Cocky orchids become very timid when insidious pests attack them. Now the queen of flowers depends on your support to ward off the pests. Read here how you can diagnose and successfully combat an infestation.
How do I fight pests on orchids?
Orchid pests such as lice and spider mites can be controlled through regular inspection, thorough showering, alcohol use and biological insecticides. Expert care strengthens the orchid and increases its resistance to pests.
Identify and combat lice effectively – This is how it works
Lice of all kinds cause significant problems for orchids. This applies equally to mealybugs and mealybugs, scale insects and scale insects as well as aphids. By checking the leaves on the bottom and top every few days, you can catch the cunning pest in good time. Watch out for these signs:
- Mealybugs and mealybugs: 1-5 mm small, pink bodies are covered with white cotton balls
- Scale insects: 1-2 mm small, females sit under rounded bumps on the leaves, males are winged and mobile
- Aphids: 2-7 mm small, green, yellow, brown or black, often found on the undersides of leaves
By integrating high-percentage alcohol into the countermeasures, you increase the success of the fight. First shower the affected orchid vigorously with water before quarantining the plant. Wipe the affected plant parts with a cloth soaked in alcohol. You can dissolve the small shell of scale insects or the waxy coating of mealybugs by dabbing the pests individually with cotton swabs soaked in alcohol.
How to deal effectively with spider mites – tips on the symptoms
The second large group of vermin comes from the arachnid class of insects. Of the more than 1,200 species, it is specifically the common spider mite (Tetranychus urticae) that targets orchids. Furthermore, the orchid spider mite (Brevipalpus californicus) is a subspecies that specializes in exotic flowers. You can recognize a spider mite infestation by these characteristics:
- Common spider mite: 0.25-0.8 mm small, yellow, green, orange or red in color, forms extremely delicate, white webs
- Orchid spider mite: 0.1 mm small, does not form webs, lives as a solitary creature, spreads only slowly
- Most common symptom is mottled leaves with a silvery sheen
If you have found this pest on your orchid, rinse the affected orchid thoroughly - if the species can tolerate it. To combat spider mites, biological insecticides based on neem oil have proven to be excellent in practice. If you are confronted with a hardened colony of spider mites, an acaricide such as Spider Mite-Free Kanemite from Dr. Stahler, put an end to the vermin.
Tip
It may seem like a truism, but it deserves your consideration. A competently cared for orchid develops a high level of defense against all kinds of pests on its own. If placed in a bright, warm location, dipped weekly in warm water and fertilized every 4 weeks, cunning pests and pathogens have little chance of catching cunning pests and pathogens.