How to get rid of whiteflies on indoor flowers? TIPS!
We tell in detail how to fight whiteflies at home – effective control methods. See how to get rid of whiteflies on house flowers using folk remedies and chemicals, as well as preventive measures.
How to fight whiteflies on house plants?
It is difficult to get rid of the insect, insecticides can only destroy adults, and, as a rule, there are pests at different stages of development.
Larvae are strongly attached to the leaves, they cannot be washed off with any solution, and they are not very susceptible to chemical action.
- Therefore, in any case, the best time to treat houseplants is when the adult has just formed.
The adult insect begins to actively feed and mate, and it is at this point that it is most sensitive to the effects of folk remedies or preparations.
It is also difficult to fight the pest on indoor flowers because adults often begin to fly and hide during spraying.
CONTROL MEASURES
- If the insect is found, place the flower separately from the other pets and inspect the entire collection. Wash the area where the specimen was (window sill, window, outer sides of pots) with a solution of soap and alcohol.
- Replace the top layer of soil in the flower pot.
- Before treating with the drug, wipe the leaves of the plant from the white plaque with a cotton tampon (soft toothbrush) with a solution of water and methyl alcohol (1: 1) or soapy water and cut off the severely affected areas.
- Rinse off the solution and let it dry. After the water evaporates from the leaves, spray the flower, topsoil, and soil with a systemic insecticide.
- Ventilate the room well so that traces of the chemical disappear.
TIPS. Plant species whose leaves cannot be washed should be sprayed, preferably with chemicals.
Treating all houseplants increases the chances of getting rid of whiteflies, as does rinsing the window sill, pots and glass.
In addition to treating with folk remedies or chemicals, it is necessary to inspect the houseplant daily, collect whitefly eggs and catch the adults. Trim off diseased and yellowed leaves on indoor flowers in a timely manner.
Sometimes you have to treat indoor plants with whiteflies to get rid of them completely within 40-50 days.
Preparations against whiteflies
Since the susceptibility of the pest to chemical preparations at different stages of development significantly differs, a comprehensive treatment is necessary.
Chemical preparations against whiteflies are an effective means of controlling the pest on houseplants.
Experts advise using systemic insecticides (Actara, Confidor, Tanrek) with a soil mixture from the beginning. These preparations will eventually spread throughout the plant through the roots, and the insect will be easier to destroy.
- We recommend replacing systemic insecticides with stomach-resistant drugs because they do not work on larvae in the fourth stage (pupa – it does not succeed in the plant).
Of the stomach-resistant drugs, we can mention: Acarin, Actellic, Inta-Vir, Carbofos and Fitoverm.
Popular drugs
In addition to each drug, we indicated its hazard class (toxicity): 4 – low hazard for humans, safe for bees and beneficial insects, 3 – moderately dangerous for tissues, 2 – very dangerous for tissues, 1 – extremely dangerous for humans and animals.
Non-systemic insecticides with contact-darm action
- “Akarin” (old name “Agravertin”) – 4, (Avertin), price: package of 4 ml – 13-20 rubles.
- “Aktellik” – 2, (pyrimifo s-methyl), price: package of 2 ml – 30-50 rubles. The drug for personal use is not registered in Russia since October 1, 2016. Although the drug can sometimes still be found in small stores and on the Internet.
- “Bancol” – 3 (bensultap), price: pack of 10 grams – 30-40 rubles.
- “Vertimek” – 2, (abamectin), price: $ 90/l, hand pack – 2 ml – 25 rubles.
- “Int a-Vir” – 3, (cypermethrin), price: package of 8 grams – 10-15 rubles.
- “Karbofos” (“Malathion”, “Fufanon”, “Iskra M”) – 3, (Malathion), Price: package of 30 grams – 30-40 rubles (pungent unpleasant smell).
- “Fitover” – 4, (Aversectin C), price: package (ampoule) 4ml – 15-20 rubles.
Systemic insecticides with contact-moisture action
- “Actara” – 3, (Thiamethoxam), price: ampoule 1.2 ml – 40-50 rubles, pack of 4 g – 90-120 rubles.
- “Confidor Extra” – 3, (imidacloprid), price: 1 g package – 30-40 rubles.
- “Tanrek” – 3, (imidacloprid), price: 1 ml ampoule – 10-15 rubles.
- Prices are based on consumer markets, such as “Obi”, “Leroy Merlin” after the rate of $1 = 65 rubles. These preparations are widely available in many flower stores.
Which preparation is better?
