Hi. New to growing plants and I have a couple of questions about my tradescantia plant. I can see little white bugs in the soil and dirt like spots on the leaves. I am not sure what to do or if this is normal but the tips of the leaves are turning brown and I don’t want it to get too bad before it cant come back from it. Any help would be appreciated.
So sorry your trad has bugs! Little white bugs could be mealy bugs. But to be sure you might need to get up close and examine them. Mealy bugs look kinda powdery (Google a pic and you’ll see). But there are other types of mealys as well. Browning tips of leaves doesn’t necessarily mean bugs. Could be over watering or too much direct sunlight. Can you tell me more about the plant? Type of pot, where it hangs out, kind of sun and amount it gets?
0 likes If you think you do have mealy bugs, it’s important to act fast because they spread like wildfire. Alcohol and q-tips are an effective spot killer for them. Just be careful cause rubbing alcohol can damage the leaves and roots
0 likesI was thinking mealy bugs but I’ve never had to deal with them before. It is in a 5inch clear plastic pot. It’s on the porch and I usually put it out in direct sunlight in the morning until 1. Thank you for your help!
0 likesI’m not sure if it is mealy bugs because I’m not seeing any powdery looking stuff on the leaves. I only see the bugs in the soil.
1 likeDo the white bugs on the leaves move? Aphids shed their exoskeletons which are white. I saw those before I saw the aphids themselves.
0 likesI don’t see any white spots on the leaves or any bugs moving on the leaves just in the soil because the of the clear pot I have it in.
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It could be soil mites. Not harmful. The photo is not clear. Just run hydrogen peroxide through the soil the next time it needs water, if you don’t like looking at the bugs.
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If it were my plant, I’d take it completely out, break up the roots a little bit, tore their separated, try not to break them, then I would rinse them real good with water and then mix equal parts of hydrogen peroxide and water, and a spray bottle, and spray down the roots and the root leaves that are like closest to the root, let the hydrogen peroxide mix set for about two minutes, then go ahead and rinse it off and then completely repot it with brand, new soil, substrate, mulch, whichever you prefer to plant those in, but that would be the best way to treat those and that’s also a great solution for rotting in any plant! 😊
1 likeThanks! I think I’m going to do this just to make sure. Thanks for all of the help!
1 like Your welcome!!
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