How to deal with scale insects on indoor plants? Use of insecticides and folk remedies. How to determine that a dangerous pest has appeared on a plant - scale insects How to remove scale insects from indoor plants

Scale insects (lat. Diaspididae) - this small villain, a harmful insect, an enemy of green crops, has a rather strange name. But nature is generous to its children. She does not divide them into harmful and useful, providing, if necessary, all means of protection.

And since we are talking about the scale insect, its name fully corresponds to the protective tool that has been formed throughout its evolution. This is a waxy shield covering the entire body.

Scale insects and false scale insects

Having discovered a villain that looks like small inclusions on the leaves, similar to a turtle’s shell, you should not be deluded by its insignificant size. Combating it will require a systematic approach and significant time investment.

Scale insects are an omnivorous enemy that does not disdain even the juice of poisonous plants. And if there is a choice, then preference will be given to the floral elite - palm, citrus and orchid species of green crops. But scale insects can also be found on laurel, ficus, dracaena and anthurium.

Returning to nature’s benevolence towards its children, it should be noted that she created about 2.4 thousand species of this garden barbarian, or rather, flower tyrant.

Gardeners and summer residents of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus most often deal with the following species:

1. Orange or comma-shaped. Favorite targets of attack are laurel and citrus crops.
2. Red pyriform. Most often it affects stone fruit and pome trees, dogwood, horse nut and walnut.
3. Californian. For some reason, she fell in love with apple trees, regardless of the variety.
4. Red orange. Most likely, it was brought to us along with imported feed from Africa, Oceania or South America - these are the places where it is widely distributed. Her gluttony and indiscriminate eating habits are simply amazing. The garden parasite mercilessly drinks juice from the most unrelated families. These are apple trees, figs, plums, olives, lemon, orange, grapes, persimmons, tangerines.
5. European willow (gray). Its preferred habitats (favorable habitats) are black currants, dogwoods, and blueberries. As well as wild trees such as maple, linden, rowan, alder, and willow.
6. Yellow pear. Most often, the dacha sinister pest harms apple trees of all varieties.

Photo of scale insects on the trunk of a houseplant

Despite the large number of species, it is not difficult to recognize the enemy on a plot or in an indoor greenhouse.

The closest relative of the scale insect is its sister of the same name – the false scale insect (lat. Coccidae). Perhaps the only distinguishing feature is the absence of a waxy shell. The dried skin of the dead female provides protection for the laid eggs.

Photo of a leaf affected by false scale insects

Nature also has not deprived the false scale insect of a variety of species:

1. Soft. The most preferred crops are, in all their beauty and diversity, citrus, palm and aroid crops.
2. Acacia. Most often, plums, currants, gooseberries, cherries, apple trees, and peach suffer from it.
3. Spruce. The very name of the pest speaks about its food priorities - these are coniferous trees.
4. Plum. Individuals of this species are more picky about their diet, feeding on stone fruits and rose flowers in the garden.

Specifics of reproduction and life cycle

Young larvae, as soon as they are born, immediately begin their destructive meal, sucking out the life-giving juice from the green inhabitants of the dacha farmstead. The offspring are extremely mobile, which is why they are called vagrants.

The rapid migration of larvae is motivated by the constant need for food. Without it, “bugs” will not live even two days. In this regard, the occupation of nearby plants occurs quite rapidly.

Garden enemies live in colonies, which can reach very impressive and even catastrophic sizes. Given comfortable living conditions for them, as well as the absence of opposition from the owners, in three seasons the insatiable insect with its brood can destroy all the trees in the garden. We are not even talking about less resistant crops.

Typically, under favorable weather conditions, more females are born. Otherwise, more males are born. This is due to the factor of development and migration of the population - males have wings.

The small, voracious pest feels most comfortable on the lower tier of plants, located on the outer or back side of a leaf or young shoot.

Both types of related individuals, both common and false, secrete a sticky, sweetish liquid during feeding - this is honeydew or honeydew.

This processed product is an ideal environment for the appearance on this site of another, no less dangerous enemy of green crops - sooty fungus (mob). Which further aggravates the already unenviable fate of the green organism.

Signs of plant damage

What is characteristic is that each type of shield-shaped pests has its own biological signature:

1. Large colonies of the mulberry variety can be mistaken for growths on the trunk. When the juice is sucked out, the plant weakens. The fruits become smaller, becoming covered with brown dots, which transform into large spots. You can immediately forget about the usefulness and taste of the future harvest.
2. The Californian pest, like many of its fellows, can be identified in the first year of its outrages by the lumpy irregularities of the bark. This is the result of the tree’s weak attempts to independently resist the garden barbarian. This is how the tree tries to heal the cover with new living tissue. In the second year the presence of large colonies is clearly visible. And the third year of inaction by the gardener will lead to massive drying out of branches, leaves, cracking of the bark and the death of all plantings.

