Mites Information
Appearance:
Mites are tiny, about 1/8” in length. There are thousands of species of mites. Some of them are even smaller than 1/8”, and may be almost invisible to the naked eye. They are not categorized as an insect, but are an arachnid instead. They are closely related to spiders and ticks. Mites have 8 legs and have segmented bodies. They vary in color, from pale yellow, cream, red, brown, and black.
Location and Behavior Patterns:
There are so many different types of Mites. There are dust Mites, Clover Mites, and Bird Mites, just to name a few. Mites found on plants can be challenging to see, due to their small size, as well as their coloring, which allows them to blend in easily with many different types of plants and Pantry Pests.
One sign of Mites that have infested your plants, is the yellow, and blotchy, coloring that you might see on the plant leaves. As the leaves are being destroyed by the Mites that are present, you may even begin to see the leaves drop off of the plant stem, and the plant may eventually die.
Treatment:
Once an infestation of Mites has been determined, it is important to remove all of the affected leaves or plant parts. This may even include removing an entire plant. Pesticides are effective for ridding your plants of Mites, as well.