Holiday of Flowers magazine recommends starting the fight against whitefly “FitoVerm”, as it is equally harmless to humans and animals, or “Actara”, “Inta-Vira” or “Tanrek” / “Confidor” (the same active ingredient).
These products can be changed as needed to completely get rid of the white fly on potted flowers.
In case of severe infestation or reduced effectiveness of treatment with previous chemicals, switch to “Actellic”, “Carbofos” or “Vertimek”, as they are more toxic.
“Carbophos”, “Vertimek” and “Actellic” can treat indoor plants only outdoors.
ATTENTION: Read the instructions for use carefully and follow the manufacturer’s recommendations.
“Fytoverm” from whitefly
The drug “Fitoverm” well destroys the white fly on flowers, and many experts recommend starting the fight with it. “Fitoverm” is an insecticide of biological origin with minimal danger to humans and pets.
Dilute 2 ml of the drug in 200 ml of water and spray the indoor flower. Depending on the size and age of the plants and the air temperature, treat every 5-8 days.
In most situations, 3-4 sprays are sufficient to get rid of the white fly completely.
In 6-8 days after the last or next spraying “Fytoverm” home flower can be treated with “Epin” for support.
“Actara” from white fly.
Many flower growers prefer to fight the white fly with whitefly. Actara is a very strong systemic insecticide that can kill the pest fairly quickly and easily for the grower.
Soil without spraying is often enough to remove the white fly at home. According to florists, this method of control helps well: water the inside of the flower with “Actara” and a second time in 6-8 days and the insect is completely destroyed.
Standard application of “Actara” in pest control:
1 gram per 1.25 liters of water (enough for 25-30 plants) spray the inner flower with a solution of “Actara”, and the floor mixture deplete 1 gram per 10 liters of water.
Depending on the air temperature, treatment should be carried out 2-4 times every 10-12 days. In most cases, it is possible to get rid of whiteflies at home after 2-3 treatments.
After spraying the plants “Actara” does not need to be washed off. The waiting time when spraying is 1-24 hours, and when using 2-4 days.
Actara is an effective remedy against toothed and sucking pests. Due to the simultaneous spraying and watering, the active ingredient (thiamethox) kills the parasites.
A product for severe infestations: Aktellik
Dilute an ampoule of “Actellic” (2 ml) in one liter of water and spray the inner flower. Do not use more than 2 treatments per series. Waiting time is 3 days.
IMPORTANT: Actellic can only be used externally. Do not work with it pregnant women, people with asthma and allergic diseases.
The drug “Actellik” is a powerful and toxic agent that helps to remove white flies at home.
Plan to treat your houseplants with the product
- It is necessary to treat indoor flowers every 6-8 days (temperature above 20 degrees C) against white flies, because the oviposition level takes 10-20 days at a temperature of 17-23 C.
- You know that when temperatures are below 18° at the time of spraying, the effectiveness of chemicals is seriously reduced.
- After spraying, there is no need to put a plastic bag over the house flower. It is more important to repeat the treatment at the right time.
- Remember that an individual treatment with each preparation has a simultaneous effect.
IMPORTANT: If you recognize a white plaque, you must treat all house flowers if it moves slightly. If you treat only part of the collection, the risk of a pest is high.
How to get rid of the white fly with folk remedies?
Still, it is folk remedies that are the main weapon in the fight against the pest on vegetable plants. Whitefly control is very important for cabbage, cucumbers, greens, tomatoes and others.
Since treatment with chemicals leads to the accumulation of dangerous substances in the tissues of the plant, vegetables, fruits and berries will harm the human body.
However, controlling the pest with folk remedies on indoor plants is less successful than with chemical preparations. Nevertheless, many flower growers have been able to get rid of the white fly on indoor flowers using folk remedies.
Therefore, to use chemicals or folk remedies is a personal choice of each person.
- From their experience, the editors of the Festival of Flowers can say that the most effective of folk remedies are garlic, onions in combination with frequent rinsing of the plant with a solution of soap (tar, potassium or household soap).
The use of traps and fumzator will also accelerate the process of delegitimation of the insect.
1. Soap solution
The solution can be made with laundry soap, tar or green potassium soap, or, in a pinch, with dishwashing liquid.
- The SOAP solution should be applied to the entire indoor plant, as well as to the window sill, window frame, pot and saucepan. The more lather in the process, the better.
- After wiping the plant, it is best to rinse off the soapy foam after 2-4 hours.
RECEPTION. Pour a tablespoon of soap shavings with a glass of warm water. To improve the effect, you can add a teaspoon of ammonia (technically, medically, in extreme cases, vodka) and 300 grams of water.
