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Those plants that possess soft growth and are high in nitrogen content are mainly attracted by these Mealybugs. Even they appear in overwatered and over fertilized plants as well.
Mealybugs mainly develop from high summer heat as they like humid weather. So it is better to not put your plants under direct Summer heat outside your garden in order to prevent Mealybug infestation.
The fastest way to get rid of these Mealybugs is through the following steps:-
- First thing you need to do is to remove all the bugs that are visible with the help of a cotton ball or swab dipped in alcohol.
- Then take a cup of rubbing alcohol and a few drops of Dawn dish soap mixed in 32oz water.
- Apply this to the whole plant with the help of a sprayer, even to the parts where mealybugs are not visible to your eyes.
- Carry out this process till the Mealybug infestation is over.
When there is an initial attack of Mealybugs on your plants, then your plants can definitely survive Mealybug attack. But in case of heavy infestation, Mealybugs directly feed on roots and plants cannot take nutrition from the soil and eventually die.
Mealybugs love warm environments. They survive in the roots of the plants and are very tiny white bugs. They can come to your plants from the equipment you might be using for your plants or through an outdoor plant that is infested by these bugs.
So basically there are three growth stages of Mealybugs i.e eggs, larvae and adult stage. Females have the capacity to lay 500 eggs in the sac that has been attached with plants, twigs or fruit barks. When the sac hatches after 10 days, eggs eventually spread over the whole plant and start feeding on them.
Mealybugs can actually come from anywhere such as equipment from outside, through vegetables or fruits from grocery shops, through flowers. Even Ants are the biggest carrier of these bugs especially to your indoor plants as ants love to feed on the honeydew produced by the bugs.
Despite their mobility, they are unlikely to move more than a few feet during their lifetime. When they are small, juveniles are very hard to see, but they are also mobile, and they are small enough to be carried by the wind.
Yes, mealybugs are quite fast spreaders. So, It is always advisable to take out the plant that has been infested with Mealybug so that other plants can be protected. Mealybugs attack should be controlled in initial stages to prevent the fast spreading.
Yes, Mealybugs do live in soil especially in deeper soil. As they live in deep soil, Mealybugs can feed on the roots of plants and eventually the plant cannot uptake any nutrients from the soil that adversely affect their health.
