HELP! I have spider mites!

[batlin]

sounds like you have fungus gnats...the only thing i found that works on them is azatrol...it is the active ingredient in neem and is concentrated but it will take 3 -4 weeks of using this to break the breeding cycle....the azatrol makes the new hatchlings sterile so they cannot reproduce but it is important to keep the regim up until they are gone.....overwatering is usually the cause of infestation...they do not do as well in soil the gets dried out a little...my suggestion is during veg don't water until you see a little droop in the plants and with the combination of the 2...lesss water and azatrol that is about the only way i know to get rid of those pesky little shits:thumbsup:

Yes, you are correct I do have fungus Gnats, I looked up what the flys were that use to be flying around and thats what they are... but they seem to be gone now.. and I just have these creepy crawlies...

I am attaching pics of my best plant.. (It is VERY stretched but that is due to my initial setup that had VERY little light, but the top has really done well since I put it in my rubbermaid box. I also took a picture of one of the lower leaves.. the upper leaves are all green and good...

batlin Reviewed by batlin on 03-18-2010. HELP! I have spider mites! Please help everyone, I noticed my girls were wilting a little and i looked down and the soil was MOVING, i looked closer and found spider mites! I don't know what to do.. I sprayed them (and soil) with EcoSmart Insecticide Organic & Natural Home Pest Control Products by EcoSMART Says it is all natural and contains Peppermint Oil 2% Cinnamon Oil 1% Sesame Oil 1% Other Ingredients 96% (Water, Winder Green oil, Isopropanol, canola oil, lecthin, carbon dioxide) Rating: 5

[eastbaygordo]

I repotted and sprayed the roots with Neem to solve the same problem. Keep the plants off a cold floor too.

[Vancefish]

So it sound like you have gnats AND mites! Bummer

So you've got a good handle on how to kill the mites. However I'd still suggest washing them over the bath tub. Just tilt the plant to the side and rinse every leaf top and bottom. Turn the pot as you go to expose more areas covered by other leaves. You don't need a plant store bought soap either. Just any mild organic soap like Ivory(this still has some Chemical scent). using a spray bottle put a few drop of soap in and fill it with water. then rinse off all the bugs.

Unfortunately the gnats that are flying around are nothing but breeders. Their damaging effect left with the last molt into flies.

It's the ones in the soil to worry about. First, let the soil dry out a bit. These maggots like moisture. Try to water just enough to keep the plant healthy. Since these little vampires like to burrow in, not all air born poisons would kill them.

BUT, I read a thread a while back. It mentioned something about the maggots needing oxygen to survive. Some people have had luck with a layer of sand on top of the soil to block oxygen from reaching the soil for a few hours. then dumping the sand off, after the maggots suffocate.

Still do all you can to kill the flying breeders and the mites.

Good luck to you.

[batlin]

Well, I had to sacrifice 5 of my babys last night... They I touched one of them and all the leaves fell off.. I think this was mainly due to no experience and my first time so I am not too heart broken.. Learned a lot and have already got some babies growing, check out my grow log.. I do have 3 plants lets 2 of which look pretty sad and one that is doing ok.. so lets hope..
I finally got some neem oil and used that.. so I think they are on their way back to health

http://boards.cannabis.com/grow-log/...w-1st-log.html

Again thank you all for the help!
Bats

[distinguished]

These look like root aphids. They look like spider mites in the beg stages but are by far bigger than ANY spider mite I have ever seen. They are dark brown even black at first then the color lightens as they mature. Alot will grow wings and look like a fungus gnat but they are not the same thing. Like you said they crawl in the soil & come out of the bottom of the buckets and will gather by the thousands in your tubs but never seem to actually get on your plants or stems until they mature and start flying. Azatrol will work. 1 oz per gallon of water and use as a drench. No need to spray or mist the plant because they are not on the leaves. hope this helps. They came or migrated from Northern CA about a year ago. Prior to that nobody had ever seen them & alot of local hydro shops still have never seen them so they will be quick to say they are mites. Adult mites are very very small and hard to see without a micro scope. these look like over sized fleas at first then you say to yourself thats a spider mite. but spider mites are not that big and they don't grow wings.