The solution with soap shavings should be rinsed off with warm water after 10-15 minutes, so as not to burn the house flower.
IMPORTANT: Some experts insist that the use of soap solution indoors is unacceptable. In her opinion, soap blocks the stomata, which leads to disruption of photosynthesis and flower development.
Alcohol should not be used to treat delicate leaves.
2. Wood ash.
Wood ash from pests is often used by flower growers.
A glass of crushed wood ash is added to five liters of water and exist for 3-4 hours. Then they add 50 grams of soap and spray the plants with the ash infusion against aphids.
2. Recipe. Pour 250 grams of ash in boiling water, dip and spray the plants after cooling.
3. garlic.
Sufficient amounts of garlic is a folk remedy for pest control.
Pour five crushed cloves (teaspoon of pulp) of garlic with a glass of water. Insist the mixture in a tightly closed cover for 1-2 days and rinse the plant every 7-8 days. For spraying – strain the infusion through three layers of gases.
Recipe #2. A teaspoon of garlic (4-5 cloves to squeeze) pour 500 ml of boiling water and soak for 4-5 hours. The infusion is strained and wipe the affected flower.
Prescription number 3. Around the plant in a pot, lay a few sheets of paper and put garlic pulp on them. Then cover the inner flower with a bag (for garbage).
The bag is left for a week, the system is ventilated every evening. If desired, after 3-4 days, you can add fresh garlic pulp to the garlic.
4. Onions .
An average onion is finely chopped, grated and poured with a glass of water for 2-3 hours. Next, everything is the same as with garlic.
Onion shells. To prepare an infusion from the aphids of 20 g of shells pour one liter of warm water and exist 13-16 hours. The resulting infusion is sprayed on the inner flowers, usually enough 2-3 treatments to kill the insects.
5. Infusion of pepper
An infusion of red-hot pepper is used to kill whiteflies: 20-30 grams of crushed (finely chopped) pepper, which is boiled in 200 ml of water for 60 minutes. Then infuse the resulting liquid for 24 hours and strain. To spray against aphids, dilute 10 ml of infusion in one liter of water.
Treat indoor plants with pepper infusion every two weeks. Pepper tincture can be stored in ready-made form for a long time, so that it can be used immediately after the pest is detected.
Folk remedies against whitefly: tips
Rules of treatment. Folk remedies are best used every 5-6 days 3-4 times in a row one of the infusion. A new solution must be prepared for each treatment, except for exceptions (pepper tincture).
RECOMMENDATIONS. For greater effect when spraying the folk remedy (it is better to stick to the plant), add soap to the solution – for example, a teaspoon of shavings per liter of infusion or solution.
There are other home remedies and folk remedies against whiteflies, but we believe that this list of folk remedies will be enough for the gardener. Because the presented home remedies are easy to find and use, in addition, they are quite effective.
Other folk tricks
sticky traps.
To facilitate the fight against pests on plants, in addition to folk remedies or chemicals, you can use sticky traps. They are great for catching adult insects.
To kill whiteflies, you can purchase a sticky fly trap or make one yourself.
Fungal midge caught in a trap
How to make a trap for whiteflies with your own hands?
Paint a piece of plywood, cardboard or heavy paper yellow. You can use white traps, but yellow is more attractive to the pest.
Lubricate the trap with a sticky substance – castor or machine oil, petroleum jelly, rosin and honey.
Dichlorvos .
You can fight the pest with dichlorvos, but only if there are no aquariums, children and animals in the house. To do this, spray dichlorvos around the houseplant in the morning and evening.
fumigator
If there is a separate airtight room (balcony, loggia) where no one will enter, you can put the indoor flower in it for 2 days and turn on the fumigator with insect panels.
You can also turn on the fumigator for when you leave for work or overnight, and put the plant in the bathroom.
Benzyl benzoate for whiteflies.
Many flower growers advise using benzyl benzoate emulsion instead of an ointment to treat scabies.
Dissolve a teaspoon of benzyl benzoate in 200 ml of water and spray the flower.
According to reviews, this is a very effective remedy that can remove whiteflies in one operation. On average, the plant is sprayed 2-3 times in 5-7 days.
Fighting whiteflies with the help of temperature (thermal method)
The insects cannot tolerate low temperatures – less than 10 degrees Celsius. For this purpose, the affected indoor plant should be placed in a cool place. This method is in addition to treating flowers with medicines or folk remedies and is suitable for species that tolerate cold.
