I probably do have some dormantsrule. The only ones I really notice are the earwigs and katydids. At night it's a paradise with all the fireflies. I love them.

Wow, good information!

I like those bug photos!

Here's a couple of pictures of mealybugs on a crown gall of a rose I had. Ants brought the bugs to the infection site and for awhile I couldn't figure out what the "white stuff" was that was growing on the gall site - that is until I touched it and it squirmed - ick!!!!! One of the pictures is a close up of the individual mealy bugs that make up the ball of white fluff. You can just see the outlines of the individual bugs....Maryl

What in the world. ..Yikes!! I tried to open the picture on the right and it shrunk instead. I think I see the bugs....this is gross. How do you get rid of these things or should I say kill them for good, I would not want them going to another plant!!

That is gross, and it takes a lot to gross me out. Squirming balls of bugs... Ewwww

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

When I had a lot of different plants at my old place I saw a lot of mealybugs as well as other pests. But I also had a lot of mealybug destroyers. Most people mistake them as mealybugs and kill them, but they will eat the mealybugs and the eggs. They also eat aphids and some soft scale. The adult mealybug destroyer will actually lay her eggs in the cottony egg-masses of the mealybugs so when they hatch they will have plenty to munch on. In these gardens I didn't spray because I was planting things for butterflies, ladybugs and LB larva, and any other good insect. But what I did do was put down the Bayer Tree and Shrub protect and feed granules when any infestations got ahead of the good bugs appetite. Since it is taken up into the plant through the roots it won't hurt the good insects since they don't munch on the plants, but it does kill any bad bugs that eat the plants (except spidermites). This isn't practical for large gardens though.

MEALYBUG DESTROYER LARVA


MEALYBUG DESTROYER ADULT


If you notice ant beds in the area, getting rid of them will help natural predators survive and keep the pests under control; this is true for aphids as well. Ants protect mealybugs and aphids so they can eat their honey dew (excretions). Parasitic wasp (mistaken for gnats often since they are so small) also help keep mealybugs under control.

If you need to use an insecticide I use the Bayer products with the Imidacloprid in it.

Mealy Bugs (aka Woolly Aphids)
A couple of natural suggestions I had seen and used on my indoor houseplants, using a Q-tip:

Rubbing alcohol and soap. Mix straight rubbing alcohol (no water), and 1/2 a teaspoon of dish soap. The dish soap, again, works to break down the waxy coating, and the rubbing alcohol will dehydrate the mealy bugs, killing them.


Other soaps, diluted 1 tablespoon to 1 pint water. Besides dish soap, you could mix water with the Murphy's Oil Soap or Dr. Bronner's organic peppermint soap. Not only will this kill mealy bugs, but it will keep other pests away, because parasitic insects don't like the strong scent of peppermint.

Thanks Sue for adding the alcohol tip, I meant to write that but got distracted and forgot.

Great tips!! The MEALYBUG DESTROYER ADULT looks like a LadyBug , is it related to a ladybug?

Yes it's a species of ladybirds (more commonly called ladybugs).

Yippee!! I do have ladybug feeders and was hoping to purchase additional ladybugs but did not get around to it. I know I will next year I have a lot more flowers now.