How to get rid of spider mites with biological pest control?

Aren’t plants super special? They are able to generate sunlight into energy, which makes them grow lush! They need water and nutrients, which in nature they get from decayed leaves and animal faceas. They even help animals, to shelter, which creates a full circle for them to live for each other. We PLNTSparents collect these special beings, since we get happy from the beauty that they enhold in them. But within this natural circle, some things are a little less pretty. We are talking about pests! These creatures are here to take advantage of your green beauties. This might be natural, but due to the fact they are able to kill a plant, we rather do not encounter interaction with them. Unfortunately, they are keen on meeting your plants nevertheless. Once they see those juicy leaves, they will take advantage of them. There are all kinds of pests, but in this blog we will tell you how you can fight against spider mites!

How do spider mites damage my plants?

A spider mite infestation can be subtle at first. It may seem as if the plant is just taking a break. Sometimes you will see small cobwebs that the spider mites stretch on and between the leaves. It is only when you look really closely that you will recognise the spider mites. They are incredibly small! With the naked eye, spider mites look like red, yellow, black or brown (yes we know, lots of colours) moving dots.

A spider mite lives off the nutrients that flow through the veins of your plant. The juices flow through the veins and a spider mite, as it were, drills a hole with its snout, attaches itself and is completely filled with food without any effort! These tiny holes hinder the growth of your plant(s) and cause discolouration of the leaves, usually in clusters. The result is reduced photosynthesis, which stops the plant from growing nicely.

Persi (Phytoseiulus persimilis)

These natural predatory mites are called Persi and will overpower spider mite infestations in no time! They work invisibly and extremely fast, scouring your plants for spider mites. A predatory mite can eat up to 5 adult spider mites or 20 young spider mites (eggs) per day. What hungry little creatures, eh? When there are no spider mites left, these predatory mites eat each other and will eventually disappear from your plants. This is the way it is in nature. The predatory mites only stay on your plants, so don't be afraid of a house full of mites!

How to use?

Naturally, you are curious about how to use these rescuers? We will gladly explain it to you! The Persi are delivered in sachets. This sachet comes with a very handy box. You can easily empty the contents of the sachet into the box and then hang the box in your plant. These predatory mites like to walk upwards, the only way is up, right? So hang the box low in the plant, but of course close to the pest. You need at least 1 sachet of predatory mites per 1 m2 of plant surface. After 2 weeks you should see a reduction or no mites at all. It is recommended to repeat the treatment after two weeks, especially in case of a large infestation. If this does not solve the problem, it is recommended to increase the dose of predatory mites per m2. Overdosage is not possible.

Preservability

Are you convinced and do you want to add these saviours to your plants? You can! However, we advise you to use these saviours with your plants immediately after receiving them. If you still want to store the Persi, you can do so for 1-2 days in a dark and ventilated place at 12-14 degrees. Be careful with the sachet, you don't want to damage these saviours by squeezing too hard.

Last but not least!

The persi predatory mites are most effective between 20 and 30 degrees. They also like high humidity. So help these saviours on their way by lightly misting the plants. By the way, please be careful with bright direct sunlight!

Nicus

Meet another creature that is keen on helping you take care of your spider mite infestation is Nicus. Nicus is known for its various appetite, one mite can consume up to 160 spider mite eggs in its life time. This predatory mite comes in a special breeding bag and comes with an army of 200 mites per bag, what a number! They emerge from the bag in the coming 4-6 weeks, which keep syour plants protected for that time period.

How to use?

You can hang the bag in the plant, close to the spider mite infestation. Don’t place the bags in a sunny location, since Nicus doesn’t like direct sunlight. Nicus like to be in a temperature between 12-38 °C. Nicus is best at preventing or fighting of a mild spider mite infestation. They can also be used for infestations in the garden or on the balcony.

Preservability

You can keep the bags safe for about 1-2 days after arrival, in a cold and dark spot. Nevertheless, it’s advised to put them to work after you have received them.

Last but not least

Nicus works best in a humid environment, that is why you should measure and keep the humidity above 60%. Otherwise they won;t work as effective as you might like. It’s advised to put Nicus to use every 2 months, to prevent major spoider mite infestations.

These where 2 heroes that would be very effective in fitting off your spider mite infestation! You can also release them together, to optimal protection. Hopefully you be soon rid of your spider mite invasion! If you are interested in more biological pest control, you might want to take a look at our other blog, here you will find other tips and all the other blogs about pest control are listed here. If you have additional questions, you can rely on our PLNTSdoctor or reach out to us. Otherwise we would love to see you in our next blog, bye!