Any suggestions what to do when bringing new plants into the home? I was just at an outdoor market and there was one vendor that had some plants. I got 2 small plants, but as I was grabbing them I noticed the plant next to them had some of that white crusty stuff on it. I saw an earlier post that they may be mealy bugs. How to prevent contaminating my plants with newbies?
So when I get any new plant I begin by adding those pest granules to the dirt, wiping down the leaves with some neem oil/leaf shine mix, water, and keep separate for anywhere between a week to two months depending on my bug suspicion! I keep my quarantined plants in my dining room.
1 LikeThe white crusty stuff could have been mineral deposits but if it was mealy bugs beware! They can hide very well and we fixes. I agree with Tubbs about wiping down the leaves. His suggestion of neem oil and plant shine was good. You could also use some garlic water ( slice up a clove of garlic, fairly fine and let it soak in two or three cups of distilled water. But it's soak for about 30 to 60 minutes, filter out the chunks of garlic and use this mixture to wipe down your leaves.) All seasons oil is also good but whenever you use make sure you apply enough so that the liquid dribbles down into the leaf axles and get the backs of the leaves. I would treat it about every 7 to 10 days for several treatments and then be watchful for any new signs of the critters.
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