Spider Mites...What can I do?

SmokeMonster32

SmokeMonster32

Active Member
Hey RIU,
So I have a slight spider mite problem...nothing horrible now but I'm midway into flower (Day 28 ) and I've already gone through a bottle of liquid lady bug and they still aren't gone. So I have a few questions...

1) When is it time to call it quits on the whole tent of plants?
- I'm kind of stuck now because I'm into flower enough that I don't want the electricity that I've already put into these plants to go to waste but at the same time I don't want to continue to use more electricity if the buds will be unusable.

2) If I continue to try to fight these bugs throughout flower what is the best thing to do with the bud I get?
- Can I smoke the bud?
- Edibles?
- BHO?

3) How long after my plants finish and are out of my tent should I wait to put new plants in the tent to prevent the spider mites infecting the new crop?

Any other info, picture or questions you guys have I can provide you.
-Thanks!
 
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SSHZ

Well-Known Member
In flowering, the only thing you should be using is Mighty Wash or Flying Skull "Nuke Em".......both of these are perfectly safe to use til the last day of flowering, without hurting the buds at all. Most everything else on the market (Neem oil/Avid/Azamax/Floramite/Insect oils/pyretheum sprays/pepper sprays/etc) will retard bud growth and hurt the plants. Both the above products are pretty effective with numerous sprays, i.e. Nuke Em is most effective with 3 sprays in one day......follow instructions.

A thorough washing with plain water (spraying or dipping) to wash the dead bugs off the buds is possible IF you are able to dry them properly so no mold will form. I have dipped my buds or sprayed heavily the day before cutting with no issues, but you better have the temps and wind (fans) right to quickly dry the entire bud. I've even hung whole plants in my garage where it is warmer- but not too warm as to damage resin.

After the tent is empty, a thorough cleaning with bleach is necessary- I sometimes do it twice and/or use multiple products. I throw out all my pots and start with new ones and wipe down the entire room including fans,lights, etc. The mites can hibernate and live what seems to be months w/o anything so don't think time down (room shut down) will kill them.

I have fought these buggers for years, on and off. Mine come out only in flowering so I spray well weekly in veg and in flowering as needed. Do not spray multiple things on top of other things- just stick with one of the 2 mentioned items. Spraying properly is important, be very thorough on the floor, and out side of pots, walls and the entire plant from head to toe......
 
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SmokeMonster32

SmokeMonster32

Active Member
SSHZ said:
In flowering, the only thing you should be using is Mighty Wash or Flying Skull "Nuke Em".......both of these are perfectly safe to use til the last day of flowering, without hurting the buds at all. Most everything else on the market (Neem oil/Avid/Floramite/Insect oils/pyretheum sprays/pepper sprays/etc) will retard bud growth and hurt the plants. Both the above products are pretty effective with numerous sprays, i.e. Nuke Em is most effective with 3 sprays in one day......follow instructions.

A thorough washing with plain water (spraying or dipping) to wash the dead bugs off the buds is possible IF you are able to dry them properly so no mold will form. I have dipped my buds or sprayed heavily the day before cutting with no issues, but you better have the temps and wind (fans) right to quickly dry the entire bud. I've even hung whole plants in my garage where it is warmer- but not too warm as to damage resin.

After the tent is empty, a thorough cleaning with bleach is necessary- I sometimes do it twice and/or use multiple products. I throw out all my pots and start with new ones and wipe down the entire room including fans,lights, etc. The mites can hibernate and live what seems to be months w/o anything so don't think time down (rom shut down) will kill them.

I have fought these buggers for years, on and off. Mine come out only in flowering so I spray well weekly in veg and in flowering as needed. Do not spray multiple things on top of other things- just stick with one of the 2 mentioned items. Spraying properly is important, be very thorough on the floor, and out side of pots, walls and the entire plant from head to toe......
Click to expand...
Thanks for the in depth response! I'll look into those sprays and try to pick one up. At my local grow store the guy said that what I bought ( liquid ladybug ) was safe to spray up until right before flower so I'm assuming it has a lot of the same ingredients as the other mentioned products. Should I ever consider removing the leaves that are effected as an additional method of fighting them off?
 
