can i get a ID please

multipass

Active Member
I was wondering if anyone can help recognize these bugs, they are on some of my bhut jolokia and scorpions..
i have been spraying them with dr bronners soap for a few days since taking the pic. seems to help, but should try neem?


bug2.pngbug1.png

thanks
 

noxiously

Well-Known Member
To me it looks like Whiteflies. From what my book says about them is that Whiteflies infest the undersides of leaves. If you disturb the plant, they will take off in flight. They suck sap from the plants, and are vectors for viruses. The plants release sticky honeydew and this can contribute to mold problems on the plants. Leaves appear spotty, droop, and lose vigor. They are related to aphids and scales. If in fact they are whiteflies, they are easy to get rid of. If you are not sure that they are whiteflies, shake the plant a little and see if they fly away, then they will settle right back onto the leaves. Reproduction rate and life cycle: Females each lay about 100 tiny eggs on the undersides of leaves. Eggs hatch in about seven to ten days, and the larvae drain sap from leaves. Larvae mature in 2 to 4 weeks and the adults live for 4 to 6 weeks after that. The reproductive rate is temperature dependent: most whitefly species do best in a temperature range of 80 to 90 degrees F.

Prevention:

Keep the temperature of the garden below 80 to slow whitefly reproduction. Clear out plant debris quickly. Install a fine dust filter in the air intake for the grow space to prevent whiteflies from entering through the vents.

Control:

Yellow Sticky Traps - Whiteflies are attracted to yellow sticky cards. These trap a small proportion of the population, but are good indicators of infestations.
Shake plants to dislodge whiteflies and then suck them out of the air with the hose attachment of a vacuum cleaner. Heavily infested plants should be removed from the garden or grow room before treatment.

Encarsia formosae are tiny wasps that lay their eggs inside immature whiteflies. They are not social, they don't make hives and are so small that once they are released you may never see them again. Indoors and in greenhouses one introduction may be all that is needed because their numbers increase much faster proportionally than their prey.

This is a list of other agents that can help get rid of whiteflies:


Beauveria bassiana (beneficial fungi): This is a fungus that attacks and kills a variety of pests, including whiteflies, leaf miners, aphids, spider mites, and caterpillars. Note that many beneficial insects, such as lady beetles (lady bugs), are also susceptible. Products containing Beauveria bassiana work by contact, but take three to seven days to germinate, penetrate and kill target pests. Spray plants throughly as soon as you identify an infestation. In addition to killing off existing pests it also prevents infestation or re-infestation.

Beneficial insects: Lacewing larvae, minute pirate bugs: Minute Pirate Bugs are a tiny beneficial insect. They are serious predators, and use their piercing mouths to suck the life out of aphids, mealybugs, scale, and thrips. Buy them as adults from companies such as Planet Natural, Rincon-Vitova, Bioplanet, and Natural Insect Control. Plan on using about 50 adults for every 100 square feet (9 square meters).

Capsaicin: This is the substance that gives hot peppers their heat. Pepper plants produce capsaicin for its repellent value against insects and other animals that might otherwise eat the plants. It provides similar protection when applied to other plants. Cayenne pepper contains capsaicin, and it can be sprinkled as a powder to repel ants. You can also make an insecticidal pepper spray with this recipe: 1/2 ounce (15g) dried or 4 ounce (60g) fresh peppers (habanero or other very hot pepper) 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of vegetable oil 1/4 teaspoon (1 g) lecithin granules 1/4 teaspoon (1 g) wetting agent and water to make up one pint (450 ml). You can also substitute 2 tablespoons of Asian hot pepper oil for peppers. Wear gloves whenever you handle peppers or pepper oil, and avoid touching your eyes or mouth with your gloved hands. Grind the peppers (do not discard the seeds) and oil together in a blender. Add the water, wetting agent and lecithin and mix thoroughly. The mixture can be used immediately, but will become stronger if the peppers are allowed to soak. Strain the mixture through a cheesecloth or pantyhose into a glass jar for storage. To use, mix 1 to 2 tablespoons (15-30 ml) of this concentrate with 1 pint of water and spray on plants. As with all home recipes, test this spray on a few leaves and wait a day to check for damage, before applying it to your whole garden. Commercial products that contain capsaicin include Hot Pepper Spray, Bonide, Hot Pepper Wax (for ants, aphids, leaf miners, spider mites, thrips, and whiteflies), Repellex Mole, Vole and Gopher Repellent (for moles and gophers), Browseban, and Liquid Fence (for deer).

