A Gardeners Forum Forums General Discussion The House Plant Forum millipedes -- HELP!

I've recently noticed what i think are millipedes coming to the top of the soil of my dracaena. ive had the plant for several months, but never noticed them before. why are they coming to the top now?

should i be concerned about this pest? also, will they try to leave the pot? one thing i read to get rid of them was to submerge the pot in water for about 1/2 hour. does anyone know if this works?

in general, how pervasive are millipedes? are there hundreds of them below the soil that i dont know about? (ie will i be in for a nasty shock if i try to replant?) should i just toss the plant? HELP!!

Hi Alycion
Have you recently changed the soil,,( some soils bought at large stores need to be inspected before useing,, as they sit for a while before being purchased enabling insects to seek a haven hiding place.
Have you brought in from outside, ? Sometimes they get in the house and will use the plants for hiding places, Do you have near a door or window they can get in from,,
I don't know what zone your in, or your weather , if it's warm take it outside and change most of the soil, and inspect the soil that remains,,
remove any soil-covering mulch or moss and allow the potting soil to dry out as much as the plant can withstand between waterings. The soil surface, cracks along the edges of the pot and the area between the pot and saucer can be sprayed with a houseplant insecticide to further help eliminate millipedes. Millipedes in other areas can be treated with household insecticides such as "ant and roach killer" or "home pest control" products. Sweeping or vacuuming up and discarding wandering millipedes may be adequate control in some situations.OR
use a bait containing carbaryl (Sevin) or direct spray of insecticidal soap to control.They hide under boards, flower pots, and other sheltered areas that are damp. Millipedes usually feed on organic matter, but may attack roots, tubers, bulbs, and other fleshy plant parts.

Thanks. I havent changed the soil since i bought the plant (probably in october) and i live on the 10th floor of an apartment building, but the soil that i used to pot it has contributed to MANY problems for me. i bought some "moisture plus" soil (because it was the only type in stock and i had a couple plants that really needed repotting). i cannot believe the problems ive had. first all the plants i repotted using this soil (except the dracaena that has the millipedes) developed a white mold on the top, which led to infestations of those little fungus flies. so i repotted all of those plants with normal soil and that problem is gone.

of course, the only plant i didnt repot was the draceana because it didnt develop the mold or the flies. now i wonder if the millipedes had something to do with that. thank god i didnt change it though, because im fairly certain i would have fainted if i saw a bunch of millipedes during a simple repotting!!! i live in washington, dc, so its cold outside. im not too sure what to do. i havent seen any "wandering millipedes" yet -- and hope i never do! my boyfriend says he will take care of the problem (repotting or whatever the solution) but i need to instruct him on what to do. he likes the idea of submerging the plant in water, but with this horrible soil, im afraid it will do more harm to the plant than good.

as if this wasnt enough, i was JUST inspecting a false aralia i bought a couple of weeks ago because some of the new growth looked a bit wilty and i noticed it has what i think are whiteflies!! UGH! what is going on with my house plants?! luckily, i have some organic products and whitefly traps that i bought to stop the fungus fly infestation that i can use for the whiteflies. the plant is fairly isolated, so hopefully wont spread to others, and it doesnt seem like the infestation is too rampant so im hoping this wont be too big of a problem. i thought about just cutting off the top of the plant, but dont really know if that's necessary.

what a day! :(

alycion, you can submerge the pot for a couple of hours (i usually put them in a bucket, go on about my day, then take them out to drain "later" when ever i get around to it). that will kill any insects in the soil.

Jiffy what do you submerge the pot in ,, I mean whats in the water that will kill the insects??

Alycion sounds like it was a bad bag of soil plus the fact it was extra moisture retentive,, which is a breeding zone for a lot of insects,, I wouldn't cut the top of,, If your like me it would kill me to do that especially if the top is healthy,, I would opt to change the soil completely, but everyone has their ways that work for them ,, personally I just wouldn't take any chances with keeping the soil so moist after soaking it again.

diane, i just use plain water. sometimes a little dish soap, but mostly plain water. if they are submerged long enough they drown. that's why i said a couple of hours at least. i do that when i bring my plants in for the winter too. BUT i don't water again for a couple of weeks unless it is a real water loving plant.

for the fungus flies, sprinkle a liberal amount of sand over the top of the soil. or aquarium gravel.

Ohhhhhhh Okay!!!!!!!!! Jiffy

I just lost my entire post!!!! im soo made!!! okay let me do this over agian, millipedes are herbavors so get rid of them or theyll eat your plant, heres a soulution get and many of them out as you can let thier bodys dry up and then grind them up into a powder and mix with a quart of water and spray it will repel the others don't ask me how i don't know i just know it works with a lot of bugs... or find some centipedes and turn them loose on your plant might i suggest putting it in a aqurium first with a lid so they don't crawl out and multiply over your house sense centipeds are carnivoris they might eat the millipedes.... Or you can catch some lizards or by them cheap (we got them wild all over down here in florida) and set them loose they will eat them or get a geicko they will eat them too.... they don't do no harm i used to catch them all the time and set them loose in the house.... and theyd eat the bugs that made it into the house... my mom hated it though she didn't like them, they don't bite, well they do but their teeth are so small they cannot tear through our flesh. and theyll help with other bugs in your house as well.... also get a de humidifier and set the plant next to it it will dry up the bugs.... hope this has helped you!

-scott

thanks so much everyone! i think im going to try the submersion technique for the millipedes. for the whiteflies (on a different plant), i sprayed it with some organic spray i had. hopefully ill be able to get everything under control here in the next couple days/weeks ...

ill let you know how it turns out!!!

alycion, another side benefit of drowning the milipedes is that they create natural fertilizer as they decompose