How to beat the red spider mite on plants?

In the world of plants we can come up against different adversities so that they grow healthy and correctly. Among the most common adversities that we can find in crops or indoor or outdoor plants are pests, and one of them is the red spider mite, this pest is characterized by causing much damage to plants around the world.

In this article, we will be talking about this pest so that you can get to know them and know how to combat the red spider mite in case your plants are infested by this pest; or also how to prevent them.

the red spider pest

The red spider (Tetranychus urticae) is a small mite about 0.5 mm in size as an adult. It is called a spider because of its ability to spin webs, but it is not actually a spider but a mite. This pest is commonly found on houseplants and also on outdoor plants in dry environments. This pest can feed on a wide variety of plant species, from vegetables to the most common ornamental plants.

red dots

They are difficult to see with the naked eye, but remain in tiny red dots to the human eye, unless there are large numbers of this pest, and that is where they are seen as a blanket with web-like formations. They are considered very dangerous to plants because they feed on their cellular contents, devouring the plant cell by cell, leaving a stain that contrasts with the surrounding green.

on the underside of leaves

Red spider mites, like most pests, are found on the underside of the leaves of plants, and this is because the underside is where there is the greatest porosity in plants and where they have the greatest accessibility for their sucking mouthparts. So if we want to detect this pest on our plants, we should always look at the underside of the leaves.

what problems does this pest cause my plant?

The red spider mite sucks and feeds on plant cells at great speed, weakening the plant very quickly and causing it to turn yellow very quickly. This makes the plant vulnerable to attack by other pathogens such as fungi and/or bacteria which can cause death.

If spider mites are appearing in excess on your plant, it is time to rethink why this is happening? There is probably something we are doing wrong, whether it is under- or over-watering, over-fertilising, under-sunning or over-fertilising. The point is that spider mite is a biomarker, and a symptom of plant weakness caused by any of these reasons.

spider mite treatment

To prevent this pest, things must be done properly, such as adequate watering of the plant, correct fertilisation, correctly orienting the plant so that it gets the necessary hours of sunlight or the type of sunlight it needs.

It is also important that we always keep an eye on our plants, the more we keep an eye on the state of health of our plants, look at the underside of the leaves and the vigour of the plant, the lower the risk of suffering from a pest and the lower the risk of being in time to do a manual removal or cleaning.

From a certain point of view it is considered that spider mites are not bad at all as they help to control the population of ladybirds and lacewings in the plants or orchards, what we really want is to control them to avoid having an infestation of this pest and having to use a lot of chemical insecticide, which does damage the plants.

what products do I use to treat red spider mite?

If prevention methods do not work properly, and there is a danger that the spider mite population will get out of control, it is necessary to resort to the use of organic products to treat and control the pest or eliminate it completely.

manual removal of pest

As a first step, what is always recommended is the manual removal of this pest if the plant does not have too many of them. This is the most innocuous technique, but sometimes it is very difficult, as it depends on the patience and time we put into it to be able to eliminate them from our plants.

potassium soap

One of the most recommended natural products is potassium soap as it helps to eliminate this pest and others, it is characterised by the power it has to weaken the pests so that they eventually die, it is also a natural product and harmless to health.

pyrethrin

After having used the potassium soap (approximately 1 hour later) we recommend the use of natural pyrethrin, which is a natural organic extract that is used to combat different pests such as: red spider mites, bedbugs, whitefly, aphids, among others. The combination of these two products makes the treatment even more effective.

garlic

Another homemade solution to prevent the appearance of pests is the use of garlic, which should be crushed well and mixed with water. Applying this to your plant will protect it against the appearance of pests.

take care of your plants!

As you have read in this article, it is important that we always keep an eye on our plants in order to keep them under control and detect what needs to be detected in good time, without it being too late. The attention you give to your plants has a big impact on their longevity. So now you know, in this article you already have the information on how to detect spider mites and how to treat them.

Don't forget that on our website florespana.es we have a wide variety of plant species that you can buy from the comfort of your own home, and each species has all the information you need to take care of them so that they grow happily.