Carbon dioxide: Growers often use CO2 tanks to increase the levels of this gas to 1,500-2,000 ppm in their grow rooms and greenhouses, and these levels are not harmful to most animal life. However, increasing the carbon dioxide level to 10,000 ppm (1%) and holding it at that level for an hour kills most insects, including spider mites, whiteflies, aphids, and thrips. If you do this, make sure to vent the room thoroughly after this treatment, as such high levels of CO2 are hazardous for humans as well. CO2 is also useful against ants, moles, and gophers.

Cinnamon oil: Cinnamon destroys powdery mildew, with an effectiveness rate of 50-70%. It doesn't eradicate mildew completely but it keeps it in check. It also potentiates other suppressive sprays so it is good to use in combination. In addition to its fungicidal properties it is effective against ants, aphids, fungus gnats, spider mites, thrips and whiteflies. Mix food grade oil (available at herb shops) at the rate of 1 part to 200 parts water or a bit under one teaspoon (5ml) per quart (950 ml). Or make a tea directly from cinnamon: boil water, turn off the heat and add one ounce of cinnamon to one and a half pints of water. Let the tea cool to room temperature. Add half a pint of 100 proof grain alcohol or rubbing alcohol and let sit. Strain the mixture. The spray is ready to use. A faster method is to add 2 teaspoons (10 ml) cinnamon oil to one pint (500 ml) of water and add a dash of castile soap. Rosemary oil and wintergreen oil are also sometimes combined with cinnamon oil. The solution should consist of no more than .75% total oil. Commercial products: Zero Tolerance contains cinnamon oil in both its pesticide and fungicide formulations. Dr. Earth Pro Active Fruit and Vegetable Insect Spray, Cinnacure, and FlowerPharm are other brand name preparations.

Coriander oil: This natural essential oil acts as a fungicide and insecticide to control Pythium, gray mold, Fusarium, powdery milder, Septoria, aphids, thrips, spider mites, and whiteflies. It can be purchased in a commercial blen as SM-90.

Garlic: Garlic is antifungal and anti-bacterial. It is used as an ingredient in fungicides and can be prepared as a spray and used every few days. Garlic has several pathways for destroying fungi including its high sulfur content. Garlic can also be added to other anti-fungal sprays. You can make your own spray from a teaspoon of garlic oil in a pint of water with 2 ounces (60 ml) of 100 proof or higher drinking alcohol such as rum or vodka. Use garlic as a preventative spray. Spray on new growth before their is a sign of infection. Garlic is a general purpose insecticide as well as fungicide, so it should be used with caution on outdoor plants. It kills beneficial insects as well as plant pests. Dr. Earth Pro Active Fruit and Vegetable Insect Spray, VeggiePharm, Garlic Barrier, BioRepel and Envirepel are garlic insecticied for ants, aphids, caterpillars, spider mites, thrips and whiteflies.

Horticultural oil: Horticultural oils are any of a number of light oils used to control insects such as aphids, fungus gnats, leaf miners, mealybugs, scales, spider mites, thrips, and whiteflies. They work by smothering insects, and so must be applied directly to the target pests. They provide no residual activity. Some horticultural oils are vegetable based, while others are petroleum based. Both are effective, but if you wish to avoid petroleum products then be sure to check the label. In any case, petroleum based oils should not be used on buds, or on leaves that you plan to use for cooking or kiefing. These oils need to be distinguished from neem oil, which poisons pests, although, like neem oil, some horticultural oils such as jo-joba, sesam and cottonseed oil have fungicidal properties. They can be used in combination with other spray ingredients listed here. The oils are mixed at about 1-2% concentrations. A 1% solution is about a teaspoon per pint, 3 tablespoons per gallon, one quart in 25 gallons. Add a wetting agent or castile soap to help the ingredients mix.

