There are times when pests are very evident. There is plenty of activity to give it away, and it’s usually fairly easy to spot what is eating your plants. But with mealybugs and other scale insects, identification could be more of a challenge, particularly on larger specimens.

How to identify mealybugs

Mealybugs often look like a cottony group of fuzz in a hidden part of a tree or plant. Many times gardeners mistake them for wooly aphids and other types of scale insects, particularly since the weak looking and possibly dying plant is the same result. They’re pretty tiny reaching only 1/8 inch at the most and are covered with a waxy coating, yet in masses they do a lot of damage. There are typically a couple of lifecycles per season with the female laying over 200 eggs each time. They develop fairly quickly allowing the next generation to continue damaging the plant.

Healthy plants can withstand an attack without a lot of issues. But when the numbers become too great, mealybugs suck the life out of the plant. Thankfully, they’re fairly simple to eliminate on an individual basis, although with large infestations you will have to be vigilant to ensure their complete elimination and will have to for watch future problems.

One characteristic that really surprised me is how ants can actually move mealybugs. They handle them like they do aphids because mealybugs also produce honeydew, but I had no idea they’ll actually move them from one plant to another. This means, if you have problems with mealybugs, you’re going to have to stay on top of your ant populations, too.

Controlling

The good news is they are prime chow for beneficial insects like lacewings, ladybugs, and parasitic wasps so you want to be careful not to be too heavy handed with the insecticides that kill the characters that feed upon the mealybugs. These can help keep the numbers in check.

If your plants are being significantly affected, first try blasting them off with water and squishing them with your fingers. Like aphids, they’re pretty wimpy, but you’ll have to go over the plant quite thoroughly. The next step on your anti-mealybug arsenal is to use the 70 percent isopropyl alcohol that is common in many households. If you put a little on a cotton swab and dab them with it (try not to get it on the plant) they won’t last long. You probably will have to keep applying it, though, because since they hide where they’re tough to see, you can bet there are more waiting in the wings. If there are just too many of them grab the insecticidal soap on perennials and shrubs or horticultural oils on trees. That really should do the trick.

Preventing mealybugs

Mealybug infestations during some years is one thing, but when you are prone to issues with them you need to be proactive about preventing outbreaks. One thing you can do is keep any new plants you buy separate from your landscape for a couple of weeks to make sure there are no eggs that will soon hatch into sap sucking nymphs on them. It’s inconvenient, but so is dealing with a constant problem.

Mealybugs can be maddening if there are a lot of them. They’re like fuzzy lava that doesn’t stop. But if you can keep after them, ferreting them out where they live, you can stay a step ahead.