If you own plants or have a little garden, you most definitely encounter the issue of spider mites
What are Spider Mites
Tetranychus Urticae, known as spider mites, belong to the Acari family. So they are not really considered insects. They are tiny little spiders that are found on plants and trees’ leaves.
Adult spider mites can be either red, yellow, orange, brown, or green with two large dark spots on the sides of their body.
There are more than 1000 species of these little spider-look-alikes, which are found on more than 500 different plant species. They make silky-looking kind of webbings, very similar to the webs created by spiders.
Where do Spider Mites Come From and What Attracts Them
These pests love hot and dry weather. They do not like humidity. The female spider mite has the ability to lay around 20 eggs per day on the underside of the leaves. The period it takes for an egg to become a full adult in hot weather is 5 days.
Spider mites’ life span goes from 2 to 4 weeks, depending on the weather conditions. Also, they can reproduce sexually or asexually which helps greatly with fast reproduction.
They usually come from other live plants. So, if you bring a new plant to your home or garden, make sure to quarantine it in isolation away from the other plants. This will prevent the spider mites from spreading and affecting all your plants.
However, it is very possible that you can carry them to your home or garden. They are super tiny and attach to anything, especially if you have a dog or a cat. They are very easy to spread.
During the winter or cool weather, they would go rest in the soil until the weather gets warm again.
What do Spider Mites do to Plants and Fruit Trees
With their fast reproduction and growth, they can destroy plants and trees rapidly by feeding on green plant tissue. That would make the plant’s leaves turn yellow, thus, dead.
The more they suck on the leaves’ cells, the more damage they can cause to the plants and trees. If enough damage occurs, the whole plant will die. So, if you’re still wondering if these little tiny creatures are bad or good for plants, I’m here to tell you that they are deadly; well, plant-wise.
The reason why the plants eventually die is due to the chlorophyll spider mites consume which leads to interrupted Photosynthesis.
As for the fruitful trees, they slow the tree’s production process. They highly affect the flower and lead it to drop. It is very important to check on your plants and trees for any kind of pests in general.
For example, I have a lemon tree and each year red spider mites consume its leaves’ green cells which will make the flowers fall and not produce any lemons. To check the best way to treat spider mites on plants and trees click here.
