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View Full Version : Red Spider Mites


CraigSS
Feb 18, 2015, 09:29 AM
I have citrus trees that I put outside for the summer and bring inside for the winter. I have seen more and more these minute red spiders that have a fine web and hang in the sunlight during the day. I vacuum them up but each day there are more. I have sprayed and that seems to kill what is there but after a few days more hatch and slowly descend in the sun light. I do not see evidence of them on the underside of the leaves but there is an over abundance of them on a day to day basis. There is evidence of webbing right where the leaves and the stems meet. Are these spider mites?

Catsmine
Feb 18, 2015, 02:26 PM
They may very well be Spider mites. There are several dozen species.

To get rid of them, buy a full sized cigar. (you can get Antonio y Cleopatra at any convenience store) Soak it overnight in a gallon of water. In a 1 quart spray bottle, add a tablespoon of unscented dish detergent (NOT SOAP) and a tablespoon of baking soda then pour in some of the tobacco tea (discard the cigar and save the liquid for refills). Mist the plants each morning for 2 weeks.