Hi, everyone.

Like most of you, I am on constant guard against mealy bugs and scale. In the past, I have used insecticide soap, alcohol, and systemic methods as both a preventative and treatment. However, I want to start using a more organic method, predatory bugs, but need to know the correct name of what bad-bugs I am trying to control/eradicate.

I have read so much information that now I am confused on what is a hard scale, soft scale. To make matters worse, there are hundreds of different types of scale including mealys.

Can someone tell me the proper entomological names of the scale most often found on orchids?