Photo of a dracaena leaf affected by scale insects

A novice amateur gardener may be interested in the question: where does scale insects come from on indoor plants?

The reasons may be varied. Here are just a few of them:

1. Acquisition and further appearance of a diseased plant in the greenhouse. Do not hesitate - the larvae emerging from the eggs will easily infect the entire collection of flowers.
2. The wind can carry the larvae through the windows and the balcony.
3. Improper care and excessive use of various fertilizers disrupt metabolic processes and weaken green organisms. This makes them vulnerable to the cunning of the omnivorous parasite.

How to deal with scale insects on indoor and garden plants?

You need to get rid of scale insects on indoor plants for the following reasons:

Video from the Garden World channel:

Chemicals

Science has developed and offers effective measures to combat scale insects. Of course, the priority among them is chemicals. But there is no need to discard folk remedies and mechanical techniques, which will be discussed below.

The use of chemical materials requires compliance with some simple rules:

1. Take your time and test the flower for the susceptibility of the chemical solution. During the day, treat one of the leaves with the preparation and monitor the condition of the plant.
2. When using poisons to fight, be sure to read the instructions. Some procedures require taking the flower out into the open air or covering it with a protective plastic bag.
3. When processing flowers at home, do not forget to wipe the window sill, shelf or table on which the plant stands with a chemical solution. They may contain pests that have fallen from the leaves.
4. Another requirement that must be observed is the use of personal protective equipment. Be it a respirator, medical masks or homemade masks made of multi-layer gauze.
5. During processing, ensure access to clean air in the room.

Since we are talking about chemicals, expert flower growers give preference to Aktara’s product. The destructive effect of this contact insecticide lasts up to 30 days. The best result is achieved with its combined use - spraying the crown and simultaneous watering of the root structure.

Scale insects and its close relative, false scale insects, can be removed from indoor plants using simple mechanical manipulations:

Traditional methods

Many years of folk experience and advice will help you remove scale insects from indoor plants.

Their use for health is absolutely safe. And if we are talking about small processing areas, such as a greenhouse, a winter garden or an indoor flower corner, then the use of environmentally friendly ingredients becomes the highest priority and recommended.

Effective recipes:

1. Soap-alcohol solution. Ingredients to mix: liter of water, 10 ml of alcohol and 15 ml of liquid or 15 grams of grated soap. The solution is whipped into foam and applied with a swab or soft brush to areas where the pest accumulates. The shields and the surface around them need to be treated especially carefully.
2. Soap-oil solution. You need to beat hemp or machine oil (30 grams) until foamy. Add 30 grams of water and 10 grams of grated laundry soap. Mix thoroughly and treat the affected trunk and leaves, remembering to cover the soil with a protective napkin. Leave the treated plant to dry for 12 hours. Then rinse everything off with a warm shower. Repeat the procedure twice with a break of a week.
3. Soap solution with burdock oil. Ten grams of oil and washing powder should be mixed with a liter of warm water. After infusing the medicine for 4 hours, treat the green crop. This composition can be used as a preventive measure, applying it once a month.
4. Garlic infusion. Grate or crush five cloves of garlic. Pour the pulp with a glass of warm water and leave for 12 hours. After filtration, it can be used to treat the affected leaves.
5. Onion infusion. Crush or finely grate one small onion. Leave for 12 hours in half a liter of warm water. Next, process in the same way as with garlic infusion.
6. Pepper infusion. Fifty grams of picked pepper are simmered over low heat in half a liter of water for 30 minutes. Leave for a day and filter. Flower leaves are sprayed or moistened with a cotton swab. To do this, create a solution: 10 grams of infusion, 5 grams of laundry soap and a liter of water. Unused infusion can be stored in the refrigerator for a long time.

Video of the channel “Baghira’s Estate”:

Prevention

There is no need to talk about proactive preventive measures that can significantly reduce the likelihood of pests appearing in the garden or on a windowsill with flowers.

Several useful tips will benefit your green home:

1. Buy planting material and flowers only in specialized stores.
2. Inspect the purchased flower carefully, and also subject it to sanitary treatment and quarantine isolation. Thoroughly disinfect the place where the flowerpot will be installed.
3. Follow the sanitary rules for healthy maintenance of flowers. Ensure the room is well ventilated and ventilated, but without drafts.
4. It is necessary to carefully inspect flower crops regularly. It is better to remove limp and limp leaves and shoots immediately, as they weaken the entire plant as a whole.
5. If pests are suspected, the top layer of soil should be removed and replaced.
6. In addition, if an infected flower is identified, it must be completely isolated until complete recovery.

