Several of my cherished cactus collection suffers or have suffered from root mealy bug. I have recently unpotted, washed off the roots, added insecticied wash and repotted. They keep coming back and every so often I repeat the process. I also loose a few plants in the process. I try to keep infected plants away from non-infected but in the same house complete isolation is near impossible. What predator is good against root mealy bug? Supplier in Canada? (Vancouver area prefered). Thanks. Waz
Hi Waz Cryptolaemus montrouzieri is a great preditor for mealy bugs. You shoul enclose your infected plants in a fine mesh quarenine netting to keep the good and bad bugs contained. I buy mine from www.thebuglady.ca they are on Vancouver Island and will ship to you. Good Luck
Thanks for the reply. The bettle you mentioned did come up in my google searc, but it lives on the leaves and stems. It is not very effective underground where my problem is. Root mealies can be found throughout and between the top and bottom of container holding the plant. Several sections or strands of root become infested. Root mealies are not visible above the soil. I have heard a mite (hypoaspis or something ) might be effective against root mealies but I am unsure how effective they are in the soil. Are there not several nemotodes that might be effective against soil dwelling pests? Waz
info available here after a quick google search for root mealy bug: http://www.succulents.co.za/succulent-plant-pests/root-mealy-bug.php the following ingredients are available in Canada in various retail products; Piperonyl butoxide Cypermethrin Dichlorvos Tetramethrin these products wre listed as methods of control for the mealy bug but I have always been under the impression that piperonyl butoxide was merely a synergist for/with pyrethrin (resmethrin and tetramethrin also) and not an insecticide unto itself. per Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piperonyl_butoxide for predator info: http://www.thebuglady.ca/
re: English please.. :) print the information I posted about chemical names and take it to a garden center near you, anyone with a pesticide dispensers licence should be able to show you a variety of products with those ingredients.
