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What to do about mites?

16 years ago

I have several very nice orchids (purchased cheaply over the past two years at Costco). They are wired into terra cotta pots with wood for absorbtion. They have a few sun spots but are otherwise healthy.

I have noticed very fine mites crawling on the wood in the pot just within the past week. I have never noticed them before. They don't seem to have much interest in the plants themselves. What should I do to rid the pots of the mites without damaging the plants?

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Comments (7)

howard_a
16 years ago
True mites cannot be seen with the naked eye. I am not understanding "wired into terra cotta pots with wood for absorbtion" but it sounds like your plants are good candidates for a simple 30' to 60' soak in soapy water followed by a rinse and thorough drying.

H
aachenelf z5 Mpls
16 years ago
There are various species of soil mites that live off decaying organic matter. Every potted orchid has these and I think that's probably what you are seeing. As far as I know, they do no harm to the orchids. I just ignore them. So might decrease their numbers with the soapy water, but you'll never get rid of them completely.
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tommyr_gw Zone 6
16 years ago
Soil mites don't harm plants and I'll bet nearly everyone has them in any houseplant. They feed off of organic matter in the soil mix and don't harm the plants. Same with Spring tails.
kmmanship
Original Author
16 years ago
Thanks very much, All! Perhaps I'll do a little of the soapy water thing, just because I really don't know what I'm looking at. They are very tiny white bugs which can be seen with the naked eye, but REALLY small.

howard a: by "wired in" I just mean that the wood pieces and orchids are held in place in the pots by wire to give all of the pieces stability. This is, apparently, SOP for the company Costco purchases from.

This website is nearly as addictive as orchids!!!
wwangatwork
16 years ago
FYI - that's not wood. It's coconut husk. My first orchid was also from Costco. It took me some time to figure out what they were planted in.

Warren
orchid126
16 years ago
If what you are seeing are tiny white things that you can hardly see until you water, and then they jump all over the place, you are seeing springtails.
kmmanship
Original Author
16 years ago
They don't jump around...they just crawl around on the coconut husk.

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