Imagine your garden is blooming with beautiful, different colored, amazing flowers. You are having the taste and health benefits of homegrown fruits and vegetables. But you notice that your flowers are not blooming as before, plants are not growing properly and certain white insects are killing your plants.
But what are those white insects and how to get rid of them?
Whiteflies! These are the white insects that are causing the death of your plant and destroying your garden. Figuring out how to get rid of flies in outdoor plants can make your garden more enjoyable through the season and also reduce the number of flies that sneak into your home.
But what is the solution and how get rid of these damage-causing insects?
Let’s dive into the article below to find out the solution to stay ahead of these whiteflies.
What are whiteflies?
Whiteflies are one type of fly that have one set of wings from the insect family Aleyrodidae. Also named “nuisance” flies, these whiteflies are about ¼-inch long and gray.
Whiteflies are not true flies. These insects generally hide under plant leaves, so they’re often hard to spot, but you can suspect them if you notice some white clouds of tiny insects around your plants. They suck the juices of plants and leave a sticky substance behind called honeydew.
Whiteflies are tropical species, and thus they are widely found in warm climates and greenhouses. As they reproduce rapidly and attain very high densities, and can transmit plant viruses, they can be quite damaging to plants and need to be cured as soon as possible
How do whiteflies damage the plants?
Whiteflies are very dangerous for your plants and can cause two types of damage to a plant. The first one is considered to be the direct damage. Whiteflies can directly seriously damage the plants by sucking juices from them, which turn the leaves to yellow, shrivel, and drop prematurely.
If it is not controlled in time and the numbers of whiteflies per leaf are great enough, it could lead to the death of the plant.
The second one, which is considered to be indirect damage, is generally caused by the whitefly adults. They transmit several viruses from diseased plants to healthy plants through their mouthparts.
Besides, whiteflies excrete honeydew earlier a sweet substance that forms a sticky coating on leaves. The honeydew is colonized by a fungus named sooty mold that makes the leaves look black and dirty.
When these fungi are extremely abundant on leaves, they prevents light from reaching leaf surfaces, causing plants to become stressed. However, Sooty mold can be easily washed off with a forceful stream of water on sturdy plants.
How to detect whiteflies?
Whiteflies are the most common insect that is distributed throughout every place and is commonly found in outdoor plantings, inside greenhouses, and occasionally on indoor houseplants.
Like many other insects, whiteflies also have immature (nymphs) and adult stages. Adults whiteflies generally lay eggs randomly, in circles or arcs on the underside of leaves where they spend their whole life cycle.
Nymphs of the whiteflies have small, oval bodies, no wings and no apparent legs or antennae. The adult ones that have emerged from mature nymphs are winged and look like a tiny moth.
Which plants are susceptible to whiteflies ?
Whiteflies are generally susceptible to every type of plant but it is found explicitly on a variety of plants, from ornamental flowers to warm-weather vegetables, including eggplant, peppers, tomatoes, and okra.
Some species of whiteflies also attack sweet potatoes, plants from the cabbage family, and citrus trees like lemon. While they are developed indoors, they will feed on most common houseplants, especially those with soft, smooth leaves.
How to get rid of whiteflies ?
These are some of the procedure by following which you can get rid of the whiteflies .
Always have a look at your plants
There are various solutions and traps that you can use to control whiteflies. The biggest and most effective tip is: to start early. In the mornings and evenings, whenever you wander the garden or look after your houseplants, check the back of the leaves for eggs or notice whether these little bugs are approaching your plants.
Use a Mix of Apple Cider Vinegar and Dish Soap
There is a home remedy that you can use to keep these insects away from your place. For that, you just need to mix about an inch of apple cider vinegar with dish soap and a pinch of sugar in a glass. Then cover the glass with plastic wrap and secure the glass with rubber bands and poke a small hole in the top. Keep that glass near your plant.
The fermented smell of the vinegar will attract the flies to the glass and they will fly through the hole into the glass. The detergent in soap will destroy the digestive tract of the fly and can also break down their cell walls. The flies will sink in the vinegar instead of being able to land on the vinegar. This is one of the easiest and cleanest ways to get rid of flies in your plant.
Spray water on your plants
Before using any insecticides or something else, first, try to spray water on your plant. Always start with blasting whiteflies with your watering hose or a spray bottle. It will cause the insects to scatter and will dislodge nymphs and eggs to some extent.
Spray leaves of the plant with insecticidal soaps
If the whiteflies have grown abundantly and watering is not working, then consider spraying insecticides on your plant leaves following the directions on the packaging. While spraying, make sure to spray the undersides of leaves, too. Follow up spraying 2 or 3 times, as necessary.
It is recommended to spray plants in the evening when temperatures are cooler, spraying insecticides in mid-day heat may cause an adverse reaction in your plant. Besides, spraying insecticides in the evening will allow you to avoid accidentally spraying any pollinators or beneficial insects.
Use the vacuum to get rid of whiteflies
Apart from all your efforts, you also can use the vacuum to get rid of these white insects. If your whitefly population is persistent, you can (carefully) use a handheld vacuum every few days to remove the insects away from your plants. This helps you to gets rid of both nymphs and adults.
Just be sure to empty your vacuum after using your plant in a trash can outside your home afterward.
Conclusion
As you read the article this far, you might have understood how to get rid of the whiteflies on outside plants. This will surely help you to have a healthier garden away from these insects.
Have healthier foliage, and great growth in your plants without any insects, especially the whiteflies. So follow the above measures and let us know how it is going.
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