Jean, yes, inspect ALL your plants.. It's the crawlers, (babies) that are hard to find.. That's the reason it's important to spray all parts of your Agave/s. Leaves/stems, etc. I think Baby Wipes contain Rubbing Alcohol, right? It's been a long time, lol. If it does, alcohol will help somewhat, but Jean, to rid those suckers, literal suckers, you better get to work. Clean and inspect daily until you get hold of Bayer or whatever you choose to use. They multiply fast. Are these guys hard-shelled? Yuck, plant bugs are gross looking, especially when magnified. I read an article that explained how eggs are in waiting, during winter months, then when climate is 'just right' they come out of hiding. Hatch. As much as I dislike Scale, IMO, they're easier to rid than Mealy.. I purchased an Olive tree from an online nursery. I ordered from this place several times, and never ever found insects, but there's always that first time, you know? The olive tree arrived. I set it beside a group of citrus and other tropicals. (BTW, it was winter, days cloudy, and my eyes aren't what they used to be.) I can't recall how many days later, while misting, I spotted a brown lump on a leaf..then another and another. Jean, I wanted to cry..there were hundreds of scales..truly that many and more. Then, I looked at citrus neighboring the olive..all branches growing nearest the Olive had loaded..which is one advantage..scale move slower than say, mites. What do you do with a hundred scale? Hand-pick each? What? Earlier in that summer I spoke with a woman in Fl who owns a citrus nursery. She's the person who told me they use Fish Emulsion as a scale preventative and insecticide. I phoned her, explained the situation, asked the portion of FE to water. She gave me the recepie, and it worked! Talk about grateful. One thing that bothered and still troubles me to this day. The olive was delivered in winter. It was very cold outside. Yet, the cold didn't bother or kill the scale. This was pre-heat-pack days..the cold didn't bother the tree either, so I don't have an answer. The olive is alive and well to this day. So are the citrus. So, IMO, scale aren't terribly destructive IF something is done, but if left to live, bye-bye plant.Good luck, Jean, Toni

I haven't tried to take pictures, But they look EXACTLY like the images That come up when I 'Google' Mealy bugs. White, cottony looking things, Just like the linked picture. I am in Zone 9, South Texas. The plant they are on is in the ground. This morning I did fine a few on a couple of the other tomatoes, too. So it's off to the store later today, for more Insecticidal Soap! Unless someone here has a better solution? Rusty Here is a link that might be useful: Mealy bugs on tomato plant

Hi Linda, I live in a remote area in Northern Australia, and so might be able to offer a little advice for "home remedies" when you don't have access to a nursery superstore. I'm still new to tropicals, having only lived here for 12 months, so I'm still learning... I've found the "grey water" from the washing machine is quite effective at controlling mealy bugs on hibiscus, citrus, crotons and everything that the ants farm them on. I use a weekly spray of the grey water, and the soapy residue in the water washes them right off. I only have a small garden, so it's not too much of a chore, but I also do the neighbour's plants where they grow over the fence to slow the rate of reinfestation. I've also found it seems to slow the attack of frangipani rust and sooty mould, but to a lesser degree. It would be nice if this was a panacea, because it's much kinder to the plants than white oil, and its environmentally friendly. Hope this helps, Cheers, Scott Scott

Hi Meg, Thank you! I'm thinking of hand picking off what I see, then rinsing each stand in an alcohol solution. Most strands have dried out about an inch or so at the soil line and it all needs repotted/ rooted anyway. This plant is going to make me crazy trying to find out how often to water to keep it happy. LOL! Most of my collection is outside. This was hanging in the house, with one other plant about 4' away, I hope it's just the string of pearls affected. Good luck to you too! I know these things can be a pain! JoJo