Spider Mites

[kickstart1227]

i just found out i have spider mites there in my veg room and the flower room i have moved all the big plants in the flower room i left the small plants in the veg room 6 in tall somebody told me that the best way to treat them is with alcohol and water .do the spider mites lay eggs on the walls or floor i am going to start the next batch of plants from seed if i put that batch in the veg room after the clones are gone will they get spider mites ?

 

[Weed420]

The small ones you can just dunk in a neem oil mixture every 3 or 4 days.
For the big ones either bug bomb the rooms or hang a HotShot pest strip. They're designed for spider mites. Just spraying the plants with straight water will slow them down till you can get a plan of action.

 

[Roseman]

Weed420 sure told you right!

Spider mites are not insects but are more closely related to spiders. The little suckers have tiny mouthparts modified for piercing individual plant cells and removing the contents. This results in tiny yellow or white speckles. When many of these feeding spots occur near each other, the foliage takes on a yellow or bronzed cast. Once the foliage of a plant becomes bronzed, it often drops prematurely. Heavily infested plants may be discolored, stunted or even killed. Web producing spider mites may coat the foliage with the fine silk which collects dust and looks dirty. Spider mite species seem to be warm weather or cool weather active pests. Adult females usually lay eggs on their host plants. The eggs hatch in days to weeks into the first stage, called a larva. Larvae are round bodied and have only three pairs of legs. The larvae feed for a few days, seek a sheltered spot to rest and then molt into the first nymphal stage. The first nymph now has four pairs of legs. The first nymphs feed a few days, rest and molt into the second nymph. The second nymphs feed, rest and molt into the adult stage. The males are usually the size of the second nymph and have pointed abdomens. The females have rounded abdomens and are the largest mites present. Most spider mites spend the winter in the egg stage but the twospotted spider mite over winters as adult females resting in protected places.

Early detection of spider mites, before damage is noticed, is VERY important. The tiny spider mites can be detected only by a full and thorough leaf inspection (on both sides of the leaf). If you find Spider Mites you must act fast and hit them hard with either a bleach solution (1 tablespoon of bleach to 1 gallon of very hot 95°F, pH balanced, water in a spray bottle.) Hydroponics Stores also sell Neem Oil and other remedies for spider mites.

Or one of the best things to do is get a bucket of HOT water and make a combination of neem oil and safer soap or additive free dish washing soap. You want the water to be warm so that the neem oil will break apart and mix throughout the water. DO NOT dunk your plants in until the water has safely come back to room temperature.
The safer soap will not only act as a wetting agent to help coat the plant but also weakens the exoskeletons of the lil buggers. The neem oil will make them immobile so they cannot move and suffocate them.
Dunking is the most effective method while they are smaller because it coats everything from the ground up, but this spray receipe is a very effective spray. You should spray every three days, the undersides of the leaves or dunk every three days depending on size. This is the most eco friendly and safest method of treatment. This is what you should try and get some HOT SHOT Strips asap!.

 

[funtogow]

Spider Mites are EVIL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I had a terrible bout with them on my second grow and they totally devistated my quality and yield. I sprayed with neem oil but they still hung out and caused damage. Thay are such a pain in the rear and I NEVER want to deal with them again!

A long-time grower friend of mine highly recommended the HotShot "No Pest Strip", the one that has been recommended several times already. Truth be told...they WORK like a charm. I haven't had another problem with pests since I began using the strips!

 

[smokr1]

theres some good remedies in frequently asked questions sub forums , desease and pest control , check it out , they work ..............................SMOKR1

 

[bc33]

DR Doom your room if it is still in veg it will kill everything eggs larvae and mites and then try preventive methods like keeping the room super clean,a regular spray schedule with neem oil, and keep your tempature on the lower end of the spectrum, good airflow and low humidity. also treating your clones with a good pesticide like doctor doom and room at the begining of a crop helps and doesnt effect the end product. I use neem oil up until about 4-3 weeks from harvest any later after that and your bud will tASTE LIKE SHIT. i F YOU FOLLOW THOSE GUIDE LINES YOU WONT HAVE ANY PROBLEMS WITH SPIDER MITES EVEN IF YOU GET CLONES THAT HAVE THEM AS LONG AS THEY ARE TAKEN CARE OF RIGHT ANYWAY

 

[ledtester]

i just found out i have spider mites there in my veg room and the flower room i have moved all the big plants in the flower room i left the small plants in the veg room 6 in tall somebody told me that the best way to treat them is with alcohol and water .do the spider mites lay eggs on the walls or floor i am going to start the next batch of plants from seed if i put that batch in the veg room after the clones are gone will they get spider mites ?

Here's one of those things where people try to be positive with out helping.
KS if you see mites now it means they are everywhere. Are you growing with dirt?
If you want to save your plants, you are going to have to spray them unfortunately. When you do this make sure it's before lights out and make sure you have lots of air movement otherwise if you do it during lights on you will fry your buds. Their are all kinds of home made remedies. the one thing to keep in mind is they lay eggs and the eggs hatch 5 days later so you want to keep spraying because the solutions don't kill the eggs. That goes for alot of bug bombs. The other solution is to get something the will eat the spidermites and not ruin your plants. The easiest is Lady bugs which you could even order from home depot. the best for indoor growing are MESOSEIULUS LONGIPES
Natural Insect Control, NIC specializes in Canadian Beneficial Nematodes, grub control, Beneficial Insects, good bugs to control bad bugs. Organic, environment friendly products for home, garden, orchard and farm.

