What to do when succulents get pests? Prevention is important, plus small pest-killing methods

In the process of caring for succulents, pest and disease control is mainly based on prevention.

First, the environment must be clean. Foreign plants must be strictly checked, and only placed into planting spaces such as greenhouses or balconies when it is confirmed that there are no pests or diseases.

Mealybugs like to suck on the tenderest parts of the plant, so you always find them near the growth point and young buds.

Occasionally finding them on the stem is because they are just emerging from the soil and are still climbing up at a snail's pace, truly slower than a snail. Some bugs are simply too lazy to climb and have no high ambitions,so they just lie in the soil sucking the sap from the plant's roots.

Generally, if you dig into the soil and find white powder or white flocculent matter, that is secreted by mealybugs, and you will definitely find translucent larvae or eggs inside.

The diameter of the eggs is very small and can be observed with a magnifying glass. Another thing that cannot be taken lightly is that many adults often lie on the back of leaves and in the angles between leaf stalks and other hard-to-notice parts,so when checking the above-ground parts, you cannot only check the growth point area.

Affected plants will grow weakly, slowly or stop growing, and dehydrate and dry up. It can also cause flower buds and leaves to fall off. In severe cases, plants will die in patches.

Many flower lovers often overlook this point, or do not take it seriously, and that is the high-temperature disinfection of flowerpots and flower soil, which is absolutely the best defense.

For flower soil bought from the flower market, no matter how much the seller praises how clean and hygienic this flower soil is and that it is imported,you must disinfect it at high temperature after buying it. This lays a solid foundation.

The first function of high temperature is to eliminate bacteria, and the second most important function is to eliminate insect eggs。

Eliminating bacteria is actually only temporary elimination, because later, as long as the temperature and humidity are suitable, a large number of bacteria will still break out in the flowerpot, because bacteria can penetrate everywhere.

But the elimination of insect eggs is strategic!It cannot be ruled out that insect eggs difficult to see with the naked eye may occasionally spread by attaching to objects such as flowerpots or spread by wind, but compared with the number of insect eggs in the flower soil, that is already insignificant.

Here are several small pest-killing methods!

1. Imidacloprid (Confidor), cheap and easy to use, can be sprayed or used as a root drench, and can kill both adults and eggs. After applying the pesticide three times, the scale insects were completely eradicated.

2. DX Xiaobaiyao, systemic, can be buried in the soil. Its insecticidal effect is obvious to all, but it has a strong rotten cabbage smell.

3. Carbofuran, commonly known as American small purple medicine, has a good effect, but is highly toxic.

4. Use thirty cigarette butts, add 500 grams of water and soak for a whole day and night, filter and add a little soap solution, spray on the affected parts, once a day, 3~5 times is enough, and it can kill the nymphs of aphids and scale insects.

5. Dilute essential balm 600~800 times, spray the diluted solution on diseased plants several times, and it can kill aphids, red spiders and whiteflies.