How to get rid of Scale on Houseplants?
Question:Help! My house plants have got Scale Insect. I really don't want to throw them out and have treated them once with a spray that then works systemically. I can still see them though - all around the bottom om one of the plants. Does this mean they are dying and falling off. They are horrible!
Can anybody recommend me a different product - and how to use it best. I want them gone. Some of these plants I have had ages and I don't want them to die - please help!
Answers:
A little soap mixed with a lot of water in a spray container. Spray once a day
A systemic insecticide watered into the soil will kill them quickly. Acephate (Orthene) is readily available at most nurseries or garden centers. Do not use on food plants. Do not ever spray this. It is wetted into the soil directly.
If you do not want the toxicity of Orthene in your house try this
Mix one cup of your generic isopropyl alcohol, that you can find at most any store in the first aid section or the like, with one tablespoon of insecticidal soap [or make your own recipe; 11⁄2 teaspoons of Dawn to one quart of water]. Mix those two ingredients with one quart of water and apply on your plant’s leaves (top and bottom) every three days for two weeks.
To remove the crud on you plants wet a q-tip with isopropyl alcohol and swab out hard to reach crevices after washing them.
Scale is a tough customer. If you can get to it easily, you stand a better chance. Spider plants, for example, are notorious for having scale and it hides well in the leaves and shoots, being very hard to eradicate topically.They are armor-plated and that is their best protection.
Depending on the plant, you can keep the scale in check by simply wiping it down with a cloth. Systemic insecticides work, but must be administerd dilligently until no sign of the infestation is present. Small infestations can be handled with a cotton swab dipped in alcohol and dotted on the scale. The immature bugs are harbored on the underside of the pot rims as well, so be sure to clean completely and wipe with alchohol.
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