2nd POSSIBLE option. Heat the plant to 40-45 degrees Celsius in an enclosed room (a glazed balcony/galley on a hot day or a greenhouse). At this temperature, the whitefly suffers a heat stroke.
Biological control methods
These control methods are ideal for greenhouses and greenhouses. Therefore, it is recommended to use its natural enemies (lacewings, ladybugs, macrolophus, enkarsia and others) to remove whiteflies.
Biological preparations effectively destroy the pest without harming people and animals.
prevention
To prevent the appearance of whiteflies on indoor plants, it is necessary to avoid high temperatures and humidity at the same time. Ventilate the room and do not place indoor flowers too close to each other.
It is very important to take proper care of a houseplant, because a strong flower will be able to resist the pest longer.
ARTICLE ADDENDUM:
We hope that you know how to fight the whitefly and how to get rid of it with the help of medicines or folk remedies.
Whitefly on houseplants: how to get rid of it?
Whitefly is a pest that often appears on garden plant crops and indoor plants. It is quite difficult to get rid of it – you can use folk methods and the use of powerful insecticidal means. If appropriate measures are not taken in time, the plant can die. In this article, we will consider what to do when whitefly appears and how you can reduce the risks of its appearance.
Causes of appearance
The whitefly loves a humid atmosphere, elevated air temperature (at least +20 ° C). It “adores” plants. All these factors often attract the parasite. Since adults fly, they can easily enter the apartment through an open window.
Another way to infect houseplants is through the soil. The fact is that whitefly eggs in the ground are quietly tolerated. They do not die in winter at subzero temperatures and can be brought in with the floor. Once in favorable conditions, they begin to actively develop and reproduce in indoor plants.
Whitefly can appear in the apartment or house together with cut garden flowers. And the cause of the appearance is often a new sick plant brought into the room. After some time, the pest begins to attack healthy plant plants. These parasites readily spread to violets, gerberas, hydrangeas and begonias, so these flowers should be regularly inspected with special care.
Signs of Infestation
There are a number of signs by which you can determine the appearance of white patches on home green pets. Let’s break down how you can recognize the enemy in order to take timely action and save the plant from death.
- The appearance of small flies on the vegetation. Can fly or jump from leaf to leaf. If pest control is not initiated in time with plant treatments, the insects will fly in and form a “cloud”.
- Translucent scales appear on the back of the leaf, which is what the adults look like.
- Training on plants of a shiny badge with a hard consistency. These are the products of the life activity of insects.
- If you ignore mosquitoes for a long time, the leaves of plants suffer – they turn yellow, begin to curl and fall off.
House flower growers also notice that dark spots often form on the leaves. This is a sooty fungus, the appearance of which is caused by the activity of the white fly. Sick flowers look sluggish, they may stop growing or stop blooming.
Note: the greatest damage to interior plants is caused not by adult insects, but by larvae. They get a large amount of nutrients from the plants.
While the larvae are turning into moths, the plant may be destroyed.
Species Description
There are more than two hundred white flycatchers in the wild. They used to be found only in areas with warm climates, but over time they have spread almost everywhere. The insects affect plants in open soils, greenhouses or homes. The parasites like small, medium-sized squirrels of white with wings that visually resemble moths. Females reach up to 2 mm and males range in length from 2.5 to 3 mm. The wings and insects are covered with white waxy pollen.
Several species of whitefly are most commonly found on indoor plants.
- Tobacco (sometimes called cottontail). This insect belongs to the miniatures – its length reaches 1.5 mm. Its coloration, body and legs are yellow, wings are white. Adults are whitish in color. This South Asian parasite carries numerous infectious diseases.
- The greenhouse white fly is native to South America. Most adults are up to 1.5 mm long; larger specimens are less common. The body of the parasite is yellow, and the antennae are light brown. The wings are white, scabrous, with a whitish patina.
- Citrus citrus. Adults have a dark body, so they are also called black white flies. They affect not only citrus plants, but also many others.
Most often these insects compete on the Black Sea coast.
The development of these species has 3 levels – egg, larva, and imago. Adult females can lay up to 20 green eggs up to 0.2 mm long. Under favorable conditions, the insect may lay up to 300 eggs in a few weeks. After 1 to 2 weeks transparent larvae appear. They attach to leaves and suck plant sap with their penetrating rotatory apparatus. After another 2 weeks, the larvae turn into a nymph, which turns into an adult in the same period.
How can I get rid of them?
Whiteflies can be found not only in greenhouses in personal action. Often they are treated indoor plants, to know how to remove these parasites in the home, you need all flower blooms on window sills. There are several effective methods of control. Below we will tell in detail how you can cope with such pests.
