Parasites on my windmill palm

[PashkaTLT]

Hello, my favourite people!

Recently I found a couple of different parasites on my windmill palm. I quarantined it for now. I think it's Mealybugs & Diaspididae (Scale)?

What's the best way to get rid of them? I have Neem oil & Copper fungicide. Will they work?

[Silas_Sancona]

54 minutes ago, PashkaTLT said:

Hello, my favourite people!

Recently I found a couple of different parasites on my windmill palm. I quarantined it for now. I think it's Mealybugs & Diaspididae (Scale)?

What's the best way to get rid of them? I have Neem oil & Copper fungicide. Will they work?

Both Scale and Mealys ( Mealy Bugs ) are both insects, so the fungicide won't work ..on bugs.. Neem should work though.

One thing regarding Scale: .." Hard " Scale insects = those that hide beneath a hard shell, can be tougher to eradicate than " soft " Scale sps. ( Species that do not possess a hard shell over them. )

W/ both,  the Neem should knock down Scale insects ( ...and Mealy Bugs ) in the " crawler " life stage ( Crawler = babies )

If the infestation isn't bad, you can always pick off the adults of both insects, and treat for any crawlers that may still be roaming / might still hatch. 

Though full control can occur faster, it usually takes a few weeks to fully eliminate them ( Kill adults / kill any that might hatch out afterwards )

If you see Ants, place ait station(s) near the palm(s) to knock them down... Ants will carry Mealy Bugs, Aphids, and Scale insects from plant to plant sometimes ( ..Because the Ants " Farm " these kinds of insects for the Sugar-right " Honey Dew " the insects can produce when tended to  -by the Ants-  )

[Johnny Palmseed]

So you are in New Jersey? If this is a small potted palm, use a small wet towel to remove as many insects as possible. This will take care of most of the problem and then you can treat with Neem or horticultural oil. As long as you keep up on it, it shouldn’t harm your plants too much.

[PashkaTLT]

Thank you guys,

It's a mature palm in 15G pot, but I don't mind working on it manually, it shouldn't take hours.

I've also read that both insects can be killed with alcohol, so I may try that as well?

[Silas_Sancona]

4 minutes ago, PashkaTLT said:

Thank you guys,

It's a mature palm in 15G pot, but I don't mind working on it manually, it shouldn't take hours.

I've also read that both insects can be killed with alcohol, so I may try that as well?

Yes, that can work too ..just be careful not to let any soak into the soil ( Use something like a cotton ball / swab and dab it on the bugs, instead of squirting straight Alcohol onto the fronds ) Mealys definitely die on contact ..or shortly after.

[PalmsandLiszt]

A systemic insecticide containing acetamiprid will effectively get rid of scale and other hemiptera. They are very difficult to eradicate using local sprays and such. You can try to remove them manually, but the small ones are practically invisible and you will always miss some. I'd go with the acetamiprid.