Horticultural oils work by smothering the scale insects that are on the plant when it is sprayed. Garden scale insects only breed once a year with the eggs hatching in late June and July but indoors or in a heated greenhouse they will reproduce all year round so can quickly build up vast numbers. https://www.wikihow.com/Control-Scale-Insects-on-Indoor-Plants Some forms of scale are extremely flat and hard to identify. The small facial sponges, found in the cosmetic aisle, are abrasive, yet soft enough to use without scraping the plant stems. The females and hermaphroditic scales don’t fly, and spreading of the pest is generally done when they’re in their larval crawler stage. Spray when the weather is mild and dry. Scale insects may be resistant to some pesticides (read the pesticide label to be sure), but they can’t live if they can’t breathe. Coffee scale is a major agricultural pest in coffee crops. You have to spray the plant in winter because some scales will survive the cold. How to Remove or Control Scale Infestations. One excellent example of the Eriococcidae is the wooly beech scale, Cryptococcus fagisuga. The removal of the scale insects by hand is one of the first things you can consider. Let’s go over some options for each type of scale now! Armored scales, on the other hand, don’t make honeydew. Another major agricultural pest is the California Red Scale, Aonidiella aurantii. Other species of wax scales include tree dwellers like the cottony maple scale (Pulvinaria innumerabilis) or the calico scale (Eulecanium cerasorum). Many are hermaphroditic, and those which do have gender may reproduce asexually as well as with fertilization. They are rarely seen and do not feed on plants. There are armored scale species and soft scale species. Another difference is that the waxy cover on armored scales serves as a protective shell. Mealybugs tend to be the easiest to control, as they have no waxy coating nor hard protective covering to protect them. Over the space of 1-3 weeks, these scale eggs hatch into a form that’s called a crawler. Will the scales die off in the winter, or do I have to spray? This article helped a lot in making the task seem way less daunting than I thought it would be. Adult females lay eggs underneath their protective covering which hatch over a period of one to three weeks. Be attentive to your plants and you won’t have to go to war with scale pests. If you are using a spray make sure it is a cool, dull, windless day. Some will lay their eggs underneath the protective shell and others cover the eggs in a tangle of white fibres, so this can also be something to watch out for. These pesticides have a very short persistence and so may require reapplication to keep … Since they need plants to survive, this would be very unusual. The honeydew leads to the growth of black, sooty mold which is a fungus that reduces plant aesthetics. If you catch the problem early enough, pruning out the infested stems could alleviate the problems. They do not secrete honeydew. Soft scale is covered with a protective waxy substance and is somewhat easier to kill than hard/armored scale. Armored scale secretes a hard shell over its body for protection from predators. We use cookies to make wikiHow great. You’ll need to thoroughly spray the plant weekly … What Are Some Harmful Garden Pests You Shouldn't Ignore? Please help us continue to provide you with our trusted how-to guides and videos for free by whitelisting wikiHow on your ad blocker. To get rid of scale insects from your plants, rub their stems with an old toothbrush or a cotton swab dipped in Isopropyl alcohol, which will kill any insects on them. If you let the infestation continue until the plant dies, then it’s the deadly kind (armored scales). By using our site, you agree to our. While you're here, why not follow us on Facebook and YouTube? Once you’ve rinsed your plants, spray a horticultural oil on a leaf or 2 and wait 36 hours to make sure your plant isn't sensitive to the oil. Home » Scale Insects: Treatment, Prevention, and Control. We know ads can be annoying, but they’re what allow us to make all of wikiHow available for free. Sooty mold, a fungus, will often grow on the honeydew causing unsightly dark spots on the leaves and interfering with the plant’s ability to absorb sunlight. If you see a few scale pests, dab them with alcohol. Use Liquid Soap Spray to Get Rid of Mealybugs on Plants Soap spray can effectively kill mealybugs. One way to kill and remove as many of the scales from the plant as you can is by using a cotton swab dipped in rubbing alcohol (you may need to pry some of them off using your fingernail). Dispose of the pruned stems immediately. In many cases, heavy infestations build up unnoticed before plants begin to show damage. If the plant doesn’t die, but the infestation worsens, it’s the soft scale variety. However, timing is everything and there is a very short window of opportunity. The mold grows on the sappy excrement from the scale insects. Alcohol will dehydrate the pests and cause them to come off the plant. View our, Common Winter Tree Bark Damage: Sunscald and Frost Cracks, How to Protect Trees in Winter: Three Proactive Tips, Winter Tree Care Tips for Roots, Trunks and Branches. Whitish or yellowish patches on leaves, stems, or branches is a common sign. Handpicking is also possible if they are large enough. Finally, ants farm soft scale insects. Use a garden hose to spray off the pruners or loppers before using them on another plant to remove any scale insects that may be left on them. X All of these fall into the superfamily Coccoidea, but are subdivided from there into smaller family groups. Some varieties of male scale insects have wings, but they aren’t strong fliers. Soft scales are usually on stems or leaves of ferns or other softer plant material.
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