Warning Will Robinson.....

[Lloyd Gordon]

Ahhhh. I had one D. hamiltonii that was doing poorly. I thought it had got some sort of fungus from being oversprayed. But it just slowly got worse after I stopped spraying. 2 days ago I cut it out. Today I noted some white debris nearby. Mould? But it had that evil whiteness of you know what! Sure enough I got my loupe out and noted the dreaded MEALYBUG!!!!! I carefully dug out as much whitish bugginess and debrided nearby dews and U. gibba. I think I got 99% of the horrid beasts. Then I used some of WillyCk systemic insecticide. The dew is in a thick mat of U. gibba which would be really hard to remove along with the hamiltonii's. I will keep a close eye on the area for the next 2 weeks. Hopefully not a disaster. Lots of plants in the same terrarium.
So beware: mealybugs can actually live an aquatic existence. I knew they can live in soil but this is ridiculous.

 

[MimiStew24]

Ahhhh. I had one D. hamiltonii that was doing poorly. I thought it had got some sort of fungus from being oversprayed. But it just slowly got worse after I stopped spraying. 2 days ago I cut it out. Today I noted some white debris nearby. Mould? But it had that evil whiteness of you know what! Sure enough I got my loupe out and noted the dreaded MEALYBUG!!!!! I carefully dug out as much whitish bugginess and debrided nearby dews and U. gibba. I think I got 99% of the horrid beasts. Then I used some of WillyCk systemic insecticide. The dew is in a thick mat of U. gibba which would be really hard to remove along with the hamiltonii's. I will keep a close eye on the area for the next 2 weeks. Hopefully not a disaster. Lots of plants in the same terrarium.
So beware: mealybugs can actually live an aquatic existence. I knew they can live in soil but this is ridiculous.

OMG THAT IS NOT GOOD!! I feel your pain!! Keep us updated!

 

[MimiStew24]

Ahhhh. I had one D. hamiltonii that was doing poorly. I thought it had got some sort of fungus from being oversprayed. But it just slowly got worse after I stopped spraying. 2 days ago I cut it out. Today I noted some white debris nearby. Mould? But it had that evil whiteness of you know what! Sure enough I got my loupe out and noted the dreaded MEALYBUG!!!!! I carefully dug out as much whitish bugginess and debrided nearby dews and U. gibba. I think I got 99% of the horrid beasts. Then I used some of WillyCk systemic insecticide. The dew is in a thick mat of U. gibba which would be really hard to remove along with the hamiltonii's. I will keep a close eye on the area for the next 2 weeks. Hopefully not a disaster. Lots of plants in the same terrarium.
So beware: mealybugs can actually live an aquatic existence. I knew they can live in soil but this is ridiculous.

how heck did you get them hitchhikers in your tank ?? :O

 

[Lloyd Gordon]

No idea.

 

[Raymond Chong]

Little buggers were the bane of my orchid collection.

 

[Apoplast]

Thank the gods of arthropod apocalypse for systemic neonics!*

*Disclaimer: Neonics should never be used outside, or on plants that will go outside.

 

[Lloyd Gordon]

Thank the gods of arthropod apocalypse for systemic neonics!*

*Disclaimer: Neonics should never be used outside, or on plants that will go outside.

I've never used them before. Sort of a plant emergency. Never outside! We have so many bees our neighbour complained (weird neighbour).

 

[Apoplast]

how heck did you get them hitchhikers in your tank ?? :O

Pest insects are the last bastion for those who believe in spontaneous generation.

 

[Lloyd Gordon]

Still a few demons showing up when I pick around and spray.
Imagine if aliens landed and they were giant mealybugs.

 

[MimiStew24]

Still a few demons showing up when I pick around and spray.
Imagine if aliens landed and they were giant mealybugs.

I’d be happy they are not carnivores lol

 

[Apoplast]

I’d be happy they are not carnivores lol

Well played!

 

[Lloyd Gordon]

Couldn't find any more of the evil beasts. Hopefully they're gone. Still I don't know where they came from. Are they hiding in another pot?

 

[MimiStew24]

Couldn't find any more of the evil beasts. Hopefully they're gone. Still I don't know where they came from. Are they hiding in another pot?

Hope they have been extinguished lLoyd

 

[Lloyd Gordon]

Some of my succulents weren't doing well. I unpotted them and looked at the roots with a little microscope. There were miniscule white bugs living on the roots. The roots themselves seemed to have a white fungus. The bugs looked a bit like juvenile mealy bugs. However they were too small and looked like they had more than 6 legs. I think they are some sort of plant lice and were eating the fungus and are not plant pathogens.
The things I saw in another thread which I thought were mealy bugs were likely the same things eating a deteriorating D. hamiltonii. I panicked and treated them with Willyck's insecticide. I should have known better; the size, shape and aquatic environment were not typical for mealy bugs. I just panicked at the thought of mealies.