In your opinion, which are the 3 worst pests in succulents?

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In your opinion, which are the 3 worst pests in succulents?

Aphids
16
2%
Fungus/Rot/Damping off
136
14%
Mealy bugs
241
26%
Mice
13
1%
Red spider mite
187
20%
Root mealy bugs
171
18%
Scale insects
41
4%
Sciarid fly
52
6%
Snails
50
5%
Western flower thrip
35
4%
 
Total votes: 942
Liz M
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Re: In your opinion, which are the 3 worst pests in succulen

Post by Liz M »

Echeverias are mealy bug magnets.
Obsessive Crassulaceae lover, especially Aeoniums but also grow, Aloes, Agaves, Haworthias and a select number of Cacti.
Herts Mike
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Re: In your opinion, which are the 3 worst pests in succulen

Post by Herts Mike »

The worst at this minute are snails, 2 small ones, which have just decimated a Senecio deflersii. Always a problem when you bring in plants from the garden....

I shall have to start it again next spring.
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iann
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Re: In your opinion, which are the 3 worst pests in succulen

Post by iann »

Herts Mike wrote:The worst at this minute are snails, 2 small ones, which have just decimated a Senecio deflersii. Always a problem when you bring in plants from the garden....

I shall have to start it again next spring.
I inspect each pot carefully if I bring it in from outside. Snails love to hide between pots when there are a bunch together, and they absolutely love the gaps in six-pack potting trays. They still come in of course, occasionally hiding in the plant itself.
Cheshire, UK
Herts Mike
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Re: In your opinion, which are the 3 worst pests in succulen

Post by Herts Mike »

Here's what they did to deflersii. They took a similar amount out of the top of the plant.

Image
3bears
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Re: In your opinion, which are the 3 worst pests in succulen

Post by 3bears »

although i voted a long time ago, i like the way this thread is heading.

my worst pest was scarid flies when i was growing seedlings. when they first developed, i tried hit and miss chemicals, including orthene, which just made them even more prolific. when i realized i was going to lose some entire seed trays, i got serious and found a powder form of bacillus thuringensis, var. israeliensis, called gnatrol. you have to drench the pots every 3- 4 days and in a couple weeks, the gnats will be gone. it is a safe biological control. i did try mosquito dunks first, i couldn't seem to get the concentration needed to work. the powder was very effective, flies totally eliminated after a month.
http://www.amazon.com/Valent-Gnatrol-WD ... B003E7BGTU

the next problem i noticed was thrips. they seem to love pereskiopsis leaves, and i had over 100 pereskiopsis grafts mildly infested. i was able to go over my graft collection daily with a cotton swab soaked in methanol which i was able to collect and the smash the momentarily alcohol addled thrips with my finger. (i saw they will recover after the alcohol evaporates.) there are immature forms that look white or clear you have to look for also. after awhile, you won't see anymore, and then you can check once a week or so. i think they left my seed pots alone (except for 2) as they must really be attracted to the succulent pereiskiopsis leaves. it may be beneficial to grow a stand of pereiskiopsis just to attract them away from your other plants. there must be even better plants that could be used as magnets for pests and used as biological controls in this respect.

now don't hate me, but i have grown most from seed and have not seen a mealybug yet. they must come in with new plants unless you live somewhere mealy's occur naturally. i also have large pots and planter boxes for landscape accents that are outside for summer, so far no bugs and they are from the 1980 era.

as to red spidermite, i do notice an ongoing infestation on some euph. millii, the leaves get yellow spotted, but since the plants lose most of their leaves now anyway, i just keep them separate from the rest. when they go back out in spring, the mites all but disappear as they have to compete with the rest of nature. and some blasts from the waterhose.:)

what i will suggest is your growing conditions and the type of plant has a lot to do with what may be your worst pest. if your collection is "manageable", you may be able to pick them off yourself. not a chore but a chance at "quality time"!
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Re: In your opinion, which are the 3 worst pests in succulen

Post by Lithos »

Merry Christmas - three worst pests in succulents - Hunt, Taylor, and Hunt again. :wink:
Herts Mike
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Re: In your opinion, which are the 3 worst pests in succulen

Post by Herts Mike »

Lithos wrote:Merry Christmas - three worst pests in succulents - Hunt, Taylor, and Hunt again. :wink:
Cruel, very cruel........
sploch
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Re: In your opinion, which are the 3 worst pests in succulen

Post by sploch »

cats... my cats (and dogs) keep on knocking my pots over...
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Julie
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Re: In your opinion, which are the 3 worst pests in succulen

Post by Julie »

I go away for ages and when I come back this thread is still at the top!

I voted RSM, as my parent Gymno amerhauseri and all but one of its seedlings have been escorted to the big greenhouse in the sky by RSM, and their colour tells you that they came from down below to do it. :evil:
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3bears
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Re: In your opinion, which are the 3 worst pests in succulen

Post by 3bears »

Julie wrote:I go away for ages and when I come back this thread is still at the top!
hahaha! now that's funny.

look at my spider mites!
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