How to Treat Whiteflies on Hibiscus Plants
Whiteflies are a common pest on house and garden plants such as hibiscus. The obvious sign of a whitefly infestation is the cloud of tiny white insects swarming around your hibiscus plants. The sap-sucking larvae are equally damaging to your hibiscus plants. Whiteflies spread from infected plants introduced into your household or garden. There are a variety of methods used to control whiteflies, including non-toxic homemade sprays, biological controls and pesticides. Does this Spark an idea?
Things You'll Need
- Garden hose
- Hand sprayer
- Yellow sticky traps
- Vegetable oil
- Dishwashing liquid
- Spray bottle
- Fels-Naptha soap
- Rubbing alcohol
- Neem-based insecticide
- Beauvaria bassiana product
Instructions
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Spray the hibiscus plants with a strong stream of water. Turn the leaves up and spray the bottoms of the leaves to knock the whiteflies and larvae off the plants.
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Place yellow sticky traps around your hibiscus plants, using one or two traps per plant. Place the yellow side toward the stem of the plant to catch the adult whiteflies before they lay their eggs.
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Mix a solution of 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, 2 tablespoons dishwashing soap and 1 gallon of water. Pour into a spray bottle and shake well. Soak the leaves, top and bottom, with the soapy solution. Rinse with clean water after 30 minutes to prevent the soap from damaging the hibiscus leaves. Repeat weekly to kill the whiteflies and larvae and discourage re-infestation.
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Shave 1/4 bar of Fels-Naptha soap into 1 quart of warm water. Mix well to dissolve the soap. Add 1/4 cup rubbing alcohol. Use 1 teaspoon of this mixture with 1 quart of water in a spray bottle or garden sprayer. Soak the leaves of the infected plants to kill the whiteflies. Rinse after 30 minutes with fresh water.
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Spray your hibiscus with a neem-based insecticide such as Trilogy. Follow the manufacturer's directions carefully for maximum effectiveness against the whitefly larvae.
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Apply a Beauvaria bassiana product such as Naturalis or Mycotrol to the hibiscus plant. Beauvaria bassiana is a fungus that infects and kills whiteflies in seven to 10 days. The spray must thoroughly cover the whiteflies and larvae to ensure that the fungus spores infect the insects.
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Tips & Warnings
Consult with your local agricultural extension office for information about whiteflies and other pests common in your area.
Quarantine new plants for several weeks to avoid infecting your other plants.
Treat all the plants in the home or garden at the same time. Whiteflies infest many plants so preventive treatment of other plants in the area will discourage re-infestation of your hibiscus.
Test all products on a leaf, leaving it on the plant overnight before spraying the entire plant, especially when using homemade solutions. Some plants are very sensitive to soap products.
Read all manufacturers' directions and cautions before using any product in and around your home. Keep all manufacturer's products in the original containers.
Keep all homemade solutions in clearly labeled containers and out of reach of children and pets. Do not put a homemade solution into a recycled food or beverage container. Use a detergent bottle instead.
References
- Colorado State University Extension; Managing Houseplant Pests; W.S. Cranshaw; November 2006
- Mother Earth News; Nontoxic, Homemade Insecticidal Soap Spray; Ted Swensen; June/July 2007
- Clemson Cooperative Extension; Less Toxic Insecticides; Karen Russ; August 2005
- University of Wisconsin-Madison; The Entomopathogen Beauveria bassiana; Susan Mahr