SmokeMonster32

SmokeMonster32

Active Member
Here is a picture of a leaf currently affected. Like I said, nothing too bad as of now but I also understand that I have about 40ish+ more days of flower so i'm trying to predict what the plants will look like at that point. I noticed them about 2 weeks ago and started to fight them off pretty well but then left for Cali on vacation and had a friend try to keep up with them but he didn't really understand what he was looking to fight off...Not really his fault but I had no other option. I was going to just chuck out the flowering plants and give the tent a thorough cleaning and then put my plants that are vegging in the flower tent this weekend. Now i'm thinking that maybe it is best if I just grow these out and see what they will become.
 

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SSHZ

Well-Known Member
Although I have used Liquid Ladybug with limited success, I too have found that it damages some leaves and was pretty ineffective in the long run. Always spray at night 5-10 minutes after the lights go out so the plant has 12 hours to dry. Intense light too soon after spraying will definitely be bad on the leaves as the water acts as a magnifyer and creates hot spots on the leaves. Here's what I do- 10 minutes before lights out I shut down to give the leaves a chance to cool down. I forgot to mention I always do a fresh water flush a few hours before spraying anything too, which is VERY important as it reduces the plant absorbing sprays into the leaves. Go to the Flying Skull web site to read more about that. Then I spray in low light or a flashlight lit room. Do not run fans either as it will blow the spray off leaves and dry the leaves off too quick. Just let it sit quiet until lights are back on 12 hours later. Expect to have to do multiple sprays of any product used, as the mites as very small and easily hide and it's just plain tough to get every single one of them with a single spray. Remember, one mite left alive and you'll still be fighting the mites again in a weeks time......

And, regarding leaves, I typically pluck off any yellowing leaves or those that have a lot of eggs/mites on them. It may reduce your bud size or finishing time a bit but it's just easier as it reduces the mite population quickly.

Liquid Ladybug is citrus based I believe, as is Nuke Em. Mighty Wash I believe is 99% water but packs a "charge" which destroys the mites and eggs. As I said earlier, either Mighty Wash or Nuke Em seems to be best as you can use it in flowering, the mites don't build up a resistance to them, and they are all natural for those medically challenged (safe to smoke or eat).
 
SmokeMonster32

SmokeMonster32

Active Member
SSHZ said:
Although I have used Liquid Ladybug with limited success, I too have found that it damages some leaves and was pretty ineffective in the long run. Always spray at night 5-10 minutes after the lights go out so the plant has 12 hours to dry. Intense light too soon after spraying will definitely be bad on the leaves as the water acts as a magnifyer and creates hot spots on the leaves. Here's what I do- 10 minutes before lights out I shut down to give the leaves a chance to cool down. I forgot to mention I always do a fresh water flush a few hours before spraying anything too, which is VERY important as it reduces the plant absorbing sprays into the leaves. Go to the Flying Skull web site to read more about that. Then I spray in low light or a flashlight lit room. Do not run fans either as it will blow the spray off leaves and dry the leaves off too quick. Just let it sit quiet until lights are back on 12 hours later. Expect to have to do multiple sprays of any product used, as the mites as very small and easily hide and it's just plain tough to get every single one of them with a single spray. Remember, one mite left alive and you'll still be fighting the mites again in a weeks time......

And, regarding leaves, I typically pluck off any yellowing leaves or those that have a lot of eggs/mites on them. It may reduce your bud size or finishing time a bit but it's just easier as it reduces the mite population quickly.

Liquid Ladybug is citrus based I believe, as is Nuke Em. Mighty Wash I believe is 99% water but packs a "charge" which destroys the mites and eggs. As I said earlier, either Mighty Wash or Nuke Em seems to be best as you can use it in flowering, the mites don't build up a resistance to them, and they are all natural for those medically challenged (safe to smoke or eat).
Click to expand...
Thanks a lot SSHZ ... very in depth information. I'll read more at flying skull and hopefully they have mighty wash at HTG supply.
 
