FlytrapCare Carnivorous Plant Forums

My sundew is infested with these bugs!!! There are a whole bunch of tiny dark bugs all over the leaves of my sundew. My camera cant capture the baby bugs that well, but they are pretty small. But I think the other pic is what they are when they are full grown.

Should I use a insecticide? and what kind?

ps - sorry the light is so bad. But I just noticed the tiny bugs all over the leaves this evening...

Sorry, but I've never seen those bugs. I'm guessing orthenex would probably take care of them, but it would probably be a good idea to know what they are and if they're even harmful to the plant.

Matt wrote:Sorry, but I've never seen those bugs. I'm guessing orthenex would probably take care of them, but it would probably be a good idea to know what they are and if they're even harmful to the plant.

If you look in the second picture, I have been noticing that the leaves are curling a tiny bit. I wonder if they are harming it? And it is flowering right now too... that might be a cause for that too. Either way, those bugs have been have starting to fly around my house

Oh, they fly? They might be fungus gnats then. If so, they aren't any harm.

grant wrote:If you look in the second picture, I have been noticing that the leaves are curling a tiny bit.

Yeah, I think capensis leaves curl up naturally as they age. I only have one old capensis and it's leaves do that.

Hi Grant,

Like Matt said orthenex should take care of it.

Ever since I put my plants outside this summer, I spray once a week with Ortho orthenex. Even if the current bugs on your plant aren't harming it, orthenex is systemic protecting your plants from other insects like aphids and spider mites.

Good luck Grant and please let us know how it turns out?

Your buddy,

Giovanni

So why isn't the sundew eating these jokers, aren't they getting stuck on the dew traps?

If they're fungus gnats, they won't harm the sundew and the sundew can eat them. They hatch from tiny larvae that live in various growing mediums. The larvae aren't harmful either (at least no one including myself seems to think they are).

Last year I had a major infestation of fungus gnats in the evergreen-bark medium of one of my orchids. When the larvae began to hatch, I placed my sundews all around the orchid and they feasted on the fungus gnats.

Thanks guys

Yeah, I think the larvae is too small for the sudew. But once they get big enough to start flying, it's a lot easier for my sundew to eat them. I believe these bugs came from a Miracle Grow bag i bought a while ago. I thought I got rid of them by repotting, but I guess not... I didn't mind before, because their were never a whole lot of them. But now it looks like it's getting out of control.

Alright, well I will try to find some Orthor orthenex today. talk to you guys later

grant wrote:Alright, well I will try to find some Orthor orthenex today. talk to you guys later

Be aware that sundews (Drosera capensis for sure) are sensitive to acephate, the active insecticide ingredient in Orthenex, so spray a little lightly. You will probably notice that the dew will dry up in response, but should return in a few days to a week or two. One of my D. capensis "sulked" for 3 weeks before putting out dew again.

Steve

Grant,

Good luck and please let us know who it turns out?

Giovanni