Limonene: Limonene is refined from the oil of citrus rinds. It has a pleasant citrus odor and is the active ingredient in many new cleaning products. it is a broad-spectrum insecticide effective against ants, aphids, fungus gnats, mealybugs, scales, spider mites, and whiteflies. Limonene is the active ingredient in Ortho Home Defense Indoor Insect Killer, Concern Citrus Home Pest Control, Clean-Green All Purpose Cleaner, and in products made by Orange Guard such as D'bug and Enviro-cide. Limonene also has fungicidal qualities. I've used pure diluted limonene and it controlled powdery mildew, but did not eradicate it.

Parasitoid Wasps: Make sure to get the right type of Wasp. Encarsia species attack whiteflies. Trichogramma species go after caterpillars. Aphidius and Aphelinus species destroy aphids. Choose Dacnusa, Diglyphus and Opius species for leafminers. Leptomastix, Anagyrus and Metaphycus parasitize mealybugs and scale. But them as pupae from companies such as Buglogical, Hydro-Gardens, IPM Labs, natural Insect Control, Planet Natural and Rincon-Vitova. Plan on using about 100 pupae for every 100 square feet. Some pests may require multiple applications for full control.

Pyrethrum: Pyrethrum is a broad spectrum natural insecticide derived from a plant in the Chrysanthemum family. It acts on contact, and so must be sprayed directly on the target pests. It is effective against ants, aphids, caterpillars, fungus gnats, leaf miners, mealybugs, scale, spider mites, thrips, and whiteflies. Note that pyrethrum is also toxic to many benefical insects, fish, and reptiles. Pyrethrum formulations range from powders to sprays and are available under many different brand names, including Safer Yard and Garden Insect Spray, Planet Natural Pyrethrum Powder, and PyGanic Crop Protection. (As a side note, I personally found a powder at Wal-Mart that has this as the main ingredient in their garden section for around $8, I think it was made by Ortho - also it is very messy).

Sesame oil: The oil pressed from sesame seeds has both insecticidal and fungicidal properties. It is effective against aphids, fungus gnats, leaf miners, mealy bugs, scales, spider mites, thrips, whiteflies, gray mold, Septoria, and powdery mildew. It is available under brand names such as Organocide (a blend of sesame oil and fish oil), and Green Light Bioganic Home and Garden ( a mixture of sesame, clove, thyme, soybean, and wintergreen oils). You can also make your own using sesame oil from the grocery store. Mix it 1% ( 1 teaspoon per pint or 5 ml per 500 ml) with water and a small amount of lecithin and a wetting agent.

Sorry for such a long post, but hope it helps you and others who may have this problem. I know there are pre-made products out there that are easy to use and fairly cheap, and alot faster to use than making your own. I listed these other remedies for those who may want to try them out, or who like to make their own organic remedies.

(Wetting Agent - This is a broad class of compounds that break the surface tension of water. This prevents water solutions from beading up on plant surfaces and helps them penetrate into soil. Castile soap (the author prefers Dr. Bronners Peppermint) can be used as a wetting agent. Commercial brands for organic gardening include CoCo-Wet, ThermX 70, Phyto Plus Foliar Friend, Natural Wet, and RainGrow Superflower.)
 

multipass

Active Member
hey, thanks for the response
i haven't seen any white flies around(after googling some images), but i do have some fungus gnats/fruit flies which are slowly going away from soap and sticky traps...but i'm not sure they are whats causing this.

I can't actually see any bugs when I look at the underside of the leaves, there's just that clear gooey stuff all over.. which makes me wonder if there's some microscopic bugs.. or just a remainder from the gnats/flies that are dieing off..

Some of the leaves will turn yellowish and get these spots on them that look like dirt, then just fall right off.

ugh lol.. I don't want to have to remove my pepper plants :[

thx
 
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