seem to be damaging anything.

 

[catjac1975]

A systemic insecticide will work well, but I'm sure you can't use it on the bananas if you intend to eat them. I use it on a few flowering plants that I bring indoor every winter and it keeps all pests down.