Despite the fact that the scale insect is a sophisticated enemy, it can be defeated. But this will require a systematic approach, hard work and patience. And the developments of scientists and folk remedies will help.

Scale insects and false scale insects are small, fast-reproducing sap suckers that can bring a lot of trouble to lovers of indoor plants. They belong to the pseudococcid and coccid families, respectively. “Miniature turtle”, shield aphid - this is how you can briefly describe an insect that can completely occupy shoots and leaves. A plant heavily affected by scale insects is all sticky. This special substance (honeydew) is secreted by insects, on which some fungal diseases develop.

Scale insect is an adult, sexually mature individual

Which scale insects affect indoor plants?

If the Californian scale insect is considered a potential threat, first of all, to garden trees and fruits (quince, pear, peach, plum), then house plants are attacked by several species that differ in size and color, but are equally destructive to green spaces:

• palm;
• brown;
• olive;
• cactus

Before you get rid of the scale insect, you need to understand that the insect acts selectively. Each species chooses its own plant.

So after all: scale insect or false scale insect?

The shield individual (female) is capable of producing a special waxy substance. It covers the body with special protective armor (shield). Under the armor there is an insect body from 0.5 to 5 mm long and a numerous clutch of eggs, giving life to about 3 thousand young aphids.

Armor plays an important role in the life of insects. It can be elongated and round in shape, light brown or dark brown in color. The structure of the shield also differs:

• The scale insect on indoor plants is characterized by the convexity of the shell and its solidity with the body of the insect.
• The isolation of the flat armor in relation to the body (it can be raised, separated from the body) distinguishes the false shield.

Only scale insects are capable of secreting a sticky secretion, which cannot be said about their “false” relatives.

The scale insect secretes a sticky secretion, but the false scale insect does not.

Scale insects on indoor plants - photo of a severely affected indoor flower

How to fight scale insects?

And this is already a whole colony of scale insects

Attention! Well-developed, healthy plants that produce protective substances are too tough for pests. As soon as the metabolism is disrupted due to excess nitrogen in the soil mixture, poor lighting, improperly organized watering and temperature conditions, the plant weakens. Scale insects and false scale insects begin to actively reproduce.

If fruit trees in the garden are affected by the mulberry scale, all types of plants, bushes, and seedlings are subject to strict quarantine, i.e. they cannot be taken outside the garden area. Tea plantings, stone fruit bushes and trees are subject to pesticide treatment.

Scale insects form a shell on plants, which can lead to their death

Attention! Insecticides (, Actellik) of a high hazard class must be used carefully, using PPE. If there are children in the apartment, people prone to allergic reactions, and asthmatics, try to ensure a high air exchange rate in the apartment or give up highly toxic drugs, replacing them with more gentle ones.

Caring for a home rose garden or a tropical corner, regular inspections of flowers, and timely identification of pathogens will help to grow living green spaces strong and healthy.

Have your indoor plants started to turn yellow and dry out? First the young shoots disappeared, and then the old leaves began to fall off? You need to take a closer look at the stems: the presence of small flat insects on them indicates a scale insect, which appears at any time of the year. It is recommended to catch one pest and try to remove its shell. If the operation was successful, the flowers were attacked by a scale insect, which can be fought in several ways.

Timely response

A small number of insects that did not have time to harm the plant can be dealt with with soap and a cotton swab. Additionally, you will need a toothbrush or sponge for washing dishes, several cotton swabs, alcohol or kerosene. Laundry soap, tar soap, antibacterial soap or washing powder are suitable. The destruction of scale insects is carried out in several stages:

1. Use a rag or cotton swab dipped in plain water to walk over the leaves and stems to remove insects and their waste products.
2. Prepare a concentrated solution of soap, which you need to treat the flower and soil in the pot. Scale insects do not live in the ground, but can be on the surface of the soil, from where they will then move back to the roots and stems.
3. Fill a bucket or basin with the solution, place several sticks across the container, place a flower on them, which is turned upside down with its roots. The leaves should be completely immersed in liquid. Remove the plant after 3-4 hours, carefully rinse off the remaining soap and return it to the window.

Recipes for mechanical cleaning solutions

The main component of the composition against scale insects is dishwashing soap or washing powder. Shampoos and baby hygiene products are not suitable, they are not so aggressive. The remaining ingredients are selected depending on the situation.

