House Plant Bugs Discover Natural Remedies

No matter where you live, you have to watch out for pests in your yard. Of the millions of species in the world that feed on houseplants, there are a few that are present and that cause problems in every region.

Bacteria are not often thought of as pests, but they certainly are, and even though you can't see them, they can really harm your plants.

When a plant is overwatered, a fungi will grow because of extra moisture. Bacteria also grows in excess, and they invade the roots. Since the root health determines the health of the entire plant, root rot can kill the plant.

You can easily prevent this by paying attention to how much you water your plants. You should give them the proper amount of water at the right time of day. You need to research your specific plants to find this information.

A somewhat larger pest is the whitefly. They have waxy, white bodies. You can check for them by lightly shaking the plant. If they have infested, you will see them flying around the leaves. Aphids are a similar pest, but they move more slowly than whiteflies, and they are more rounded in shape.

Another insect pest is the mealybug. It attaches itself to the joint where the branch meets the stem of the leaf. They create small white sacks that look like wet cotton.

The spider mite can be seen with a magnifying glass or by looking very closely. They make tiny webs in your plant.

The fungus gnat is another pest, but it is their larvae that cause the problem. The flying insect hurts nothing, but the larvae feeds on the roots of your plants. By killing the adults, you will get rid of future larvae.

Simply applying insecticide will get rid of most of these pests. Neem oil is a natural pesticide that works well specifically for fungus gnats and spider mites. Ladybugs will get rid of your mealybug problem. They biologically control the problem, since they naturally eat mealybugs.

You may be able to avoid buying commercial insecticide by making a spray out of diluted dish soap. Add about a half an ounce of soap to a quart of water, spray all over the plant, including the underside of the leaves.

You must dilute the soap, and you can't spray too often. Clogging the pores of the plant will suffocate it. It is good to spray when the weather is hot and the pores close on their own. You can then rinse the plant off when it cools down, leaving you with dead pests and a healthy plant.

We've just scratched the surface looking at the topic of neem oil for plant pest control Visit us at www.plant-care.com/pest-control-without-pesticides.html.

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House Plant Bugs Discover Natural Remedies
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