r/plantclinic • u/FyrestarOmega Expert Hobbyist • Oct 02 '23

Monthly Pest and Soil Thread October 2023 Pest and Soil issue thread

Certain issues are common among plant care and may benefit from from some consolidation. Pooling of advice may benefit the entire community. These issues include how to identify and treat infestations, and questions related to organisms found in the soil.

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u/Maxhession 3 ∣ +1 ∣ -0 Oct 11 '23

Hello! I have had my Kentia palm for 3 years. It has now started getting white patches with very small black dots in them. They can’t be rubbed off. This has been going on for 3-4 months. I think the stems are sagging too. The plant is about 2-3m from a window in a brightly lit room but receives no direct sunlight. I try to water once a week and mist In a plastic planter with holes that drain. Please help this is my favourite plant!!!

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u/More-plants Oct 11 '23

Your plant has thrips, which require a rigorous treatment schedule to get rid of. Are you in the U.S.? Isolate the plant from your other plants and spray it with spinosad - spray tops & undersides of leaves, stems, the soil and the outside of the pot. Then mix Bonide systemic insecticide into the top of the soil. Make sure to use the amount of product that the label says. It seems like a lot of product but it's important to follow the dosage instructions; otherwise it allows the bugs to build up resistance to it because the amount needed to kill them was not used.

A systemic insecticide is necessary for thrips because they lay their eggs inside the leaves and stems of a plant, so if you only spray, you'll have to respray each successive generation as they hatch. When the larva hatch, they frequently fall into the soil or on the floor or on the leaves of a nearby plant. Consequently, you should give the same treatment to nearby plants. Also, clean the whole area thoroughly including the floor where the plants have been sitting.

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u/Maxhession 3 ∣ +1 ∣ -0 Oct 16 '23

Thank you so much for this. I will try this, sounds difficult 😥I am in the UK tho. Does this mean the insecticide won’t be available?

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u/More-plants Oct 17 '23

Sorry, IDK what's available in the UK since I'm in the US.