Denatured alcohol is contraindicated for thin and tender leaves. Dissolve 10 ml of alcohol and 15 g of liquid soap in a liter of water, stir until foam forms and apply with a cotton swab to the affected plant.

A softer version consists of 30 g of machine oil and 10 g of grated soap. The mass should be thick; add a little warm water if necessary. Cover the ground with film or a plastic bag and treat the flower with emulsion. Leave for 8–12 hours, rinse off with cool water. The scale will disappear after the second procedure, which is repeated after a week.

Tip: Instead of machine oil, you can use burdock oil. The leaves and stems are wiped with the prepared emulsion, and then the plant is bathed under the tap or in the shower.

Combined option
Scale insects are removed in three stages:

1. Arm yourself with a toothbrush and sweep the pests into bowls filled with water.
2. Treat the damaged areas with onion pulp, remove the remains with a sponge soaked in a soap solution.
3. Prepare a solution for spraying from a liter of water and 5 drops of kerosene. Add 40 g of soap shavings and stir until the ingredient dissolves. Complete the procedure by bathing the flowers in warm water (no more than 45 degrees).

Alcohol rubs are popular, for which vodka or ethyl alcohol is used. The method is not suitable if the scale insect has attacked violets or begonias, calathea or arrowroot, ginura or saxifrage. Indoor lemons tolerate alcohol well.

Chemicals: how to choose

Insecticides and poisons are a reliable and quick way to destroy scale insects. You need to process plants on the balcony or in the fresh air, wearing rubber gloves, a respirator and safety glasses. In enclosed spaces, even bandages and other devices will not save you from chemical poisoning.

Actellik powder controls pests in one go, but treated flowers should be kept away from pets and children. You will need 1.5 mg of the product per liter of liquid. Spray the stems and leaves, water the soil with the solution.

"Aktara" does not harm cats, but has an unpleasant odor. A solution is prepared from 0.5 ml of the drug and 1 liter of water. Do not spray, but pour into the ground. The poison is quickly absorbed by the root system, enters the sap on which scale insects feed, and the insects die in a matter of hours.

Bankol is a good odorless option that is safe for pets. 0.5 g per liter of liquid is enough, used for spraying. The product first paralyzes the scale insects, and after 1-2 days they die.

"Bitoxibacillin" only works at high temperatures. Dissolve 5 ml of insecticide in a liter of liquid and spray the affected plants. It will take several procedures to destroy all scale insects. The drug acts slowly: first it paralyzes the digestive system of the pests, and they begin to die on the third day.

They note the effectiveness of Fitoverm and Metaphos, and in severe cases they recommend using Fosbecid. First, you should mechanically clean the plants, rinse them under running water, and after drying, dry them and take them out into fresh air. After treating with insecticides, cover the affected flower with a plastic bag. Leave for 45 minutes for the chemicals to take effect.

Fans of natural methods can prepare a remedy for scale insects from garlic, vinegar, hot pepper or onion. Tinctures are less effective than chemicals. It will take from 4 to 5-6 procedures with an interval of 5-7 days to get rid of pests.

Garlic option
Peel 4-6 cloves of garlic, chop and mix with a glass of water. Cover and leave for 3–5 hours, strain and add 30 g of grated laundry or tar soap. Pour into a sprayer and apply to the inner and outer surfaces of the sheets, leave for a day. Use a soft cloth to remove the soapy film and repeat the procedure until the scale insects disappear.

An alternative to garlic is an onion, which is crushed and infused in water. The infusion is sprayed or washed on the affected flower. You can prepare a decoction of onion peels and mix with laundry soap.

Chili for scale insects
Chop a few fresh hot peppers and add 500 ml of plain water. Boil for 10–20 minutes over low heat, pour into a jar and place in the nightstand for a day. Separate the liquid from the pulp and pour into a spray bottle. Pepper infusion can be stored in the refrigerator, but the fresh version is more effective.

Nature's help
In summer, you can prepare a natural remedy from fresh fern leaves (100 g per liter) or celandine (300–400 g). The workpiece is crushed and filled with warm water. The product should sit for a day, and then they need to be boiled. 30 minutes on low heat is enough. The cold decoction is filtered and the liquid is sprayed on the flowers for a week. No need to rinse off.

Tip: You need to wear rubber gloves when working with celandine. The juice should not come into contact with mucous membranes or bare skin, otherwise burns may occur.

Products made from walnut or tobacco leaves work well against scale insects. Soak 300–400 g of fresh or 100–150 g of dry stock in a liter of boiling water. For the solution to infuse, you need to wait a day. Spray flowers with a natural remedy only after bathing in soapy water.

