I'm frustrated, tired and feeling down. After treating *Jamina*, my Ficus (Too Little) Benjamina for scale two days ago, today I discovered several of my other plants, including my succulent garden, are also infected with scale "and/or" spider mites!!! There's a dense cobweb on the back of my English Ivy and what looks like a scale bug. After checking out one of the other threads that mentioned a "peppery appearance" for spider mites, well...it's on my succulents. I just want to sit down and have a good cry.

I just phoned our local landscape supply store and spoke to the owner (he was very nice and helpful). He says he has a very effective 3-in-1 insecticidal soap spray which he has used successfully on his own plants at home. I'm going to go get some tomorrow. He said that it won't work on the hard, brown scale bugs...that I will have to go after them myself.

The reason I have decided to go the route of the insecticide is because it is the least labour intensive and, with my physical limitations, it will make my life that much easier while I can hopefully, still save my plants.

I know my Ficus was infected when I bought it however, I also suspect another plant or two that I bought at a local garden centre. The one plant in particular is getting bagged, tied and thrown out.

Luckily, my Ficus is no longer situated on the same window sill with these other plants. I had moved my Ficus to the bedroom window sill about a week ago where she sits with my cactus gardens however, she was mildly infected with the scale while being with the cactus. Can anyone tell me please, is cactus susceptible to these pests as well? I'm just wondering if I should treat them too.

...sigh...

I'm not entirely sure, but I think a cactus might have a little more protection than other plants, considering their natural habitat. If I'm wrong, though, I'd be extremely careful when using the insecticide on them, because cacti will suck up just about any liquid, and they can drown in too much water. Double-check that it's ok with the landscape owner just in case.

Hi Leslie,

Don't start by throwing plants out. Just make sure you are taking care of your plants in the right way. Helthy plants hardly ever get infected by insects. My banana tree & ficus grow happily side-by-side in my office. The banana tree gets mites every few months, and looses a lot of foliage (Whenever the heating kicks in the air dries out, and the banana plant suffers). However, te ficus has not been affected. Yet at home, the same species of ficus gets mites all the time, as the soil is too dry, it sits next to sliding doors => drafty.

Cacti most definately can get the scale too. Use the same solution as before, and use cotton swaps to treat them, one insect at a time. Are your cacti happy ad healty, nicely growing? Note: Cacti do not drown easily, when taken care of properly: Water only when the roots are 'active (In dry spells the roots dry out; Watering them then will result in massive root die-back. Only when temperatures rise, and air-humidity is brought up e.g., by misting every other day of a week or two, will the roots fill up with moisture and be ready to receive watering. Make sure the water can drain away, and do not water untill the soil has dried out considerably again. Yet, letting the soil become dus again is most of the time too dry, also, only water when it is warm; cold weather & wet roots don't go well together for most succulents).

The insecticide should work. However, again, the little buggers will be back if you do not figure out what is wrong in the plants' life; Happy plants do not get pests all that easily. It is mainly stressed plants where pests can become a life-threatening plague.

Hi J and Hannah,

Thank you for your replies.

My well established house plants are all very healthy including my cactus garden. It is the new plants that I have purchased and brought into the house in the last six weeks that are infected, including the succulents. I also purchased two new little cactus plants that are still in their nursery pots yet, they seem to be fine. The Ficus brought in the scale and it is now clear that it was really struggling when I bought it. As I mentioned before, although I had inquired about it's health, unfortunately the answers I'd received were not honest ones.

I find the info you shared, J re: watering cactus rather surprising because in the dessert areas where they grow they go many months without water and the soil is so dry and hard it cracks. Then when it rains it pours and the land is flooded and this is when the cacti come to life and flower.

Anyway, without getting too far off track...I called a local Gardens & Greenhouse company today who are a long established company with an impeccable reputation. She carries a 3 in 1 *green* product that is very similar to the recipe you shared with me J, only this one does not get rinsed off. She uses this product in the greenhouse the odd time she discovers critters and has had great success with it. She said it also kills the mature adults by smothering them. I have dealt with this company in the past and was very pleased with their products, services and they're slightly less expensive than the other place I'd mentioned. I feel I am not being talked into buying something just to make a quick sale.

In all the years I've had house and garden plants, I've never had this problem before. It's very frustrating however, I will treat all the indoor plants that are showing signs, three of which I want to bonsai and give them another go when the time is right.

Thanks for being here for me when I was down.

Leslie

Well, I hope it works, and all of your plants recover! I haven't had any experience with this, as George is the only insect I've caught on my plants. George is a spider, and he has a web between two leaves on one of my mom's houseplants. I think he hangs around to snap up the ants that somehow manage to wander into the house. But seriously, I hope this experience hasn't been too damaging to your view of bonsai. I think we've all gone through that period when we're still new and easily taken advantage of, whether it's a seed kit, glued rocks, or faulty instructions, but yours seems to be more trying than most, especially since your problem has affected other plants! I suppose all we can do is try to provide a better example and help out the other newbies as much as we can.