Spider Mites late stage flowering

Hey all,

Ever since I started growing outdoors, I have had problems with infestations. First it was Thrips which I somehow dealt with at the late stage of Vegetative and now I have about two weeks of flowering and then it is harvest time.
I have noticed spider mites moving all around my buds and leaves, not in great amounts, but they are laying eggs all over the plant. What should I do? What are the consequences if I do nothing and harvest normally? Or should i treat it now at this late stage of flowering?

Any shared experience is appreciated.

If you plan on smoking it you should do a bud wash no matter what to try and remove as many as possible after harvest. Citric acid is really one of the only things I know of that's safe to use in late flower and will kill the mites. It can damage the pistils as far as browning them but I'd rather have that then a bunch of webs and eggs getting laid. I don't have the mixture handy but if you search citric acid for spider mites I'm sure it's easy to find. You can also just grab it at the grocery store or Walmart so you don't have to wait for shipping if you decide to try it. Sorry to hear about the mites. They're a pain anytime, but in flower it's a mess.

Damn, that sucks.
I have 0 experience in what type of Spray to get, is it only Citric Acid mixed with Water? Feels wrongs spray my buds in this stage with Acid
How often? How long to wait before i could harvest after spraying? Pistil damage is the only thing I need to worry about?

Many questions I know... but I waited so long for my plant

Citric acid is a powder used for canning and is very safe to use up to harvest. There are commercial spider mite products as well but most are not safe in flower. Some are, but the ones that are usually have Citric acid as the main ingredient. I'd do a bud wash regardless before you hang them to dry just because of the mites. Let me see if I can find the ratio, it is a certain number of teaspoons per quart and I just don't have my notes anymore. You want it strong enough to kill the eggs and mites but as gentle as possible to try and protect the pistils and trichomes.

Found this link, it's discussing Russet mites but the ratios should still be effective. Rurumo's advice is very good and I really learn a lot from her.

Damn, the mites I have cant be seen with the naked eyes as well... They are way too small and I saw with a lil microscope..
They are suggesting around 2 tsp Citric Acid / L Water, then just spray it full. I will try it (Maybe a little less Citric Acid), one full plant spray.

With washing the buds, I am thinking to put the whole plant (After harvest) under the shower and wash it thoroughly then hang it to dry. Hopfelly it will be okay then :=)

I appreciate you man, thanks.

I think you need pics
The ability to spot spider mites with the naked eye is doubtful

Grow_man731 said:

Damn, the mites I have cant be seen with the naked eyes as well... They are way too small and I saw with a lil microscope..
They are suggesting around 2 tsp Citric Acid / L Water, then just spray it full. I will try it (Maybe a little less Citric Acid), one full plant spray.

With washing the buds, I am thinking to put the whole plant (After harvest) under the shower and wash it thoroughly then hang it to dry. Hopfelly it will be okay then :=)

I appreciate you man, thanks.

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Do a Google search for the "Doc Buds Bud Wash method". It using hydrogen peroxide and baking soda in separate buckets to dip the buds in to wash. It helps kill any mold, mildew you might have with the baking soda and the peroxide will help strip away a lot of nasty junk too. Then you rinse in clean water and hang em up to dry. I always do it with outdoor plants and plants that I suspect had any pm or bug issues.

The mites I have they have like black head/body and the damages they did on the leaves is exactly like any spider mite and they have some webs here and there.

I just got the Citric Acid, I am just a bit nervous about the whole thing (Spreading Acid on my buds). I will do the spray once it is a lil cooler outside and see what happens.

If the buds do turn out okay I will definitely rinse them like you suggest here.

I couldn't see the mites with my naked eye, I had to use a microscope thingy

Herb & Suds said:

I think you need pics
The ability to spot spider mites with the naked eye is doubtful

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You can see spider mites easily ,, russet mites no..

Yeah, I linked the russet mite article just so he could get the citric acid formula from it. OP, If you're nervous, try going with a milder dosage and test it on a section of the plant. That's what I usually do. Spray a small section and then check it the next day or two. Then you can see if the mix is too hot. If it looks good and the mites and eggs died, give it to the whole plant.

Grow_man731 said:

The mites I have they have like black head/body and the damages they did on the leaves is exactly like any spider mite and they have some webs here and there.

I just got the Citric Acid, I am just a bit nervous about the whole thing (Spreading Acid on my buds). I will do the spray once it is a lil cooler outside and see what happens.

If the buds do turn out okay I will definitely rinse them like you suggest here.

I couldn't see the mites with my naked eye, I had to use a microscope thingy

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Yeah, don't do it in the full sun. Try and get to it early before the sun's up and bright or later in the day when they're not in direct sunlight. I don't foliar spray in the sunlight if I can avoid it, I'm never sure what sprays will react badly to direct sunlight. So I just try to avoid doing it completely.

Man, you are a bud savoir!
I will start with a small dosage and get back here in 2/3 days and share the results.

Grow_man731 said:

Man, you are a bud savoir!
I will start with a small dosage and get back here in 2/3 days and share the results.

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Just passing on what I've learned from others here. Citric acid is a great cheap PH down alternative too. I've been using the same jar of it to ph my water for years as it just takes a tiny bit to drop ph. Click the little magnifying glass icon at the top of the page to do a search and just type in citric acid for mites. You'll find a bunch of threads talking about using it as well as people's recipes for it. Hope it helps, mites in flower are a real nightmare.

farmerfischer said:

You can see spider mites easily ,, russet mites no..

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Not with these eyes
I can recognize signs on leaves or webbing but I can’t see em naked

Just sprayed one bud site (Where I clearly saw a couple mites chilling chewing on my leaves, well wait till tomorrow or so, if nothing too extreme happened, will spray the rest of the plant.
A lot of different recipes there. If it turns out to be a good result with the Citric Acid, I will look into using it in different applications.

Herb & Suds said:

Not with these eyes
I can recognize signs on leaves or webbing but I can’t see em naked

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I hear ya.. my eyes are just starting to give me shit.. thankfully my vision is ok naked.. nothing a few beers cant fix.. lol

So, checking on the Plant today, the bud site looks good, nothing special changed, but unfortunately the mites are still chilling there I mean, does it need longer to take effect or is it because I used only a small concentration of Citric Acid?

Grow_man731 said:

So, checking on the Plant today, the bud site looks good, nothing special changed, but unfortunately the mites are still chilling there I mean, does it need longer to take effect or is it because I used only a small concentration of Citric Acid?

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I believe @Sofa King Smooth went through this recently.It took many applications .GL

Grow_man731 said:

So, checking on the Plant today, the bud site looks good, nothing special changed, but unfortunately the mites are still chilling there I mean, does it need longer to take effect or is it because I used only a small concentration of Citric Acid?

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When I've used it, they were dead the next day and the eggs looked fried under a microscope. What concentration did you use?