So you can tell by looking at the plant whether you have thrips or not? You didn't see any evidence of them in my photos, yorkrose? Yes, I have had winter moths for the past four years. It is really a pain, but I keep observing to see how it changes from year to year. This year they were late, but they did show up. They weren't as bad as previous years. One year my two Maples had very visible holes all over the tree. This year I can't see a lot at all. It's even more annoying when they drop down onto plants in the yard. But on the other hand, there are lots of birds that have started camping out for the abundance of food. I see starlings especially like them and are in the trees hunting and pecking. I've seen sparrows eating them and this year I've been amazed to see Orioles hopping around in the trees eating them. So I've held off on using the BT. Right now I think with the few roses I have, hand picking and close observation may keep things manageable. I hope! [g] Kate, are there bugs that eat the sawfly larvae? York Rose, thanks for that link. I see they are supposed to feed until mid June. I've already seen a noticeable dropoff in activity.

Thank you very much for the reply. It's definitely appreciated. Do you happen to know of any sort of organic sprays that I could put on the plants to prevent aphids from returning once I've pinched 'em all away? I think I might try spraying them off into a ditch or something because finding them all and pinching every one of them might be a bit too tedious for my likes. Thank you again.

I purchased this beautiful majesty palm from Wal-Mart.I t was shipped from Florida, im in Massachusetts. I just fell in love with it. Three weeks later I've come to find that there's a variety of bugs in the soil!!!! I found a dead centipede, live snails, a millipede and who knows what else is in there. I researched the plant after getting it and I read that this plant is an attraction to mealy bugs and spider mites but I have yet to see those. I have four lovely and thriving plants of my own purchased from grocery stores and I've never had this problem, ever. I'm thinking of washing the plant in soap and water and maybe some insecticide and repotting it this weekend. Should I do this or just get rid of it? Any suggestions? I love this plant.

Citronella , Vicks , Eucalypcus !