You can mix tobacco and garlic solution to enhance the effect. Sometimes 50–100 ml of vodka or ethyl alcohol is added to soapy water, and indoor lemon and other citrus fruits are treated with onion or garlic pulp. The mixture is applied to the leaves, rubbed with a toothbrush and left for several minutes. Sweep it with a rag and wash off the remaining juice.

Things to remember

Affected plants are immediately isolated from the rest, because the scale insect quickly crawls from one pot to another. It is better to change the soil or fill it with a concentrated solution of insecticide or potassium permanganate. Window sills and tables on which indoor flowers were treated must be disinfected.

If it seems that the scale insects have disappeared after the first procedure, do not forget that some larvae may have remained in the ground. Therefore, it is important to treat the flowers several times to get rid of the pest forever.

Scale insects are tenacious and strong insects, so the fight against them must begin from the first days of infection. Natural tinctures can also cope with young pests, but if they do not help, you should arm yourself with chemicals. Scale insects hate humid climates and the sun, so the best prevention is timely watering, plenty of ultraviolet light, and regular feeding of houseplants.

Video: how to get rid of scale insects

The appearance of insects on indoor plants is an unpleasant situation, but not uncommon. Scale insects are one of the most dangerous pests of home flowers. In severe cases, damage by these insects leads to the death of plants that took several years of labor to grow. In this article we will tell you why the pest appears, how to fight scale insects on indoor plants and flowers using folk remedies and get rid of them forever.

Scale insects and false scale insects: characteristics and comparison

In fact, indoor plants are affected by representatives of two related families - scale insects and false scale insects, and the latter are much more common. Outwardly, they are difficult to distinguish from each other. Moreover, both families include a huge number of species, which only professional entomologists can understand.

Both scale insects and false scale insects externally resemble small (from 2 to 7 mm) round or oval plaques, as if adhered to the leaves and shoots of the plant. Their color and size may vary depending on the species. The females of these insects are inactive, and the males have wings.

Only scale insects have a real shield. It is formed from larval skins and is easily separated from the insect’s body. In pseudoscale insects, the back only resembles a scute, being just a sclerotized cover. The larvae of representatives of both families are mobile and active, which is why they are called “vagrants”. Both adult insects and larvae feed on plant sap.

The following types can most often be found on indoor flowers:

• soft false scale;
• spiny scale insect;
• brown scale insect;
• cactus scale insect;
• palm scale;
• olive scale;
• red orange scale;
• orange comma scale.

All types of scale insects and false scale insects are equally harmful. If pests are not detected in time, the plant is doomed to death.

Signs of damage to indoor plants by scale insects

It is not always possible to detect scale insects on plants in a timely manner. While there are few of them, and they hide on the lower sides of the leaf blades, you can notice the damage by an indirect sign - the appearance of sticky sugary secretions (honeydew) on the leaves, stems and window glass.

In the future, signs of damage by scale insects progress:

1. Yellowish or reddish spots appear on the leaves - traces of scale insects sucking out juice.
2. A sooty fungus settles on the honeydew, oppressing the plant.
3. The leaves wither, turn yellow, curl and fall off.
4. The stems are densely planted by adult insects and larvae.
5. The plant stops growing, sheds its buds and gradually dies.

When a plant is massively populated by scale insects, ants may begin to patronize them.

What indoor plants and flowers are affected by scale insects?

Tropical and subtropical palm trees, citrus fruits and orchids are most susceptible to scale insects. Indoor roses, begonias, ferns, bay and pomegranate trees, and cacti often suffer from these insects. Pests can be detected on plants of the Araceae family: monsteras, philodendrons, spathiphyllums, caladiums, callas, etc.

Scale insects and false scale insects have three main ways of entering the house:

1. With purchased plants, cuttings and other planting material.
2. With soil in which eggs or larvae are preserved.
3. With the wind through open windows, where “vagrants” from neighboring apartments can easily penetrate.

Tip #1. Sometimes scale insects are brought into the house with flower bouquets. You cannot place vases of flowers next to indoor plants.

3 mistakes that lead to the appearance of scale insects

The appearance of scale insects is facilitated by some mistakes made by gardeners when breeding indoor plants:

1. Failure to comply with quarantine. Newly acquired plants should be kept isolated from other house flowers for some time. If they are infected with scale insects, after a month and a half it will become noticeable.
2. Refusal to sterilize soil. Before filling the pots with soil and planting the plants, the soil mixture must be steamed in the microwave or oven. This will destroy not only pests, but also pathogens of fungal diseases.
3. Inadequate care of plants. It is important to follow the regime of watering and spraying plants, wash and trim them on time, feed them and carry out disease prevention. Pests, as a rule, land on neglected and weakened plants. Read also the article: → "".