Either way the closest your going to get of ridding them is to empty your rooms...hose them down with whatever solution you choose for a week at least....clean everything the sameway going back in the room and start all over....the best thing or at least the sure thing is to move though unfortunately and start over with new equipment. Just make sure to burn your old clothes...lol

 

[ledtester]

DR Doom your room if it is still in veg it will kill everything eggs larvae and mites and then try preventive methods like keeping the room super clean,a regular spray schedule with neem oil, and keep your tempature on the lower end of the spectrum, good airflow and low humidity. also treating your clones with a good pesticide like doctor doom and room at the begining of a crop helps and doesnt effect the end product. I use neem oil up until about 4-3 weeks from harvest any later after that and your bud will tASTE LIKE SHIT. i F YOU FOLLOW THOSE GUIDE LINES YOU WONT HAVE ANY PROBLEMS WITH SPIDER MITES EVEN IF YOU GET CLONES THAT HAVE THEM AS LONG AS THEY ARE TAKEN CARE OF RIGHT ANYWAY

They prefer low humidity, you can help it a bit by raising the humidity.

 

[ledtester]

Spider Mites are EVIL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I had a terrible bout with them on my second grow and they totally devistated my quality and yield. I sprayed with neem oil but they still hung out and caused damage. Thay are such a pain in the rear and I NEVER want to deal with them again!

A long-time grower friend of mine highly recommended the HotShot "No Pest Strip", the one that has been recommended several times already. Truth be told...they WORK like a charm. I haven't had another problem with pests since I began using the strips!

You mean to say that all you did to get rid of the mites was put up some no pest strips???

 

[PitViper]

Azamax....

 

[funtogow]

ledtester...

No, when I discovered the mites it was an endless battle spraying with neem oil regularly! My crop suffered alot. After that crop was finished I started hanging a couple no pest strips in my closet with each new crop....I haven't had a problem since. I do my best to keep everything clean and orderly too.

 

[hooha420]

Are those Hot Shot Strips safe? since your going to injest the plant.. wouldnt you want something more like?

Garden Safe :: Insect Killers

?

 

[Weed420]

You mean to say that all you did to get rid of the mites was put up some no pest strips???

Yep I've done the same thing and the HotShot pest strip is all I use. I'm not totally satisfied on the safety of them so I don't use them in the last month of flower. But I do use them in cloning and vegging.
Had a bad outbreak in my clone room, woke up one morning and the little cobwebs were every where. Hung the HotShot and 24 hours later about 80% were gone, 3 days later couldn't see a one. I leave it hang for 10 days and then rebag the thing to use later if I have too. Have never had too. After the 10 days I've never seen thim again and that was about a year ago.

 

[kickstart1227]

Are those Hot Shot Strips safe? since your going to injest the plant.. wouldnt you want something more like?

Garden Safe :: Insect Killers

?

i have used hot shots they don't work for me i have hung a hot shot on a plant and it did not kill one spider mite i hang them in my grow rooms and stiil have gotten mites

 

[smokr1]

i cant believe them strips work , the mites are on the plant not hanging in the air , their laying their eggs on the plant not on a strip hanging in the air , how do they get on the strip , fly ?????????????????? skeptical ....... SMOKR1

 

[Weed420]

HotShots are thick with an oil that permeates the air around it. Its best to turn the fans off for a couple days for it to work. The other thing is spider mites can hibernate, have read where its up to 8 months. So just removing them from the plant may not be enough. A thorough cleaning of the room with bleach water will help get into the cracks and stuff to keep them down. Don't believe there is ever way to rid your room 100% of spider mites once you've had an infestation. All you can do is monitor it and hit them when they break out again

 

[Droopy Dog]

i cant believe them strips work , the mites are on the plant not hanging in the air , their laying their eggs on the plant not on a strip hanging in the air , how do they get on the strip , fly ?????????????????? skeptical ....... SMOKR1

The strips emit fumes. You're thinking of those sticky fly strips.

2 different animals.

DD

 

[lassus]

On the internet and elsewhere on this site, pyrethrins seem to be a pretty reliable cure for spider mites. The Hot Strips emit vapor that is probably more useful for maintenance of a mite free zone than curing an infestation. I just got Hot Shot bed bug fumigator spray which is a 0.3% concentration of pyrethrins. Other sprays (by Hot Shot and others) I saw have 0.1% concentration. I'm hoping 0.3 isn't too strong, now that I have it! Pyrethrins are naturally occuring organic insecticides which break down into non-toxic metabolites when exposed to moisture over time. They're supposed to be safe to use until just before harvest. I sprayed my plant thoroughly enough to mist all the leaves on both sides, but not so much to drench it. I will probably follow up with a second treatment in 10 days or so just to be sure the bugs are irradicated.

I'll carefully clean my grow space and use the Hot Shot strips for my next grow in order to try to avoid this problem. I'll let you know how I make out.

 

[Hogdady]

On the internet and elsewhere on this site, pyrethrins seem to be a pretty reliable cure for spider mites.

did not work for me......

 

[ledtester]

The hot shots work good so far. My buddy has been using them for a week now and seems like they have been stopped and from what I hear you can just bring them out when you need them..in Canada their called Home Defense.