Pretty sure as I can be without looking under a magnifying glass, fruitnut. I've dealt with spider mite before. It has JUST started, so the leaves won't be affected, yet. I know miticides are nasty, nasty stuff. Up there with fungicides. I was doing some searching on the Internet and came across the dormant oil/insecticidal soap combo. The soap will just make the oil emulsify, and maybe help to keep the soap stuck on a bit longer. Just a little concerned about using an oil now, since it can get a little warm, now. Although we're not in for any significantly hot weather in the next week or so (maybe even rain. Again!) The webbing has a rather distinctive look, and saw that, and saw what appeared to be very, very teeny, tiny bugs crawling along the webbing. I had the sun at a sharp angle that sort of reflected the little buggars, so about 99% sure. I could use NEEM oil, too, that will take care of them, but I don't want to sacrifice blossoms. My Pink Lady is blooming right now. Patty S.

Those are fungus gnats. They are harmless to you, but they indicate that there is either insufficient drainage, or you are watering too much. They will also migrate to other plants and can carry viruses that may damage your collection. You said you only water once a week, then the water isn't draining well, the soil is breaking down and growing fungus, which attracts the gnats. They lay eggs, die, and the process repeats itself over and over again every 1-2 weeks. Your plant is also suffering from what looks like root rot, again from being too wet. Don't let water stand in the tray under the pot. Let it drain completely outside for an hour or two before putting it into the tray. It may not recover from the rot, but its worth a try. First off, completely replace your soil. I recommend using Kellogg's Patio mix. Good stuff and well draining. Lightly brush off the remaining soil from the roots, bag up and throw away all of the old soil, and then dust the roots with some powdered cinnamon, which will help inhibit further fungal growth. You might also think about moving up to a bit larger pot. If not, be sure to scrub out the old pot before putting the plant back in. Wait at least 2 days before watering the plant, then wetting it just until water runs out the hole in the bottom. Let the top 1-2" of soil get completely dry before watering it again. Also, a north window is not enough light, which is also contributing to the gnat/rot problem. Your banana needs as much light as you can get it. You say you live in SoCal, so you might try growing it outdoors, gradually moving it from light shade to dappled sunlight to full sun over a period of 2-3 weeks. Bananas love full sunlight and ample moisture, but also do not like to sit in wet soil. If it's outside you can forget the tray. If you can't put it outside, try an east or south facing window. If it's a southern exposure, be sure not to let the plant get too close to the window or you will burn the leaves. Good luck!

Good luck! Im sure it will be fine though. I hear that it will be raining until wednesday in most of California! -Alex

John Why do you kill spiders. In my area the average house has over 60 brown recluse spider. Any spider that is not a brown recluse will eat a brown recluse or any other insect it can find. Brown recluses feed on dead and injured insects. Any other spider eats the insect before they die or become week and thus starve the brown recluse. This greatly reduces the chance of a brown recluse bite. I could understand your position on spiders if the Brazilian Wandering Spiders live in your area. I would like to have a Huntsman or Goliath bird eating spider in my house to take care of my mice. Right now I have a couple of snake slithering freely though my hose and the mice really dropped their numbers