Mosquito nets on the windows will protect the flowers from the penetration of “vagrants” from the street.

Mechanical removal of scale insects from indoor plants

If scale insects are found on indoor plants, you need to start by mechanically removing them from the plant. It's not as simple as it seems. It is not possible to wash off scale insects with a stream of water, like aphids - these insects stick tightly to the surface of leaves and shoots.

To remove pests, you can use the following instructions:

1. Step 1. Inspection of plants. Using a magnifying glass, the most likely places where pests accumulate are examined - stems, axils and petioles of leaves, and the undersides of leaf blades. The degree of damage is determined.
2. Step 2. Preparation. A small amount of laundry or tar soap is dissolved in a small container of water. A good alternative is green soap.
3. Step 3. Primary processing. A cotton swab is soaked in a soap solution. Insects are carefully wiped off the leaves and stems of the plant.
4. Step 4. Replacing the soil. The top part of the soil is removed from the pot and replaced with fresh soil.
5. Step 5. Washing the plant. The pot with the plant is placed in the bath. A spray bottle is filled with soap solution. Plants are sprayed generously from all sides. All vegetative parts are cleaned with a soft toothbrush. The plant rinses well from the shower.
6. Step 6. Disinfection of the window sill. The window sill or flower rack, as well as window glass, are thoroughly washed. “Vagabonds” often go unnoticed on them. After washing, all surfaces are wiped with ammonia.

Tip #2. Popular advice about removing scale insects using alcohol or oil solutions should be used with great caution. Alcohol can cause leaf burns, and oil clogs the stomata, disrupting the normal process of transpiration.

Chemical treatment of indoor plants against scale insects

If a pest is found on one plant, all the others need to be inspected and treated.

When starting the fight against scale insects, it is important to understand that it is difficult to get rid of them with ablutions alone. After the plants are cleared of insects visible to the eye, it is necessary to treat them with insecticides. The following drugs have proven themselves to be effective against scale insects and false scale insects:

Name	Description	Hazard Class
"Bankol"	Insecticide of contact-intestinal action. Paralyzes pests that die on the 3rd day after treatment. The advantage is that it does not have a strong odor.	3 (slightly toxic to humans)
"Mospilan"	A systemic insecticide that penetrates deep into plant tissue. Causes paralysis and death of adult scale insects, larvae and eggs.	3 (slightly toxic to humans)
"Etisso Blattlaus-Sticks"	Effective against a long range of pests. Available in the form of sticks that are placed in a pot with plants. After watering, the active substance is absorbed by the roots and distributed throughout the plant tissues.	3 (slightly toxic to humans)
"Aktara"	According to gardeners, it is very effective against scale insects. Causes their death within 24 hours after treatment. When watered at the root, it has a prolonged effect - up to 2 months.	3 (slightly toxic to humans)

After applying insecticides, plants should be kept for some time in a place inaccessible to children and pets.

Traditional methods of combating scale insects on indoor plants

Some gardeners do not risk using chemicals in the house. There can be many reasons for this - allergic reactions, bronchial asthma, etc. In such situations, folk remedies come to the rescue:

Compound	Cooking method
Garlic infusion	Pass 5 cloves of garlic through a press, add 1 liter of warm water and leave for 24 hours. Spray the plants.
Infusion of celandine	Pour 300 g of dry celandine herb into 1 liter of hot water, cover and leave for 24 hours. Spray and wipe the leaves of the plant with the infusion.
Pepper infusion	Chop 50 g of hot pepper in pods, pour 0.5 liters of boiling water and boil for 5 minutes. Cool and spray the infected plant.
Onion infusion	Peel and finely chop a medium-sized onion. Pour 1 glass of warm water and leave for several hours. Wipe the leaves of the plant with infusion.
Tobacco infusion	Pour 80 g of dry tobacco leaf into 1 liter of water. Leave for 24 hours, strain and dilute by half. Spray or wipe the leaves of the plant.

Folk remedies for scale insects can be used if the pest infestation is small. However, in case of severe insect infestation, these infusions are not effective enough.

The advantage of folk remedies is safety for humans and animals.

Work plan to combat scale insects

As practice shows, it is almost impossible to cope with scale insects in one treatment. Sometimes a seemingly completely destroyed colony resumes its activity after 3-4 months. To be on the safe side, work to combat scale insects must be planned for a long time.

