Insect and Rodent Pests

Protect Your Orchids from Insects and Pests

Author: Keith Markensen

Orchids are exquisite exotic plants that produce breathtaking flowers. Orchids are located in tropical and subtropical locations around the world. There are some exceptions to this scenario however. Most have an aerial root system that are attached to the trunks of trees in their natural environment.

Orchid Pest Threats

There are several types of pests that can kill orchids, some of the most common are aphids, mealy bugs, mites, millipedes, centipedes and snails, among others. The climate and area would depend on which type of pest could invade.

Aphids suck the fluid from the Orchids, the damage comes from this bug actually biting into the plant. The tissue will experience necrosis, grow yellow and rot. Mealybugs are white or pink, they infest the plant and feed off of them. These are some of the more difficult pests and require immediate attention when discovered.

Scale bugs are white and look like they have scales. They are a frequent orchid pest. They feed off the orchid and grow quickly and get larger, harder scales. The males are winged and breed with the females. Mites are another threat, the most typical being the spider mite, that form webs on the plant and you may never even see the spider.

Millipedes and centipedes eat the rots of the plants they infest. They are quite harmful to orchids and centipedes are potentially dangerous because they can sting humans. Slugs and snails are very similar in their destruction of orchids by eating them and they are common orchid pests. Whiteflies rank as one of the three peskiest orchid pests along with aphids and spider mites.

Millipedes and centipedes will actually eat the roots of the orchid and cause rotting. They are very harmful and dangerous to human beings because they sting. Snails and slugs are similar to millipedes, in that they destroy the flower by eating the roots. Whiteflies, however, rank as the top threat to orchids.

Solving Orchid Pest Problems

There are many natural methods which you can employ to control orchid pests. You can get a natural house plant pest enemy of the pest in question and release it on the infected orchid. You do not need to use a pesticide for this reason and in the process you are not harming the environment either. If you have a number of pests infecting your plants however, you may want to consider going the route of pesticides.

You need to make sure you get the pesticide that is more natural and less environmentally harmful. This approach allows you to protect the world for future generations. Netting and protective barriers also work as another natural alternative in preventing orchid pest infestation in your garden.

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