My indoor plant has a red bug on it, should I remove it or leave it there?
Question:I have some small flowers growing indoors and while I was taking care of them today, I noticed a tiny red bug on one of the leaves. I was wondering, is this bug harmful to my flowers or should I leave it there? Also, my flowers shouldn't have bugs since they're indoor flowers...
Answers:
When I think indoor plants with red bugs I think spider mites! Were these nearly microscopic?? Perhaps with a spot on each side? If so, good eyes!
These must be controlled since they can suck your plants dry!
Taking the plant to the sink daily and blasting it with water, rubbing the leaves and washing off the beasts would reduce the population. I hate to use pesticides indoors, but unless you can keep the population under control with water, you may have to resport to an insecticidal soap which mentions mite control. These are mites, not exactly insects.
Houseplants can get serious pest infestations because the natural predators may not be present.
I'm stumped for any other red insect unless a lady bird bettle got in or you have reddish aphids.
The only two bugs that I can think of are red spider mites and ladybugs. If they are spider mites they will look like a tick but much, much smaller and be orangey-red. They can be removed with soap and water solution sprayed on leaves and stem. They could of came in the potting soil that you used or maybe were even on the plant in egg form before you bought it. Your plant may have been inside, but the dirt you plant it in came from somewhere outside.
If it has a black head and red or orange-red body with a hard looking shell (some have black spots, some don't) then it is a lady bug. The lady bugs are beneficial insects that usually fly in your house by mistake when your outside door is opened or closed. If you live in an older building or home, they live and reproduce in cracks in the attic or windows. They won't harm your plant but they won't live long inside.
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