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Mealy bug experts, please help! 🚨 Today I went through my first… | Pests, diseases and problems | Communauté Planta

Laura

Mealy bug experts, please help! 🚨 Today I went through my first attempt at removing mealy bugs from my philodendron, all was going well until I rinsed the mixture of rubbing alcohol, water and washing up liquid from the plant. It’s always grown upwards, however it’s now slumped to the side and the main stem seems floppy and unsupported 🥺 Has anyone experienced this before? Is there anything I can do to get it supported again? Did I get something wrong in the process of removing the mealy bugs? Thank you in advance! 🫶🏻

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6 commentaires

  1. Audrey

    Did you rinse the alcohol into the pot?

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    • Laura

      I avoided spraying into the soil and focused on the leaves and branches, then repotted it entirely after rinsing

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    • S.R

      It’s more likely that the repot is what is making it limp. It may need a day or two to re-acclimate.

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    • Laura

      I repotted it because it seemed limp after rinsing, thinking fresh soil would do it some good 😔 what happens if the alcohol touched the roots?

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  2. Andi

    Just went through a mealy bug infestation myself here’s how I got rid of them! I used rubbing alcohol on a qtip got rid of all the bugs I could find. And you really wanna search thouroughly to get as many possible. This prevents reproduction which they do rapidly. Next I recommend repotting into fresh soil in disinfected pot. Make sure you have drainage as always. Next use an insecticide I like using systemic houseplant insect control granules and you just water like normal so they dissolve. This will make the pests not want to ingest the plant. Not required but I highly recommend a neem oil spray both for preventative and getting rid of them. 🪴

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  3. Hort Specialist

    Rubbing alcohol and washing up liquid in high concentration can burn or dehydrate a plant especially if overspray got to the roots. I usually use an insecticide knowing it won’t hurt the plant or kill off the plant protective waxes like detergents do. Neem Oil or Neem Max recommended. For the it’s slumped look, it probably went into a small shock/stress state because of it moving around pots, being eaten, being sprayed and probably a change of light, watering habits. Suggest sharing a photo if the problem persists

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