Common Indoor Plant Pests

Mealy Bug - If you ever notice small, white furry insects that look like little mounds of cotton on your plants then your plant most likely has mealy bugs!  If left untreated these will eventually lead to death for your plant.   These are sucking insects that feed and multiply on your plants.  See Pic 1

Treatment - Treat with Neem Oil and / or White Oil and/ or Cotendor.  Isolate from other indoor plants and be sure to remove all visible bugs on both top and underneath leaves and use a cotton bud to get into hard to reach places.  Check plant every couple of weeks for bugs and continue to remove once they appear.

Scale - If you ever notice sticky residue on the leaves and trunk of your plants your plant may have Scale.  Scale appears as small brown or black bumps/ovals on tops and undersides of leaves and stems.  Scale insects suck sap from your plants and take away the plants nutrients leading to them wilting and eventually dying if left untreated. See Pic 2

Treatment - Pick off and gently scrub visible scale on leaves and stems.  Then with Treat with Neem Oil and / or White Oil and/ or Cotendor.

Fungus Gnat - If you ever notice tiny black flying insects around your indoor plants then your plant could be suffering from Fungas Gnats!  These annoying little insects thrive and multiply in wet soils of plants.  They are relatively harmless as they cant bite people or transmit any diseases however they will continue to lay eggs in your plants soils if left untreated. See Pic 3

Treatment - Fungus gnats love wet soils so be sure to let your soils dry out in between waterings.  You can remove some of the top soil and replace with fresh soil to help remove larve etc.  Use sticky insect traps to capture adult gnats and stop them from multiplying.