How to control thrips on Phalaenopsis orchids? With photos of leaf damage

I believe friends who love growing plants have all seen a bug called "thrips"; their little rear ends stick up, and when they fly they come in strings. For flowers, these little things are the most feared, because they are tiny and very good at hiding among plants.

In terms of care, if you find thrips always flying around your home, you need to watch your plants and see whether they will be targeted by them, because thrips also cause quite a lot of damage. These little things like to hide in the folds of petals and in the gaps of flower buds, and they love to gnaw on tender petals. On petals that have been sucked by the insect's mouthparts, within a few days thin horizontal lines or tiny speckled spots will appear, as if pricked by a needle.

At first there may be only a few traces, but within a few days the petals will deform or wilt, and even if they barely bloom afterward, they will grow crooked and misshapen.

So how do you deal with thrips? First, prevention is best; thrips most like to fly among different plants, so as soon as you find them, spray promptly. Choose a dedicated insecticide, dilute it according to the instructions, and spray once on the flower spikes and tender leaves, then spray again one week later, and you can strangle the newly arrived thrips in the cradle. As a booster, you can spray once more when the flower buds are about to show color and before blooming, which basically ensures the flowers will not be disturbed by thrips when they open.

Then, once you find horizontal lines and small spots on the petals and confirm that thrips are the culprit, isolate this Phalaenopsis, because thrips can fly, and if you do not isolate it, they can easily move to other flowers, and then a whole group of flowers will suffer. After that, just choose imidacloprid or acetamiprid, dilute with water at a concentration of 1000 times (be sure to follow the ratio; if too strong it will burn the flowers, if too weak it will have no effect). It is best to spray at night, because thrips are active then and you will hit them every time, and when spraying, be sure to cover the flowers, flower buds, and both sides of the leaves. Usually spray once a week, and after three to five consecutive sprays you can completely eliminate the thrips. One last reminder: when spraying, be sure to wear gloves and a mask, and do not let the liquid splash onto your hands or face.