Recognizing and combating scale insects

Recognizing scale
Aphid development
Aphid damage
Combating scale insects

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Recognizing scale

Brown 'caps' or bumps on the leaves or stem of your plant? This could just be fluff! Aphid doesn't really look like an animal. This is because the female is hidden under a shield and does not move. The shield is fused with the insect. In this way, the shellfish protects itself against natural enemies and protects its eggs. Light-colored nymphs hatch from the eggs and are more difficult to detect due to their light color.

You can scratch scales off the plant with your fingernail. This way you know that it is a bug and, for example, not a thickening of the stem. Aphids like to live near the veins of the leaves or on the stem.

The shellfish males look different from the females: they have wings and a shell is missing. However, presence of males is rare.

Flat scale

Flat scale is, as the name suggests, a relatively flat scale. The young stages in particular are very difficult to see due to their light color and low height. The adult mealybug has dark spots on the shell.

Woolly scale

The woolly aphid (Pulvinaria hydrangeae) is an inconspicuous, flat brown insect. In June and July, the shellfish lays eggs in a white egg sac that is very characteristic.

Oleander scale

The oleander cap is dark brown in color and convex and round in shape. The carapace is so thickened that an 'H' pattern can be seen on the back.

Difference between scale and scale

Scale insects and scale insects look very similar. Yet there are a few differences. Scale insects produce sticky honeydew, unlike scale insects. Furthermore, the shell of the scale is fused to the body, while the shell of the scale can be lifted off. In the photo you can see a shell of the flat shelled aphid.

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Aphid development

Female shellfish protect their eggs under their shell. Small light-colored nymphs, also called 'crawlers', hatch from the eggs. The crawlers can spread quickly over the plant. After a while, the crawlers settle in a permanent place and form a shield. This is how they grow into an adult female mealybug. Males can also occur, but are very rare.

Aphid damage

Sticky leaves reveal the presence of aphids. The aphids absorb plant sap from the plant. The excess sugar is excreted as a sticky liquid. The sweet substance is called 'honeydew'. Sooty mold fungi can grow on the honeydew, causing the leaves and branches to be covered with a black layer.

Combating scale insects

Scale can best be cleaned up with Plant Soap . The Plant Soap spray consists of 100% natural substances and does not contain any poison. Spray the bottom and top of the leaves well. The Plant Soap forms a layer around the aphids. The treatment can be repeated after one week to thoroughly clean the plant.