My passion fruit vine is covered with these shell-like white structures. Is this White Peach Scale? If so, how do you get rid of it? What will the effect be on my plant?
Thanks
[img]https://plant.daleysfruit.com.au/l/passion-fruit-vine-white-peach-scale-8001.jpeg[/img]
[img]https://plant.daleysfruit.com.au/l/passion-fruit-vine-white-peach-scale-8002.jpeg[/img]
It is White Scale Sarah.
I'm afraid it is a real devil to control.
The adults....those white scales that you can see...are pretty hard to shift.
A cloth damped up with some metholated spirit will shift them if you can reach them easily.
Best control though is a couple of sprays in the dormant period with a Winter Oil spray.
Then a follow up in the spring when they are at the crawler stage of growth with any insect spray. This is when they are at a vunerable stage.
Ladybirds..I think you call them Ladybugs...do a good job, but you would need a lot with that infestaion that you seem to have.
There is work too on a variety of Incarsia Wasp as a biological method I believe, but how far down the line that is I'm afraid I don't know.
Incarsia Formosa is used for white fly but I don't think it works on this beastie.
Good luck.
I'm afraid it is a real devil to control.
The adults....those white scales that you can see...are pretty hard to shift.
A cloth damped up with some metholated spirit will shift them if you can reach them easily.
Best control though is a couple of sprays in the dormant period with a Winter Oil spray.
Then a follow up in the spring when they are at the crawler stage of growth with any insect spray. This is when they are at a vunerable stage.
Ladybirds..I think you call them Ladybugs...do a good job, but you would need a lot with that infestaion that you seem to have.
There is work too on a variety of Incarsia Wasp as a biological method I believe, but how far down the line that is I'm afraid I don't know.
Incarsia Formosa is used for white fly but I don't think it works on this beastie.
Good luck.