Pseudococcus, treatment of cotton plants

October 4, 2019 10 Comments

If your plants show white fibers that look like cotton, then they have probably been attacked by a type of coccoid insect (scab) known by various names such as cotton blight, cotton blight and pseudo-cob. The cotton bollworm is surrounded by a characteristic white filamentous sheath like cotton from which it gets its name.

The appearance of cotton on plants is quite common from mid-summer to early autumn and it is necessary to take appropriate measures to deal with it in an ecological way.

1. In what plants does cotton occur?

Cottonseed attacks many ornamental plants such as gardenia, camellia, hydrangea, and bougainvillea. Cottoniness also occurs in angelica, photinia, viburnum, dipladenia, and tsika.

We will still find it in vines and citrus trees such as lemon, orange, tangerine as well as in subtropical plants such as banana and mango.

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2. What damage does the cotton bug do to plants?

Cottonworm causes significant damage to plants by sucking plant tissue from all parts of the plant, although it is usually found on the underside of leaves and at the junctions of leaves and stems. At the same time, it produces rich honeydew secretions that favor the growth of the tobacco fungus, thus reducing the photosynthetic capacity of the plant. In cases of significant cotton infestation, the plant appears quite stunted and shows signs of drying.

Cotton is favored by conditions of high humidity, relatively high temperatures and poor plant ventilation. That’s why, after all, we find it more often in bushes and trees with dense foliage and especially in the shadiest places. The cotton bug, usually, carries out 3-4 generations in a year depending on the region and the prevailing weather conditions.

3. How is the cotton bug treated biologically?

For the preventive treatment of the cotton bug, we spray our plants at the beginning of summer with a solution of summer pulp or potassium salt soaps that we get from agricultural stores. Alternatively, we preventively spray our plants every 2 weeks with an improvised recipe that we make by dissolving 2 tablespoons of grated green soap in a liter of water and adding 1 teaspoon of rubbing alcohol.

In cases of severe infestation, prune the affected parts of the plant and remove them from the garden. Then we spray the foliage of the plants with a solution of summer pulp combined with natural pyrethrum and repeat after 10 days.

In any case, spraying must be done at dusk, at a temperature below 30°C and after we have watered our plants.

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And a secret about cotton in plants

The white waxy shell of the cotton bug protects it enough from the action of ecological insecticides. For greater effectiveness of the preparations, a few hours before spraying, it is advisable to wet the foliage of the plant with pressure and then apply the spray after it has dried.

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