Chemical preparations
With serious damage to plants, it is recommended to use special insecticides. First it is necessary to conduct a thorough visual inspection of the plants. Infected flowers are recommended to be placed in a separate room for quarantine. This way, the risk of damage to healthy plants is minimized as much as possible. When using the drug, the dosage specified by the manufacturer in the instructions must be observed. Treatment of plants should be carried out in the absence of children and pets, wearing only respirators and gloves.
Please note: it is not recommended to spray insecticides on healthy flowers. If the solution gets on the leaves, the plant may weaken, stop growing and blooming.
The most effective preparations are:
- “Spark” – affected plants are sprayed with the solution and watered after treating the soil (about 2 ml per liter of water).
- Actara – a strong drug, recommended for severe lesions (capable of destroying both adults and larvae).
The following preparations are also considered effective against whiteflies: Vertimek, Tanrek, Moscow, Tiazipir and others. Experienced gardeners are advised to add a little shampoo to the solution. For this reason, the chemical components are better “stuck” on the affected areas, as a greater effect is achieved.
Biological remedies
There are several preparations of biological origin, which can show themselves in the fight against whiteflies. The most popular is “Fytoverm”. The drug refers to contact acid. Its composition includes plant sap. The parasites are killed within 3 days when feeding on the leaves. Parasites are also destroyed by penetration of the drug into the body. To increase the effectiveness, a small amount of liquid soap should be added to the solution, and then treat the culture.
Another effective, but very poisonous drug is Aktellik. It is capable of destroying pest moths in 4 days. When treating the affected plants, it is necessary to use personal protective equipment (gloves, respirator). In order not to destroy the plants themselves, it is necessary to use the instructions when using it.
“BioTlyn” is another effective remedy that is recommended by experienced gardeners, vegetable gardeners and hobby gardeners.
The drug is poisonous. During treatment, it is also necessary to take care of effective protection of the respiratory organs.
Folk methods
To combat the white fly with small lesions, it is recommended to resort to folk methods. In addition, it is possible to combine chemical methods of destroying “uninvited guests” with folk treatment. Under the advantages of such methods of struggle can be seen:
- Absolute safety for the health of household and pets;
- Easy preparation of solutions;
- Efficiency.
Water with laundry soap is effective against gadflies. Use a sponge and a weak soap solution to scrub the outside of the leaves to kill the larvae. In this way, you need to “go through” all the leaves. And you can also grate laundry soap and dilute it with water (respect 1: 6). Whip the resulting solution into a thick foam and apply it to the leaves with a sponge.
You can spray the soap solution on the planter and the top layer of the floor. It is important that the solution does not penetrate deep into the ground.
If you did not manage to kill the pests with the first time, it is recommended to repeat such a treatment after 1 week.
It is possible to get rid of pests with a dandelion infestation. To prepare the solution, you need to take 40 grams of rhizomes and leaves of the plant and pour a liter of hot water over them. All this insists for 4 days. The ready solution is sprayed on the leaves and the upper layers of the floor.
A solution of water and ammonia (5 drops of ammonia alcohol per 1.5 liters of liquid) will help to destroy the white flower. A sponge or cotton block is wetted in the obtained remedy, treat each leaf of the system.
For adults, it is recommended to use special traps. Yellow cardboard is taken for the manufacture, as this color is particularly attractive to parasites and cures the adhesive composition for a long time. Such a trap should be placed in a pot with a wire. Adults sit on the glue and oilcloth. And you can also buy a trap designed for whiteflies (the most popular are bona forte and feromon).
They are sold in stores that sell flowers or seeds.
base
Fumzers against mosquitoes and mosquitoes help get rid of whiteflies. To reduce the population of parasites, you need to close the windows, insert a cylinder of liquid or a plate into the device, and then plug it into an outlet. The closer the fumigator is to the indoor plants, the more effective the insect control will be.
Important: To avoid poisoning, family members and animals should not be in a room with a fumigator plugged into an outlet.
Precautions
With regular preventative measures, the risk of whitefly is reduced. Experienced plants recommend keeping the humidity in the room no more than 50%. It is also important to drain the liquid from the trays formed when watering. To keep the whitefly out of the apartment, the room should be ventilated regularly.
Plants should be carefully inspected and lightly shaken every few days. Twice a week, the leaves should be gently wiped with a damp sponge or damp cotton disks. In addition, it is advisable to carefully inspect new indoor plants and buy special soil for planting flowers.
Temporary preventive measures can prevent the appearance and active reproduction of whitefly.