Bear420

Bear420

Well-Known Member
Home Rem. teaspoon of Dawn, and a teaspoon of canola Oil, and right before you apply with a 1 quart sprayer add 1 Oz of rubbing alcohol, it will kill the mites . and not hurt your plants, then you can Buy some Organbliss it works it makes the mites not be able to reproduce it may take a few week s to eradicate but it will work. the most expensive part is the Organibliss but you can get away without that if you Use the solution every day until they are gone, You can rinse plants off about an hour after you apply it but I have never had to do that doesn't seem to get any odd taste from just the soap and oil method, and with the Organibliss you can use that right up to the day of taking down your honeys
 

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Milovan

Milovan

Well-Known Member
I get rid of mites and eggs easily and for good during veg or flower with no ill effects
using a couple drops of blue Dawn dish liquid in any sprayer filled with water.
You could rinse the plants off with plain water in a sprayer afterwards
but it is not necessary. The mites do not come back no matter what
anyone tells you.
 
Bear420

Bear420

Well-Known Member
Milovan said:
I get rid of mites and eggs easily and for good during veg or flower with no ill effects
using a couple drops of blue Dawn dish liquid in any sprayer filled with water.
You could rinse the plants off with plain water in a sprayer afterwards
but it is not necessary. The mites do not come back no matter what
anyone tells you.
Click to expand...
Milovan you just use the Dawn and it works alone good info Thanks :) I No the Oil smothers eggs and the rubbing alcohol dries the soulution
 
Milovan

Milovan

Well-Known Member
Bear420 said:
Milovan you just use the Dawn and it works alone good info Thanks :) I No the Oil smothers eggs and the rubbing alcohol dries the soulution
Click to expand...
Yes just blue Dawn only and it does rid mites for
good in my outdoor grows.
You can also spray the area for extra protection during growth.
Basically you could spray the shit out of everything but the soil.
 
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SSHZ

Well-Known Member
Do not use anything oil based when buds are actively growing as it will clog the stomata and kill the buds back. They may come back, but it surely retards growth.
 
SmokeMonster32

SmokeMonster32

Active Member
Awesome guys thanks for the info...I'm heading to my local grow shop to pick up some mighty wash now...I understand that it is probably cheaper to mix my own homemade spray but I'd rather just buy something that has been proven to work...even if it is basically the same thing. I just don't want to use too much dawn or mix it wrong to negatively effect the plant or have it not work and have these things get out of control.
If anyone else has any suggestions...esp when it comes to how good the smoke/taste of the treated buds will be at the end of the grow, or also if its better for me to just use the majority of this bud as edibles or to try to make BHO with it (i've never attempted this with any bud) I'm open to doing anything to get the best post mite product I can. Thanks again this has been a big help.
 
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bigsteve

Well-Known Member
I use Sevin dust, an insecticide, when insects show up. The dust comes in a shaker-type can that allows easy distribution over your crops. The dust is so benign that my vets at UCLA medical center approved it's use with mice and rats. Harmless to pets, the environment and everything else non-insect. I spray the plants with warmish water then lightly dust the plants with the Sevin dust. Works for me.

Good luck, BigSteve.
 
C

churchhaze

Well-Known Member
Put a screen on a vacuum and suck as many in as you can.

Spray the bottom of the leaves with soapy water. (real liquid hand soap made with potassium hydroxide and a vegetable oil, not a detergent based soap). This is also known as "insecticidal soap". I'm pretty sure that's what mighty wash is. Then rinse it off with plain water after a few minutes.
 
S

SSHZ

Well-Known Member
bigsteve said:
I use Sevin dust, an insecticide, when insects show up. The dust comes in a shaker-type can that allows easy distribution over your crops. The dust is so benign that my vets at UCLA medical center approved it's use with mice and rats. Harmless to pets, the environment and everything else non-insect. I spray the plants with warmish water then lightly dust the plants with the Sevin dust. Works for me.

Good luck, BigSteve.
Click to expand...

Only in veg right? I'm not so sure I'd want this in my buds.......
 
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bigsteve

Well-Known Member
I've only had bug problems in my veg room. Haven't needed the dust in the flowering room, but I'm sure it would be OK there too.

BigSteve.
 
hydroMD

hydroMD

Well-Known Member
If your late in flower and running co2 bump your p pms way up for 4-6 hours to suffocate them. Do it every 3 days for 12 days to curb the breeding cycle.


Mighty wash is safe for flower just do it when lights turn off and make sure to shake excess wateroff your buds just before lights on.
 
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