Gardening with Gary

Gardening Advice from an Expert

Insects

Bonnie writes~
Is there a spray that I can mix up to get rid of the white mites? They look kind of scaly.

A. Are you sure they are mites? I am unaware of any white ones. Scale has a brown shell top with a cottony white underside. They must be treated with a systemic insecticide and are very persistent.

Mealy bugs are white cottony messes, with adults visible when they move. The clusters are egg sacks laid by the adults. Could this be what yxou see?

Whatever, buy a general house plant insecticide. There are premixed ones in spray cans or bottles readily available. Always follow directions carefully and wash your hands with warm soapy water when through. Repeat as suggested, as one shot deals rarely succeed, since the eggs hatch out and your plants are reinfested with adults.

Mary writes~

Do you have any tips on how to get rid of the Asian Lady Beetles that have infested our home. We live on a farm in the Midwest, and these little biting (and stinky) pests arrived about 3 years ago and have become a terrible nuisance increasing in numbers each year. I realize that they were brought into the States to protect our crops from aphids, But they've come into our home and terrorized my now-3-year old daughter to the point where she now goes into hysterics no matter what kind of insect gets near or on her.

A. The multicolored Asian lady beetle was introduced from Asia, on purpose for biological control of insect pests and accidentally, into the United States. They became established and quickly spread over the country in the late 1980's and early 1990's. When the weather begins to get cold and food sources scarce, the adult lady beetles gather in large numbers, sometimes as many as 15,000 to 20,000. They are attracted to white and light colored buildings that have walls facing south to west. They enter the building through any crack, crevice or other small opening around windows, doors and roofs.

They reside inside the walls, floors, attics or crawl spaces of dwellings and annoying movement can be heard inside. Sometimes behind these interior walls, it's often warmer than the ladybirds require for dormancy. So they continue to crawl around until they find an exit area to the living area of the home or building. Once inside where it is warm, they fly around and land on walls, drapes, furniture, etc., totally annoying the human inhabitants. To make matters even worse if you irritate or disturb them, they will produce a sticky, yellow and foul smelling substance which may permanently stain whatever it comes in contact with. Do not use the fly swatter but rather the vacuum cleaner, sucking them up gently and quickly. If you start trying to hit with the newspaper or flyswatter, the results could be disastrous for your furniture and the air you breathe. They have been known to return to the same place year after year. So when you see them congregating on the outside of your home in the fall, it is time to eradicate them with insecticide, not after they are inside. Just before weather starts to cool, check for cracks and crevices in your walls and any other place that they could enter.

Assistance from: http://www.betterlawns.com