LiddleBuddha
Cool Member
Posts: 65
Joined: Thu Mar 08, 2007 11:50 am

Gardenia Infestation

Hello All!

Wow, it has been quite some time since I've checked in here. I hope everyone has been doing great!

Wondering if anyone might be able to help me?

Plant Info:
- Gardenia; Purchased winter 2006.
- Repotted to larger pot once since purchased.
- Produced only 2 blooms spring/summer 2007.
- Nearly doubled in size since last year!


Problem:
- Noticed infestation of tiny fine cobwebs throughout plant (tops & bottoms of leaves, stems, etc.) last week.
- I don't think it's spider mites, there are no tiny red dots.
- There are tiny white dots in the webs.
- Bits of white-ish crust interspersed on leaves throughout plant. (Possibly mealy bugs?)


Action taken so far:
- Cleaned the whole plant: every single leaf, top and bottom, stems, etc, with Q-Tips, using mild solution of Dr. Bronners peppermint soap and tepid water. It took several hours.
- Misted the plant with a solution of water and Neem oil.
- Placed Gardenia on a very large humidity tray.


My Gardenia looked great and very rejuvenated for a few days! But I noticed this morning, one week later, that the webs, etc are back, albeit not as many.

Can anyone give me some advice on what I can do to help my Gardenia?

I was thinking I should remove it from the pot and check the roots. However, I'm not sure what I should do once it's out of the pot besides change the soil.

I do have SuperThrive which I can use to help with the shock. But I'd like to avoid shocking it at all right now if possible.

I think if it can make it til spring time, it'll be okay once I put it back outside. I really want this Gardenia to live. It is beautiful, has lots of new growth, great color, and I think if I can keep it happy enough it'll give us more blooms this year.

Thanks so much for reading, and thanks in advance for any help and advice.

Kind Regards,
- LB

otnorot
Full Member
Posts: 20
Joined: Sat Feb 09, 2008 3:38 pm
Location: Toronto Ont

You have spider mites they are also yellow/tan/greenish in color.Rinse plant under tap to remove mites.The white fuzz could be mealy bugs a dab of rubbing alcohol on a cotton swab will kill each one. And don't buy plants from that store anymore or you will just get the same problems.
Bill

User avatar
Gnome
Super Green Thumb
Posts: 5122
Joined: Wed Jul 05, 2006 12:17 am
Location: Western PA USDA Zone 6A

LB,

It is not uncommon for some pests to require more than one treatment before you get them under control, be persistent.

Norm

LiddleBuddha
Cool Member
Posts: 65
Joined: Thu Mar 08, 2007 11:50 am

Whoah! It's been a minute since I've checked in...
otnorot wrote:You have spider mites they are also yellow/tan/greenish in color.Rinse plant under tap to remove mites.The white fuzz could be mealy bugs a dab of rubbing alcohol on a cotton swab will kill each one. And don't buy plants from that store anymore or you will just get the same problems.
Bill
Hi Bill --- Thank you very much for the advice! I will definitely try that this weekend. It was a WalMart plant that my fiancee bought for me last year. I spose it could've had something dormant, or maybe it got infested while living outside last summer.
Gnome wrote:LB,

It is not uncommon for some pests to require more than one treatment before you get them under control, be persistent.

Norm
Hey Norm --- Much appreciated words of wisdom.

So far I have cleaned my Gardenia with my Dr. Bronners solution a total of 3 times. I sprayed it with Neem once and I also sprayed twice with an insecticide that seems to be doing the trick.

I'm going to check it again tomorrow and do what Bill recommended if it needs anything. I've been trying not to fuss over it more than once a week. So far so good. Looks much better, more vibrant, pushing lots of new growth all over. I'll try to get some pics to post soon if I can.



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