Red Spider Mites

[OrchidTraci]

I'm so mad, my noid Oncidium that I bought last year for $4.95 has red spider mites. This orchid has never had anything bother it before, is growing like crazy, and now a couple of leaves has the silvery and pitting on the underside of 2 of the leaves. Should I spray it with Neem oil?? Help!

[LJA]

OT, how did that happen??? And it wasn't Brutal Dreamer's fault this time because he didn't say anything....

Neem oil will work fine, as will any kind of insecticidal oil (the oil clogs the mites' breathing tubes and they suffocate.....) But if it's just one plant, don't bother going out and buying Neem if you don't have any. A heavy spray on both sides of the leaves with water outside will usually take care of the problem. Repeat every four or so days for a couple of weeks. But if you want to do something more hardcore, isolate the plant so the mites don't spread to everything else, and then spray the plant with a mixture of rubbing alcohol and a few drops of concentrated dish detergent. (Mix that all up in a plastic spray bottle and then "go to town.")

Repeat the treatment, again, every four days for about two weeks. (The alcohol will kill the mites, but it won't get the eggs. Repeating kills the larvae so they can't reproduce...)

What a drag!!! Sorry they got to the plant. The pitting damage to the plant is, unfortunately, permanent as long as the leaves are around, but the mites themselves are easy enough to get rid of...

[LJA]

PS. You might as well spray everything with the alcohol / soap mix while you're at it; it won't hurt anything and will get rid of pests you may have not noticed yet on some of the other plants....

[OrchidTraci]

I already have the neem oil, I bought it a few months ago. I had read about it, but I couldn't remember the specifics. I can live with the leaf damage, as long as it doesn't affect the flowering process. I can see shoots starting in two different places.

PS, it isn't Brutals fault this time I think the warm weather had something to do with it.

[Brutal_Dreamer]

Now folks, I just call 'em like I see 'em!

I have seen so many orchids at home improvement stores that have serious pest problems and rot. Everytime I hear about someone getting one, it makes me nervous thinking that the "new" orchid will infect the others at home that are clean and bug free.

Thanks OT for saying the warm weather was at fault this time...lol!

Cheers!
Brutal_Dreamer