Do scale insects on Phalaenopsis orchids chew the leaves? Three of the simplest ways to get rid of them
In recent years, Phalaenopsis orchids have taken the world by storm, and many households keep 1 or 2 pots to join in the trend. But buying them is easy, while growing them easily brings all kinds of problems, and the problems are new every day. For beginners, the result is usually growing the Phalaenopsis to death.
When beginners grow flowers, they really must grasp the key points. What they should learn most is watering and the daily time given to ventilation and light, but once we clearly understand the care knowledge, growing them will naturally become easier and more effortless. However, on the road of growing flowers, besides doing the routine actions of watering and light well, you also need to know what insects they tend to attract. Because sometimes it is not that everyone raised them wrongly and made the plants gradually worsen, but that they got a "pest infestation." Generally speaking, aphids, red spider mites and scale insects are all common small insects that parasitize Phalaenopsis orchids.
Today let us talk about the most annoying little bug, the "scale insect," because it likes to breed on the most beautiful petals and leaf surfaces of Phalaenopsis orchids. Leaves pierced by the mouths of scale insects will slowly turn yellow, become brittle, and finally dry up and fall off. And what is most infuriating is that scale insects also secrete sticky honeydew, which easily covers the leaf surface with a layer of black mold spots (it looks unbearable), and once blocked, the leaves also cannot absorb sunlight for photosynthesis.
What special tricks are there for dealing with scale insects? First, when there are only a few bugs, you can prepare a soft-bristled brush (an old toothbrush also works), or a few cotton swabs, dip them in medical alcohol, and then slowly wipe the places with scale insects. Alcohol can dissolve the outer shells of scale insects and also sterilize, and the bugs brushed off can just be wiped away with a tissue. Over the next few days, keep checking and wiping, especially also look at hidden corners such as leaf sheaths and the backs of leaves. This method does not require worrying about pesticide damage, and is safe and environmentally friendly.
If there are too many bugs to wipe by hand, then you have to use pesticide. The key here is to seize the hatching period of scale insects, when their outer shells have not yet grown hard and the pesticide is easily penetrated inside, giving the best insect-killing effect. It is recommended to choose imidacloprid or acetamiprid, dilute with water at the 1000-fold concentration stated in the instructions (do not get the concentration wrong, as too strong will burn the leaves and too dilute will have no effect).