Spider Mites

[Dagmar]

My plants have spider mites. I purchased Captain Jack Dead Bug Brew with Spinosad and have sprayed the plants twice, two days apart, and the bugs are not dying. WTF! What successful methods are you guys using?

[Potted]

I hung a hot shot no pest strip in grow room sealed room(in my case closet) and did not enter for two days.the fumes are a human danger,before entering I ran exaust for a hour took pest strip put in zip lock bag if needed again. No need to use again all dead
p.s. do not use in flower peace

[Dagmar]

Is this something I could pick up at Home Depot Garden Center? I thought pest strips where just for flying insects and didn't have fumes to worry about. These plants have been on 12/12 for 2 1/2 weeks and have developed budlets. What do you mean by 'do not use in flower peace"?

[Potted]

Yes home depot or on line the fumes is what kills them. And not good for you! As for your your budlets it's up to you !,,luck or peace out

[ghost.year.0]

I started with Ortho spray (did nothing), then a spray of a tablespoon of Dawn in a gallon of water (decent but not wholly effective, next day had live ones again) and finally what killed them was Dr. Bonnar Peppermint soap combined with No Pest strips. This was all in veg. I didn't wait to try the Dr. B's before hanging a strip, did them together, one treatment with the soap followed by one strip hung in the veg box for a week and they all went to spider mite heaven. The strips are toxic if you breathe it too much so be careful, have read different opinions on whether you can use them safely, up to you really, but for me they were the bees knees. I hang it occasionally for 3 or 4 days at a time just as a preventative measure, then into a zip loc bag it goes. Mites really suck, made my plants all spotty and actually killed one big clone. I felt lucky to only lose 1 plant to them, after reading horror stories and watching YouTube videos.

[r3m1]

stop, go pick up avid, the stuff works amazing, instant death of eggs and mites. 2ml per gal

[Dagmar]

Thanks for the suggestions and I've made notes in my journal for future reference but I did panic when I found the spider mites and jumped to try a couple of sprays instead of waiting to hear back from you guys on the form. My bad since you guys offer a wealth of knowledge and I could have saved myself time and trouble. So I hesitate to try the suggested solutions until I see if I've killed the little buggers with a product called Monterey Take Down Garden Spray. This morning I examined the plants and didn't find any living mites but I saw tons of eggs. The spray I used claims to be effective on killing eggs. Time will tell. Hopefully my problem is gone. I'm still surprised that spider mites not only made into my home but deep into my house and into a closet! These plants are clones whose parents I grew from seeds.

[Beach_Town_Brit]

Dagmar so sorry to hear you got the mites. Don't rest on your laurels, keep treating the plants, preferably with different products. Spider mites are infamous for coming back just when you think you've got them licked.

I had an awful spider mite infestation on my very first grow (never again will I grow purchased clones). I was wary of spraying anything that was highly toxic to humans. I tried soapy water, diatomaceous earth, SM90, pyrethrum, but finally the only thing that really worked for me was mighty wash. Mighty wash is expensive which is why I held off from buying it until I was desperate but it worked better for my mites than anything.

That's worrying that you got mites without any clear line of "infection." Have you visited any other grows recently?

[r3m1]

beach, i am just as wary of them, i used arazol, neem and then i picked up avid the stuff is very effective on mites, i used two ml to a gal and no joke i havent seen a mite since, thats 3 weeks ago. i got my mites from a buddy who gave me a few clones, and i think he was attacked at the same time i was. avid is jsut as expensive as mighty wash but way more effective on eggs and mites, $400 per qt but amazon has 8oz for 94$

[Beach_Town_Brit]

r3m1 Sounds like another good approach. I only grow from seeds now so I'm hoping it's a problem I won't have again. SoCal is crazy for spider mites, perfect climate for them and sooooo much pot around!!!

[Dagmar]

The only explanation for how the mites got to my plants is that the dogs or I managed to track them into the house.

[r3m1]

Yea i have a grower next door to me smh. Not sure if hes legal tho. Im in mi and its really cold right now so its going to be hard to get them which is why im so puzzled how i got them.