Tiny white bugs on plants in your home or outdoors can be a big problem.
Learn how to identify and get rid of them.
Tomasz Klejdysz / Getty Images
Spotting tiny white bugs on plants in your garden or home can be distressing.
Credit:Tomasz Klejdysz / Getty Images
Will they hurt your plant?
What should you do?
Dean Schoeppner
1.
Credit:Dean Schoeppner
With their wings folded, they appear slightly triangular.
Whiteflies are active during the day and fly around when disturbeda big clue to help you identify them.
If you find little white flying bugs that flutter offen massewhen you move the plant, theyre likely whiteflies.
Credit: David Speer
Symptoms
Whiteflies feed with piercing-sucking mouthparts like aphids.
Stunted growth and damage to newly unfurled leaves are common.
The presence of honeydew, a sticky substance, is another good indicator.
Credit: Marty Baldwin
Controls
Start with a good blast from the hose toget rid of whiteflies.
Even the adults can be injured or dispersed.
Insecticidal soap sprayed on the undersides of leaves is moderately effective, but use caution to avoid affecting pollinators.
Credit:Tomasz Klejdysz / Getty Images
Aphids
Aphids are a large group of insects, and many are specific in their target plants.
Cabbage aphids feed on cruciferous family members, likecabbagesand greens.
Many adults are wingless.
Look with a magnifying glass to spot two long antennae and two tubes projecting from the rear.
Aphids often hide on the underside of leaves.
Look for curling, fading, stippled patterns, and yellowing leaves.
Stunted growth and dead shoots are indicators.
Mealybugs
Any soft-tissue houseplant is fair game for mealybugs.
The most common way mealybugs become aproblem on indoor plantsis to hitchhike in on a newly purchased plant.
The citrus mealybug is the most commonly found species on houseplants.
A visual inspection looking for white cottony spots is the best way to find these pests.
You may need to do this several times over a few days.
Insecticidal soap can be effective if applied to those hard-to-reach areas where the bugs hide.
Thrips
With so many species, thrips can target many shrubs, ornamental flowers, and vegetables.
Houseplants and young seedling starts are also susceptible.
Thrips are small, often only 1/16 inch long.
Yellow sticky traps are also effective for monitoring their presence.
Thrip damage often begins as tiny pale spots on the leaves called stippling.
The leaves may become pale and paper-like.
New terminal shoots can roll up and be discolored.
Thrips dont often kill the plant; they are more of a nuisance.
Young plants are especially susceptible to stunted growth.
Tiny black dots (excrement from feeding thrips) are another indicator.
Beneficial predatory insects can be of great help.