Event duration	Event
Pest detection day	mechanical removal of insects; insecticide treatment.
4th day	control inspection of the plant; washing the plant.
10th day	control examination; mechanical removal of insects (if necessary); re-treatment with insecticides.
14th day	control examination; washing the plant.
Up to 4th month inclusive	weekly washing of the plant and wiping the leaves with one of the folk remedies.

Starting from the first day, it is necessary to regularly feed the flowers with phosphorus-potassium fertilizers, which increase the plants' resistance to pests.

Questions from gardeners about the fight against scale insects

Question No. 1. What air humidity should be around the plants to prevent scale insects from infesting them?

Question No. 2. What to do if the chemical did not work and did not kill the scale insect?

The disadvantage of chemical insecticides is that over time, insects develop immunity to the active substances. Therefore, it is recommended to alternate drugs, making sure that the active substance is different. Another reason for this situation is that the product is not suitable for combating scale insects. When choosing insecticides, you must carefully read the instructions.

Question No. 3. Is it possible to use insecticides not for spraying plants, but for watering?

It is possible if these are systemic drugs. The products of this group, with a solution absorbed by the roots, are distributed throughout all parts of the plant and act on pests from the inside. These include, for example, “Aktara”, “Konfidor”, “Commander”. Contact preparations are not suitable for irrigation. They are effective only when directly affecting the body of insects.

Question No. 4. If scale insects do not move on the leaves, can we assume that they are dead?

It is forbidden. Adult female scale insects do not crawl. They sit motionless and guard their offspring, which are so small that they can only be seen under magnification. We can consider that the fight against scale insects has been successful only if the pests do not appear again within several months.

Question No. 5. What indoor plants do not grow scale insects?

Unfortunately, there are no such plants. Scale insects can attack any indoor flowers if they are suitable for them in terms of species. For example, the orange scale insect will not settle on a cactus or aloe, and the cactus scale will not settle on lemon or dracaena.

There are indoor plants in almost every home, country house and office. Lush leaves, bright flowers and climbing vines are pleasing to the eye. Plants are not only beautiful, but also additionally purify indoor air.

A beautiful and effective addition to the interior design of rooms, hotel lobbies and lobbies, a necessary attribute of any holiday or event.
People cherish houseplants like children.

Indoor plants are divided into:

• decorative deciduous;
• decorative flowering;
• fruit;
• succulents.

Plants need constant care, nutrition and human attention. As a living organism, plants begin to get sick, both from improper care and from various diseases.

They are perfectly camouflaged, so it is almost impossible to notice right away. But when it multiplies, it spreads throughout the entire plant, in 2-4 hours the colony covers almost the entire plant.

Shields- insects of the hemiptera family, superfamily - mealybugs.

False scale insects, they are also called coccids, they are similar to scale insects, only they do not have a waxy and dense shell.

There are many species of this insect in nature. Scale insects are distinguished by color and size.

The most famous and common scale insects:

• Cactus.
• Laurel.
• Brown.
• Ivy.
• Pink.
• Palm.
• Oleander.

There are false shields:

• Hawthorn.
• Hemispherical.
• Olive.
• Soft and others.

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The insect is oval in shape, red-brown, dark yellow, gray and light gray in color with a waxy shell-like shield.

It looks like a speck or plaque on a plant leaf.

Adults reach 2-5 mm in length and are very visible on the leaves. On indoor plants they mainly settle in the upper part of the leaves.

Both garden and indoor plants are affected. The most popular are citrus fruits: lemon, dracaena, dwarf tangerine and many others.

Small yellow scale insect larvae are called strays. They actively move along the leaves of plants on the ground. These tiny pests, sucking the juice from the leaves, can cause colossal damage to plants in the shortest period of time.

How do scale insects get on indoor plants?

Infection of a houseplant occurs through the contact of leaves with other plants infected with scale insects, as well as through the soil and from one flower pot to the pot of another plant.

Adult scale insects sit motionless on plants, but the larvae easily move from leaf to leaf and even move from their pot to a pot where healthy plants grow, infecting them.

When bringing a new plant home in a pot, it is necessary to quarantine it, that is, carry out preventive work.

Namely:

• Carefully inspect the plant for damage and insects.
• Wash the plant stems with warm soapy water.
• Replant into new, fresh soil.
• Leave for 2-3 weeks separate from house plants.

What danger do scale insects pose?

Growing up, the larvae turn into females and males. Males grow wings, move around to mate and, unlike females, die immediately.

Signs of damage to indoor plants by scale insects

If you look closely, you can easily spot a plant with signs of infection. The leaves of the plant become sticky and slightly shiny, as if in sugar syrup.

