mealybugs on Mammillaria Grahamii
Quick answer
If your Mammillaria Grahamii has mealybugs, the most likely cause is: Small, elliptical, generally white insects with a waxy (mealy) coating are the most common pests in cacti and succulents, and on Mammillaria grahamii they tuck themselves between the dense tubercles and the hooked central spines where they are easily overlooked until populations explode across the clustered heads.
Start here:
- 1. Bare the roots of the plant, remove any visible sign of infestation by hand, and then dip the entire Mammillaria grahamii in the dilute pesticide so the waxy coating is reached from every angle, including down between the tubercles.
- 2. Add a surfactant or wetting agent to the pesticide so the waxy waste material is more easily penetrated, and rotate chemistries since no single class of contact insecticide alone is 100 per cent effective.
Why Mammillaria Grahamii gets mealybugs
Mammillaria Grahamii
Small, elliptical, generally white insects with a waxy (mealy) coating are the most common pests in cacti and succulents, and on Mammillaria grahamii they tuck themselves between the dense tubercles and the hooked central spines where they are easily overlooked until populations explode across the clustered heads.
How to reverse mealybugs on Mammillaria Grahamii
- 1
Bare the roots of the plant, remove any visible sign of infestation by hand, and then dip the entire Mammillaria grahamii in the dilute pesticide so the waxy coating is reached from every angle, including down between the tubercles.
- 2
Add a surfactant or wetting agent to the pesticide so the waxy waste material is more easily penetrated, and rotate chemistries since no single class of contact insecticide alone is 100 per cent effective.
- 3
Dislodge any mealies from new growth with a stiff spray of water first, then treat the whole plant with an appropriate insecticide and repeat applications as eggs and crawlers hatch.
Keep mealybugs off this Mammillaria Grahamii
Quarantine new plants for several weeks and inspect them thoroughly along with their roots before adding them to a Mammillaria grahamii collection, and sterilize the area when an infestation is located to prevent further spread to nearby tubercled cacti.