How to Identify and Get Rid of Whiteflies on Plants
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How to Identify Whiteflies
Like aphids, whiteflies use their piercing mouthparts to suck up plant juices and, in turn, produce a sticky substance known as honeydew. Honeydew, left on its own, can cause fungal diseases such as sooty mold to form on leaves.
With heavy whitefly feeding, plants will quickly become extremely weak and may be unable to carry out photosynthesis. Leaves will wilt, turn pale or yellow, growth will be stunted, and eventually leaves may shrivel and drop off the plant.
Honeydew is a sign that the whiteflies have been feeding for several days. You might also see ants, which are attracted to the sweet honeydew.
Where to Find Whiteflies on Plants
Whiteflies tend to prefer to feed on new growth, so check around any newly unfurled leaves first.
Check the undersides of leaves—especially around the veins—for white insects, even if they aren’t immediately visible, and feel leaf surfaces for sticky honeydew. If the whiteflies are feeding, they’ll suddenly all fly off the leaves in a swarm, so it’s very obvious.
You may also find eggs laid on the undersides of leaves. This is the beginning of a new generation! When the eggs hatch, the larvae look like teeny white ovals without legs; they don’t move but immediately start sucking the plant juice. This is why gardeners often miss whiteflies until it’s too late. Adult females can produce up to 400 eggs, which hatch about one week to a month after laying. They are usually laid in a circular pattern. Eggs are pale yellow when newly laid and brown when about to hatch.
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I discovered whitefly larvae buries in the soil of one of my raised beds, despite the fact that there are no plants currently growing in it. I am at a lost as to how to remedy the situation as they are not attached to any plant but down in the soil. Any suggestions?
Hi Ashlee, Since whiteflies at all stages of life need plant material to feed, it is unlikely that what you found in the soil of your raised garden bed is whitefly larvae. You could use this link (https://entomology.ca.uky.edu/ef017) for recognizing insect larvae that may help in identifying what you found. Hope this helps!
Thanks for the info on getting rid of whiteflies, will certainly give it a try. Don’t know where the came from, I am in a high rise condo and they appeared on Morning Glory plants I started from seed.
Castile soap is the soap to use - it is vegetable-based, chemical-free, with no synthetic ingredients or animal fat. Originally made from pure olive oil in Castile, 12th century Spain. Today, it may contain other plant-based oils such as almond, avocado, coconut, hemp, walnut. It worked for us in a commercial greenhouse in Australia. In a big area like that, the white flies do come back, so it needs to be repeated.
Hi, I am having the most difficult problem with a horrible infestation of white flies on my crepe myrtles. They are to large for me to reach from the mid to the top of the trees. There are two of them. I have applied neem oil and the organic soap I bought online. I've tried dawn mixed with water and even granules from a pest control company. I'm so frustrated I want to cut the trees below the leaves but I really love them. I'm not sure what to do! We've had hummingbirds and tons of dragonflies also but nothing is helping. Please help! Thank you!
Go to Lowe’s or Home Depot or wherever and get some ladybugs. Ladybugs love aphids, and ladybugs will stick around as long as there are aphids around
In addition to the great remedies you suggested, neem oil is very effective for controlling white flies and causes minimal harm to beneficial insects. One word of caution; dish soap can be too harsh and can damage plants. It is better to use an insecticidal soap that is formulated specifically for the purpose of controlling insects.
Here in Britain we get a very small red spider that scurries about in the garden in the sun. It's only about 1mm in size. I would expect you have them in America. If you carefully collect a couple and put them on your plant they'll take out the larva stage. (Don't confuse them with red spider mite which are bigger and not properly red. The spider will eat those too though)
I've used a Butter Yellow coloured LED, inside a Maconara jar covered with Neem Oil with excellent success!
Of course, this requires you to go out 3 times a night to shake the plants, but once you do the whitefly can't see anything except its favourite colour, Yellow and flies into it.
Two nights in a row I've had to recover the jar with neem oil after being coated with whitefly. Washed them all down the drain using dishwashing liquid, then recoated the jar!
For the first few nights, I also sprayed with Neem oil and a spray unit with an upturned spray head to get from top to bottom of the plants under side each leaf.
At last, I feel like it's improving and not getting worse. There was a time where visitor disturbing the Tom plants would be covered in a snow of furry of whitefly.
The only thing that works is a professional exterminator heat treatment. The process take a all day they bring in heaters and treat our entire home or apartment for I think 4-6 hours at 130 or so degrees. Bed bugs travel on your stuff and your clothes and shoes. Wherever you lay your purse the risk of touching off a bed bug infestation in that place, that includes your friends, family, work place. They hide in cracks and crevices, even in electrical outlets. So just spraying where you see them won’t work and it wouldn’t kill the larvae So you won’t break the cycle. The heat is the only thing that works, I know I’ve done it, It is necessary and expensive, ask the company you choose how to do the same treatment to our car. Because the home can be infestation again if you bring it back in from your car.
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