What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

I just got a siam ruby and put it inside for the winter and think i have spider mites on it.....How can i kill those little bastards before they kill my plant????

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

What i use every time i have them is a spray bottle soapy water , add soap to the water is what im saying & spray every day till there gone , i do both sidesof the leaves ! :) best of luck :D

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

Any suggestions on what kind of soap to use? I'm thinking of just adding it to my misting water and misting every night....cause right now I've been spraying insecticide stuff on them every few days and they just keep coming back!!! I HATE SPIDER MITES!!!!! ARG!!!!

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

use one teaspoon dish soap, or my favorite--suave coconut shampoo. Use one tablespoon cooking oil. Shake well and spray away! You have to coat the top and bottom sides of the leaves well to smother the mites with the oil emulsion. If you miss any, they'll come back, so expect to do this several times about once a week or so.

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

I use 3 teaspoons of Ivory liquid in a spray bottle.....it gets rid of everything....spray top and bottom of leaves and especially where the midrib meets the stalk...as well as the top of the soil !

If you mist the plants down twice a week with just plain water (top & bottoms of leaves), you should not have any more future problems!

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

I use Isotox, Avid, and Forbid on spider mites on my other plants, but I haven't verified that they can be used on bananas yet. Bayer's Systemic also works well for spider mites on other plants. All of these treatments should be rotated though as successive generations can become immune to the current treatment. The oil-based products and insecticidal soaps also work well on them, but they have to be sprayed directly on them, and you have to do repeated treatments to kill the hatched eggs.

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

Just be careful with spraying. Check if the water does not stay at the top (where the new leaves are). I killed one by spraying, it started to rot inside. After spraying I now absorb the water using a piece of toilet/kitchen paper

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

I hope this helps, and I am dealing with a problem of those butt-faces myself on my banana. Here's a process I learned from my mom:

Mix a solution of
1tsp salt
1tsp liquid soap
a quart or two of warm water.

Mix well and use a soft cloth damp with the solution to clean off all leaves of plant, rinsing and reapplying solution to cloth often. When completely dry, inspect leaves and physically remove any eggs or bugs with the cloth. When the plant seems free of all physical signs, let plants dry and apply a spray insecticidal soap (I use Garden Safe brand, by Schultz). Repeat once a week until all signs of infection are gone.

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

I was told by a nusery on the Florida pan handle to use Di-Syston®: Product Information: Bayer CropScience US

I will be trying it this winter

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

Wish me luck...I just thoroughly doused all my plants with a water/suave coconut shampoo/olive oil mix. Let's hope for the best and that those grimy little pieces of crap die!!!! I'm so tired of fighting an uphill battle.

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

You have to repeat it about once every five days until you haven't seen any in a couple of weeks. patience....

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

I have found that Concern brand insecticidal soap spray is THE BEST spider mite terminator. Tried bunch of really toxic stuff but this stuff is natural and works.

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

I'll keep you in my plant prayers! lol. I'm pretty sure I just won my battle >_<

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

Thanks, Sandy! I like the results so far....haven't seen any new leaf damage or any signs of them really at all. And the spray smells good and makes the leaves look all glossy! Plus it has no pesticides....so I'd say this is a WIN method based on what I see so far....I'll be sure to do a follow-up spray every few days just to be sure.

Thanks again!

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

they are definitely enemy number 1
I have an ongoing battle with them.
I've tried the predatory mites as well which were expensive and didn't work that great. maintaining a moist atmosphere helps. good luck, expect a long fight

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

Thanks everybody ive been spraying it down but ive already lost 2 leaves and it only had 5 so i hope it doesnt die...The pup got messed up pretty good too. Is there anything else i can do to help its survival???

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

Agricultural Sulfur

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

Kill 'em.

Ha ha.

I just spray them with water, of all things. I've not had problems with them but they do show up and now and then. I've never had to use soap or insecticide.

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

My dad was checking out my greenhouse this weekend and my Naranjillas I though had an iron deficiency since the leaves were turning whitish. My dad took one look at them and said it was spider mites. So thats what took out my cape gooseberries and ground cherrys! They seem to like fuzzy plants. In any case I'm going to up my AZ41 spray regimen on any plants that appear to have spider mites.
Luckily, my bananas are untouched thus far and are thriving

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

My poor SR looks SOOOOOOO terrible now after the little bastards ravished it. And to add insult to injury, it's now having some rot issues. Hope it doesn't die!! I've been trying to water sparingly and remove any rot that's on there, but it doesn't seem to be growing recently. Hmmmm.....

I have now done a follow-up spray. Saw a few the day before the follow up (though no new damage that I had noticed), but haven't seen any since. Let's hope for the best!

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

Those buggers finally moved into my dining (I mean, winter banana) room. I was surprised I went as long as I did without an infestation. I thought the humidifier I have constantly running would deter them (they hate humidity, right?). Well, the first plant they attacked was my 3 1/2 ft. IC (Blue Java), even though it's still the healthiest looking plant in the room.

Here's the really odd thing though. My IC is directly above the humidifier! Does that make sense. Many of the other nanners don't have any mites yet. Do they just love the IC, or have I always been wrong about the humidity thing? Does this make sense to anybody? Just perplexed/wondering. They got their first dose of soap yesterday. Go away you little arachnid parasites!

--Brad

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

Can I reuse the soil that use to contain plants with mites? are the eggs or mites in the soil waiting for me to plant something.

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

Pretty sure the eggs hatch at some pre-determined amount of time (on the order of days or weeks) and if the parents get killed before laying more eggs, then you're good. I really don't think the eggs can just wait till they sense the presence of a plant in the vicinity...that just doesn't make sense to me at all. So I'd say you're good.

Re: What is the best way to get ride of spider mites????
 

I have lots of experience with spider mites, aphids, thrips/chili thrips, and white flies. Out here, due to rainy seasons, soapy water sprays rarely work. Malathion is relatively short lived in the environment and should be used to kill things away from edible plants like wasps or ants crawling through a window. Permethrin is much less toxic and lasts a little longer but kills fish. I've had VERY VERY good luck applying Spinosad Spinosad - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia every 2-3 weeks until the infestation is controlled.

Be sure to use a fine spray, coating the underside of the leaves and tops of plants and soil. When sprayed on soil, I like to sprinkle some dusting sulfur (agrilcutural stuff, i buy it in 40 pound bags. it's a life saver.) along with a light spray of spinosad after tilling a foot or two down. Spinosad is a little more targeted than things like malathion, which kills just about anything small enough that moves.

Bugs can become tolerant to spinosad, which is why you should observe the 2-3 week break unless it's bad, in which case you might consider a one time broad-spectrum insect killer first if you're not eating anything off it for a week or two. I love sulfur because bugs, fungi, molds, snakes, and other things do not like it -- but many plants do. A fine dusting during a dry spell has done me well for controlling mildew and other crap. I've also applied it directly to cactus and banana plant cuttings, on the exposed areas, before sticking into soil and found a higher rate of survival.