The scale insect, feeding on the sap of the plant, produces sticky feces. The flower stops breathing, its biological photosynthesis is disrupted, and flowering stops. At this stage it is no longer easy to control pests.

Ridding indoor plants from scale insects

Rules for ridding indoor plants of scale insects:

• If you find signs of scale insects, you must immediately isolate the plant and remove damaged leaves and stems.
• Insects can be removed from the stem with a cotton swab dipped in soapy water or an insecticide solution. Larvae and adult insects are washed off with water or a solution.
• Wash the area where the pot with the plant was placed thoroughly with soapy water.
• Treatment should be carried out 3-4 times at intervals of 5-7 days.

The second and subsequent treatments should be carried out by spraying dry leaves with special pesticides and insecticides, such as:

• Regent;
• Sherpa;
• Bazudin;
• Permitrin;
• Aktara;
• Confedor.

For treating plants, they are famous for their effectiveness:

• Intavir;
• Bitoxibacillin.

After treating the plant with chemicals or medications, it is necessary to ventilate the room.

How to properly mechanically clean plants?

According to biologists, using a soap solution to wash plants has a detrimental effect on their development, photosynthesis and growth. You should also not treat plants with alcohol.

Mechanical cleaning includes inspection and washing, which is carried out as follows:

• grate 50 grams of laundry soap and pour 500 grams of warm water.
• let it brew for 15-20 minutes,
• strain through cheesecloth,
• moisten a soft cloth or sponge in the solution and wipe the stems and leaves of the plant,
• after 20-30 minutes, you need to rinse the soap solution from the plant with clean water from the shower, under low pressure.

Folk remedies in the fight against scale insects

Folk remedies predominate for treating plants before chemicals. Although there are disadvantages in both processing methods.

Popular folk remedies:

• Take 3-5 cloves of garlic, grind into a paste, add a glass of water and let it brew in a tightly sealed glass container for two days. After straining the tincture through cheesecloth, wipe or spray the plant every 5 days.
• Grind one medium-sized onion into a paste, pour one glass of boiling water, leave for 2-3 hours, filter and process the plant, as with garlic tincture.
• Take 80-100 grams of dry tobacco and fill it with water(1 liter), let it brew for a day, another 1 liter of water, filter through gauze and regularly spray the plants.
• Add five drops of kerosene to one liter of water and 40 grams grated. Shake the solution well and wipe the leaves, stems and affected areas of the plants with this solution.

Insecticides and their use

The use of insecticides should only be carried out on open balconies or on the street. The effectiveness of these drugs is very high. In 2-3 applications of the preparations, the plant completely gets rid of harmful insects.

After spraying the plant with insecticides, there is no need to wash off the preparation. When spraying, the soil is watered at the same time, destroying pests both on the plant itself and in the soil.

Effective insecticides:

• Aktara– aimed at destroying scale insects and many sucking and gnawing plant pests. Contains the substance thiamethoxam.
• Confidor– used exclusively to combat all types of scale insects. 4 ml of the drug is added to 10 liters of water. Scale insects die after 3-4 hours without harming the plants. The soil needs to be watered with a weaker solution.
• Aktellik– drug in ampoules of 2 ml. One ampoule is diluted per liter of water and sprayed only if there is a scale insect on the plant. You can treat with this solution 2-3 times and only in the open air. Dangerous for pregnant women, allergy sufferers and people with asthma. Actellik is also used in flowers.

Prevention of plant infection

The most important thing in the fight against scale insects is to prevent it from appearing on the plant.

Do not create favorable conditions for pests, such as:

• heat;
• dry air;
• unventilated area;
• drying out of the soil in the pot;
• lack of microelements and fertilization of the soil and leaves.

Before bringing a new plant into the house, you must carefully examine it for infectious elements and spots on the leaves. When you bring the plant into the house, you need to wash it completely with a soft cloth moistened with soapy water (stems and leaves), and also replant it in a new pot and fresh nutrient soil.

Remember to constantly inspect your plants, their stems and the undersides and insides of the leaves.

Conclusion

Scale insects are one of the most common and insidious pests. Even after repeated treatment of the plant and seemingly complete elimination of the pest, it is possible that the scale insect may appear after 3-4 months.

Therefore, it is necessary to regularly carefully inspect plants and periodically treat them with insecticides. When frequently ventilating the room, create normal air circulation and adhere to the rules of proper care for various decorative indoor plants.

It is important to remember that the use of insecticides is dangerous for children, animals and birds. The key to the health and beauty of plants is good attention, care and care.

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