If you don't prevent pests in spring, pest and disease control in summer becomes much harder

This saying comes up often: when all things revive, you see flowers and plants putting out new shoots one after another. It is also a good season for succulents to grow.

But

people also overlook one problem: the pests and diseases that harm succulents have also begun their year of activity.

The most common one on succulents is called the mealybug; veteran growers with experience know well how formidable scale insects can be.

You may be thinking, mine are growing just fine, so how could insects appear? In fact, scale insects are already far too common; everyone who grows succulents will encounter them. You cannot see the eggs with the naked eye; perhaps right now they are in the soil of your flowerpot or on the roots of the plant, only you cannot see them.

If you do not pay attention to pest prevention now, then when scale insects break out in summer, I believe many beginners will be at a loss.

The three most common insects when growing succulents

Scale insects

Aphids

Root mealybugs

1

Scale insects

are the greatest natural enemy of succulents. The reason scale insects are hard to eradicate is that they reproduce quickly, and their body surface secretes a waxy substance and they carry a shield with them (the scale). The drugs that are specifically effective against scale insects are often of the emulsifiable concentrate type; while penetrating the wax of the scale insect, they also corrode the leaf surface of the succulent, causing phytotoxicity. So... besides killing the insects instantly, the sticky liquid they leave behind is also very deadly and easily causes diseases such as "sooty mold." So be sure to wash with clean water; at this point do not worry about whether the farina comes off or not ~ staying alive is what matters.

Common method: use Huahuashen to kill the insects, and by the way use a spray bottle to wash away the dirty stains.

2

Aphids

The most disgusting thing about this insect is that the adults can fly! They actually can fly! Generally they will not actively choose succulents to feed on, but aphids can often be found on the flower stalks of succulents; it is guessed that they are attracted by the nectar. When gnawing on the succulent they likewise scatter some liquid similar to oil stains, especially sticky to the touch, and it sticks to the leaves along with various stains and is not easy to clean off.

They are quite easy to spot; just pay more attention to the flower stalks, and those large patches of black or green are generally aphids.

Common method: directly cut off the flower stalk and throw it away, then use a cotton swab dipped in water to clean the leaves thoroughly.

3

Root mealybugs

are extremely difficult to remove. The most troublesome thing is that they keep hiding in the soil and are extremely hard to find; only when the insects have already overrun will they crawl out or flow out from the drainage hole of the flowerpot. Although they are very small, they will also slowly crawl into other flowerpots.

This kind of insect is relatively hard to find, but you can pay more attention to the ground; if you find small white dots on the ground, then be on guard, because perhaps by then every flowerpot in your home has been infested with root mealybugs.

Control method: since this thing is really too small and always appears in groups, either use poison or completely change the soil and wash the plant.

For pest prevention, the ratio of Huahuashen can be a little lighter; for pest killing, the ratio of Huahuashen can be a little heavier.

After succulents are sprayed with the medicine, do not expose them to strong sun; place them in partial shade and wait until the next day to resume normal care.

In fact this is already the least troublesome method; there are also others using alcohol or abamectin, etc., depending on the situation. But basically I also just use Huahuashen for pest prevention, and I feel the effect is already very good.

If you find insects, you can dilute Huahuashen in 1000 milliliters of water, which is exactly 2 times a 500-milliliter cola bottle. The diluted Huahuashen can then be sprayed directly on the succulents; the insects it can kill include: scale insects, fungus gnats, aphids, spider mites, and the larvae of the common blue butterfly (the smaller ones, just hatched not long ago). There is one more thing to note: please wear rubber gloves ~ after all, it is also a pesticide ~ keep it away from children and pregnant women!

As for any kind of insect, everyone should treat it correctly, and there is no need to be overly nervous or afraid, because insects and flowers live together after all ~