– Christine Gelley, Agriculture and Natural Resources Educator, Noble County OSU Extension
Have any pests hitched a ride into your home on a holiday plant?
Over the Christmas holiday we’ve been taking special care of our houseplants. Well, specifically one really big houseplant. Well actually, it’s more of a gigantic floral arrangement. The plant I’m referring to is our live Christmas tree. While it is a live plant, it is gradually dying, like flowers wilting in a vase. But we’ve been doing our best to keep it well watered to keep it vibrant through the New Year. Afterwards it will be recycled as a birdfeeder, and we will hang birdseed ornaments and garland with fruit and popcorn to provide a snack for songbirds and enhance bird watching from our front window.
While sweeping spruce needles up off the floor recently, I noticed some webbing on the lower bows of the tree- a telltale sign of spider mites. These mites are common, and my house is the perfect environment for them. They thrive in warm, dry locations that have plants. They were likely on the tree when we got it and they became more active when we brought it inside the warm house. I began to get concerned for my other house plants.
After a little research, I guessed that the spider mites on the tree are spruce mites and that they won’t cause issues for my other house plants. However, knowing that the conditions are right for spider mites, I should be on the lookout for an extremely common spider mite that loves nearly all plants, the two-spotted spider mite. It is often introduced to new environments after hitching a ride on plants that live in a greenhouse before coming home to your house.
I do have a poinsettia on my kitchen table right now too and it came from a greenhouse. So, I very well could have new pests in my midst. Mealybugs and fungus gnats are often brought in with greenhouse plants too. The good news is most houseplant pests can be controlled through sanitation methods. Starting clean and staying clean is the way to go.
Once you know a plant has a pest, isolate it from the others, wash your hands, and begin scouting the others. Severely infested plants may need to be discarded. If that is the case, bag the plant a dispose of it in the garbage.
Many pests will feed or hide on the underside of the plant’s leaves, so look there first. A dilute solution of dish soap and water can be used with a gentle cloth to wipe down the leaves. Other products like horticultural oils can be used to treat valuable plants when needed. Also check your soil conditions. Overly wet soils can provide an environment for pests. Sometimes dry conditions can encourage pests (like the spider mites mentioned earlier).
Be sure to do the finger test when checking your plants. As a general rule of thumb, touch the soil surface of your plants and if it is dry, water. If it is wet, don’t. You can also clean the leaves of dusty plats with the same dish soap and water solution. Along with looking clean, dusting houseplants will allow them to make better use of the filtered sunlight through your windows.
If you have any questions about how to care for specific houseplants or what to do about a certain pest, feel free to reach out to your OSU Extension office during the coming New Year.