New member with a buggy issue

Discussion in 'Garden Pest Management and Identification' started by Rhonda, Jun 17, 2005.

  1. Rhonda

    Rhonda Member

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    Location:
    Richmond Hill Ontario Canada
    Hi, I received a jasmine plant as a gift about a month ago.I'm not sure what type it is.(white flowers,oval leaves!! I know that probably doesn't help) .It came in an inadequate pot so I repotted it in all purpose soil.anyway I have alot of light coming into my kitchen and dining area.I have 17ft ceilings with double stacked windows and patio doors. I put the plant in the kitchen(patio door area facing north).I thought it was ok except that the flowers bloomed and fall off almost immediately. I was told that was normal but I thought that perhaps it was too close to the heat/air condition vent and maybe too much sun so i moved it to the other side of the room. When i did,I noticed that one side of the plants stems were dry,brown, and dead looking and the leaves in the center of the plant were all dried out and dead. I removed all the dead leaves,but I wasn't sure how to handle the brown stems.If i cut them away there will be nothing left! The other side of the plant seems ok it still drops its flowers but it has new stem growth that looks healthy so far.I water the plant once a week and I have inserted a jobes slow release spike. I had it up on a table tonight and I was removing some dead leaves and I watered it as well. All of a sudden I see that there are tons of very very very tiny bugs in the soil.(not on leaves or stems that I can see)but they reflect in light so they look silver or white(not sure)and very thin.Once the water is absorbed you don't see them unless you stir up the soil which is why they went unnoticed until now. Assuming these are my problem, how do I rid the plant of them?? I dont even know what they are, I have tried research the bugs but I haven't found anything that resembles them. any ideas??
     
  2. felco

    felco Member

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    Location:
    victoria bc
    if these bugs are really the source of your problem...the only alternative is to either use pesticide...which I dont recommend or wash the roots and repot with sterile soil. actually its even better to use a soil substrate...growing mix and fertilize regularly during the growing season.
     
  3. fourd

    fourd Active Member 10 Years

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    Location:
    X-maryland now New Mexico
    I wonder if these small bugs resemple little magots or worms? If not, what they do look like -- need more description. Either way, as the other posted said, you'll probably have to knock them out. If they are the cause, they're likely eating your plants roots and thus disrupting the water and nutrient uptake leaving the leaf and stem damage you see. You'll have to knock them out.
     
  4. Rhonda

    Rhonda Member

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    Location:
    Richmond Hill Ontario Canada
    Ok, well looking at them crawl around they are white and very tiny and slender, I would say they are about 1mm in length. When i looked at them with a magnifying glass, they look like slender pieces of crawling rice. They definately have legs because they are moving very quickly in the soil, they seem to like the damp soil thats for sure. they don't fly ,and there are alot of them!!. This is the first time I have ever had any sort of pest problem with any plant, I have lush beautiful plants,I can grow a hoya plant like nobodys business! But this is new to me. I have no idea how to wash roots and pesticides scare me. If i need to wash the roots could you tell me how this is done?? thanks!
     
  5. MiniBot

    MiniBot Member

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    Location:
    Alameda, CA, USA
    Could be fungus gnats or perhaps Thrips larvae? I'm having the same issue in one of my birdsnest ferns and no matter how much neem spray I use, it doesn't go away. They are little silvery buggers in the soil and the run fast. I also have thrips outside and they resemble them slightly. I guess I need a magnifying glass!

    minibot
     
  6. Rhonda

    Rhonda Member

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    Location:
    Richmond Hill Ontario Canada
    Thank you all! I went to a nursery with a bag of dirt that I took out of my plant container.they say these things are fungus gnats. Apparently they like the moist soil which is why I only noticed them when I watered the plant. I inquired about washing the roots and repotting the plant but it seems it may not be necessary, the gnats are more of a nuisance than anything, they recommended a fungus gnat spray by wilson which is ready to use. I was told to remove the top layer of soil about 3.5 inches down as these gnats don't normally go deep into the soil , then I am to spray the soil.I'm told it will not harm the plant as you can spray the leaves as well without harm to the plant. i was also told to cut back on watering. So I guess I will give it a try and see what happens. I was also told that the stems are suppose to be woody as this plant is more like a bush than a regular plant and is meant for outside rather than inside. I guess I'm not killing the thing afterall!!
     

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