A Gardeners Forum Forums General Discussion The House Plant Forum I'm loosing the battle with Mealy Bugs!

Hi. I have two Ti Plants and one elephant ear plant that have almost always had Mealy Bugs on them. They're both inside plants. I have been spraying them off every week with water and then spraying them with plant bug spray after they dry, but it seems they're still showing up. Is there anything else I can do to rid these plants of Mealy Bugs?

Thanks!

Dab them with a Q-tip dipped in alcohol
http://www.thegardenhelper.com/mealybug.html

OK, I will try that. But, I feel like whenever I remove them, they return. Is there a way to kill the eggs, or whatever is causing them to return?

The best suggestions would be either insecticidal soap or neem oil. Good luck.

Thanks. Are they something I can ask for at Home Depot or somewhere like that? I guess you just spray it on the plants, right?

The Neem oil you can ask for. Insecticidal soap you can mix up at home with a few drops of dish detergent in a spray bottle of water. Like a quarter to half teaspoon of it per quart. It is my go-to thing indoors and out.

My Home Depot did not have any Neem Oil, neither did the local feed store, or hardware store... So I ended up having to go on-line. I hope you have more luck than I did. And the Neem Oil I got gave a formula for spraying for bugs. I also am going to try Fels Naptha soap next time around (unless there isn't a next time around!). The formula I had, mixed the Neem oil with soap and water. I've been reading on soaps and Fels Naptha is supposed to be more of a "soap" than a detergent. Not real sure it makes a difference, but that's what I'm going to try. I got the Fels Naptha at Wal Mart by the Spray Starch of all things, it comes in a bar. Good luck with those nasty little critters!

Ivory soap in bar form is also a pretty pure soap. You can grate a bit of it and soak it in water to dissolve.
Too much detergent can degrade the natural protective coating on leaves and kill them off. So use very sparingly.