Sick marigolds
by
CindyD
+12
I grow marigolds. This morning the marigolds looked fine, but this afternoon I found quite a few of them covered like in the picture with these tiny bugs. At this point should I snip off the infected flowers or get rid of the whole planter? It is near some other healthy flowers and herbs.
12 answers
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toss all of it...looks like spider mites and they will spread to your healthy plants.
360 Sod (Donna Dixson)
on Aug 20, 2013
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Thanks...I was afraid of that...are there certain conditions that cause spider mites to attack the plants? The plant had been very healthy prior to this.
CindyD
on Aug 20, 2013
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As I recall I think they like it around 80 degrees, they bred pretty fast and alot. ..
360 Sod (Donna Dixson)
on Aug 20, 2013
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Mamateach4 do it sooner than later.
Sensible Gardening and Living
on Aug 20, 2013
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Done!
CindyD
on Aug 20, 2013
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My goodness I have never seen that many!
Darlene Mapes
on Aug 22, 2013
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Great Photo!!! but nasty spider mites...
Cathy W
on Aug 22, 2013
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spider mites the bane of marigolds they love them, they also love dry conditions. they are easy to get rid of if you spray them with soapy water every 3 days for about 2 weeks. it must be done every 3 days to make sure to break their life cycles also spray any surrounding plants as the can move to escape
April E
on Aug 22, 2013
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@Mamateach4, spider mites have an exoskeleton - if the soapy water doesn't get rid of it, you can use our diatomaceous earth - it works great to get rid of insects with an exoskeleton. Here is a link - http://www.kelp4less.com/shop/diatomaceous-earth/ - it's only $9.95 a pound, so it won't break the bank. It works great. We got rid of about 3 anthills in 2 hours outside my gate last week.
Kelp4Less
on Aug 22, 2013
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@Kelp4Less Love diatomaceous earth. We use it a lot. Never used it for ants though. Will give that a try. We seem to have a rock that they must live under.
Kathleen Bell
on Aug 22, 2013
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@Kathleen Bell - it's amazing for ants. Really for just about anything with an exoskeleton. It's wonderful, because it doesn't leave a toxic residue or anything like that. Just gets rid of what you want gone. :) Love it!
Kelp4Less
on Aug 22, 2013
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yes they do that is that unsound reasoning people use for putting them near tomatoes, so the mites will attack the marigolds instead of the tomatoes. the thing with that is after the marigolds die they head right over to the tomatoes. and usually in larger numbers because they built up on the marigolds in the first place. but that is just 1 of the gardening myths that have been passed down for decades that have no horticulturally sound basis lol
April E
on Aug 22, 2013
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