mealybugs on Zz Plant Raven
Quick answer
If your Zz Plant Raven has mealybugs, the most likely cause is: Veronica Peerless flags Zamioculcas zamiifolia as prone to mealybugs on the foliage, and on Raven the dark, waxy leaflets and tight petiole-to-rhizome crevices at the crown give the slow-moving, cottony-white insects a sheltered place to settle in clusters and feed on sap before the colony becomes visible on the leaf surface.
Start here:
- 1. Wipe the petiole bases, rhizome crown, and the undersides of the leaflets with a damp cloth or a cotton bud soaked with insecticide to physically remove the visible cottony clusters before they spread along the stems.
- 2. Spray the whole Raven plant with insecticide once a week and re-inspect the crevices, repeating the treatment for several weeks so newly hatched mealybugs are caught before they mature and re-form colonies.
Why Zz Plant Raven gets mealybugs
Zamioculcas zamiifolia 'Raven'
Veronica Peerless flags Zamioculcas zamiifolia as prone to mealybugs on the foliage, and on Raven the dark, waxy leaflets and tight petiole-to-rhizome crevices at the crown give the slow-moving, cottony-white insects a sheltered place to settle in clusters and feed on sap before the colony becomes visible on the leaf surface.
How to reverse mealybugs on Zz Plant Raven
- 1
Wipe the petiole bases, rhizome crown, and the undersides of the leaflets with a damp cloth or a cotton bud soaked with insecticide to physically remove the visible cottony clusters before they spread along the stems.
- 2
Spray the whole Raven plant with insecticide once a week and re-inspect the crevices, repeating the treatment for several weeks so newly hatched mealybugs are caught before they mature and re-form colonies.
Keep mealybugs off this Zz Plant Raven
Inspect the petiole-rhizome junctions and the undersides of the Raven leaflets regularly, isolate any new plant additions before they join the Raven, and keep the foliage clean so an early mealybug cluster is wiped away before the sticky honeydew and sooty mould can develop on the dark leaves.