GETTING RID OF HOUSEPLANT PESTS WITHOUT CHEMICALS | How To Use Beneficial Mites Indoors

[@nofields9904]

I’ve not had thrips…so far but I feel much better prepared now. Thanks

[@EverythingPlants]

Consider yourself lucky 😜

[@kitina]

This is helpful and informative! I'm considering getting beneficial mites for my growing collection. Your video came up from my search 😊

[@EverythingPlants]

Glad it was helpful!

[@jillianleblanc9370]

Thank you for sharing beautiful and amazing plants lovely collection ❤❤

[@EverythingPlants]

Again....thanks for watching!

[@Brennahasplants]

I've been using these for over a year now and I don't think I'll go back to spraying unless I have an active infestation. It's calmed my pest anxiety so much! I have a thrips outbreak last year where I ended up getting rid of about 20 plants and spraying with Safer's Endall for weeks on end (rotating them out to spray in the bathroom so my cat wouldn't be exposed). I can't stand the smell anymore haha. I have a complete pest management strategy now, including these guys, because I don't want to go through that again! They're not perfect, the sachets don't look nice and the feeder mites can travel on the shelves a little, especially in the first week but I've just gotten used to it, I guess. Thanks for highlighting them in your videos and hopefully you can do a follow up once you've had them on your plants for a few weeks! As always, your videos are great :)

[@EverythingPlants]

I 100% agree...I don't like the packs hanging from the plant, but I can deal with it. I hate the smell in sprays in my house, so I am always willing to give these guys a try and I can see them all over the plants, so I know it was a great investment.

[@mollys1584]

Thank you for an interesting and informative video Jeff! I appreciate all the information.

[@EverythingPlants]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@LurkinCT]

This is cool, reminds me of the situation I had last fall. I had those, I think, fungus knats, those little tiny, wee flies and their lil crawly babies in the dirt (I don't think they hurt the plants, just a bother buzzing/crawling around). I also had these small beetle type bugs that would sun on the outside of my front door and inevitably some would make their way inside. I was catching and releasing back outside but started to notice that the knat population was decreasing hhhmmm. So I left 2-3 of the beetles inside and sure enough, no more knats lol Oh ya, an update on the whacking back of my older rubber plant, had 19-20 cuttings to root, perlite, dirt and water. Only 2 rooted, dang, oh well. Turned out to be 2 largest cuttings, in water, all the others rotted. The mother plant is looking great and happy with all the new growth though! My baby Teneke rubber plant now has 7 leaves lol. Thanks so much for the videos, informative and a real pleasure to watch!

[@EverythingPlants]

That is so cool! And great job with your rubber plant and the new growth!

[@margaretneilson3301]

Once again.. very interesting Jeff, Thankyou 😄👍

[@EverythingPlants]

Thanks again!

[@nicoleallen3079]

This is great!!! Having over 200 orchids, bugs are inevitable. I do have 2 questions. Will the predatory mites kill my springtails? And do the mites kill scale? I have 3 dogs and 5 cats, so animal safety is very important!!! Thank you so much for this video!!!

[@EverythingPlants]

Hey Nicole. There are certain predatory mites for certain pests....there are specific soil mites, like grub grenade, that I have used in the past for fungus gnats, but I'm unsure if they would consume springtails. As for scale I did a quick search and it looks like lady bugs are a predator for scale.....'Commercially available beneficial insects, such as ladybugs and lacewing, are natural predators of the young larval or “crawler” stage.' I hope this helps!

[@tiffcl6545]

Thank you for sharing. I have a question. Does that mean I can't shower the plants during the treatment period?

[@EverythingPlants]

Ya....don't spray down your plants otherwise you are blasting off those bugs as well. After a couple months of letting them work away, then I'll spray them off and give them a good cleaning

[@tiffcl6545]

@@EverythingPlants thank you. I really appreciate the tips. And I love your plants. They look very healthy. 💚

[@EverythingPlants]

@@tiffcl6545 most of them are doing okay lol

[@lgarden7086]

Interesting… thanks for sharing. Seems like once you get thrips, it’s an ongoing issue? I’m taking care of my friends plants for a month and I saw a white bug that seemed longish almost like a mini grasshopper but white. I wondered if it was a thrip because some of the foliage on the plant looked damaged. I squished it but next week I’m going to look more closely or maybe not…I don’t want to bring one home 😜

[@EverythingPlants]

If it looks like a little grasshopper then that might be an aphid.

[@heatherdegreeff1092]

Yes. I've "gotten rid of" thrips on my monstera 3 times! They always come back, in my experience. Unfortunately 😕

[@EverythingPlants]

@@heatherdegreeff1092 I think a lot of people have them but probably don't even know it.

[@heatherdegreeff1092]

@@EverythingPlants I think that's absolutely true. Sometimes I feel like I'd rather be in blissful ignorance about pests!! Haha

[@xkorbekx]

have you experienced gnat issues with shagnum peat as top dressing?

[@tannaauger1]

Ya, thrips wiped out over half of my collection this winter. Devastating.

[@EverythingPlants]

Did you just throw them out or did you try any insecticide? When I had thrips a couple of years ago, I threw out probably 20 plants.

[@tannaauger1]

I threw them out bc they died before I could get them under control.

[@EverythingPlants]

@@tannaauger1 that sucks. I hate throwing out plants 🪴

[@keithpugh7538]

They are horrible

[@tannaauger1]

@@EverythingPlants me too. Literally thousands of dollars.

[@keithpugh7538]

I don’t care for those bags on my plants. I just purchased some Endall from Ace Hardware store. It kills bugs and their eggs. You should get yourself an Ikea greenhouse cabinet. That can be your Christmas gift to yourself

[@gwenncoath8941]

Which Endall product did you get?

[@EverythingPlants]

Hey Keith. I'm not a fan of the pack/bags either but they are only temporary. I've read that some bugs can build up a tolerance to certain insecticides.

[@keithpugh7538]

@@EverythingPlants I’ve heard that too, it’s why I use 3 different brands, I also use the systemic granules also

[@keithpugh7538]

@@gwenncoath8941 I’m not sure 🤔 of any different brands. I heard another KZbinr that has plants and he said it’s the best spray for thrips. I just happened to see some at ACE. This was for indoor and outdoor use

[@keithpugh7538]

@@EverythingPlants so once a week I check and spray, rotating different brands.

[@MiscellaneousMichelle]

💚

[@EverythingPlants]

Thanks Michelle

[@kendravoracek3636]

💚🌿

[@EverythingPlants]

Thanks!