How to get rid of spider mites on a rose

Spider mite is a pest that affects the vast majority of horticultural crops, both ornamental and fruit-bearing. Roses are also not immune from his attack. If nothing is done, the bushes will dry out and die. Therefore, the spider mite on a rose is a pest that you need to start fighting immediately after it is discovered. A suitable remedy is chosen depending on the degree of neglect of the problem and other factors.

What does a spider mite look like on roses

Spider mite is a pest that affects absolutely any kind of roses. There are very few varieties and hybrids protected from it so far. In general, his “sphere of interest” is extremely wide, he is a polyphage and attacks more than 200 fruit-bearing and ornamental horticultural crops. The pest is extremely common, lives on all continents, with the exception of Antarctica.

Individuals are small (0,4-0,6 mm), so it is problematic to see them on rose bushes with the naked eye: they are approximately comparable in size to grains of sand. Even the bright orange-red or crimson-crimson coloring of females does not help (males are much “nondescript” – greenish-brown).

The appearance of the spider mite is typical of arachnids

The pest settles on plants in whole colonies. Their number reaches at least 200 individuals. They overwinter and eggs in plant or other debris in a flower bed or shallow in the soil.

In spring, spider mites on roses become active quite early, again laying eggs, from which transparent green larvae hatch. They go through a development cycle quickly: if there is enough food, it takes only a week for them to turn into adults capable of reproduction.

You can detect the pest by thin, translucent “cobwebs” braiding the plant. Most of them are on the youngest and “tender” parts of the bush: buds, just opened leaves, tops of shoots.

Why did the spider mite appear on the rose

Due to their microscopic size and minimal weight, spider mites are very easily carried by the wind along with dust over long distances, especially in dry weather. Therefore, rose bushes are not immune to infection at any time during the season.

Most often, the first pest is “picked up” by plants located on the periphery of the site. Then they quickly spread to the entire territory. Precipitation, long-term cloudy cool weather and birds can “slow down” the settlement process a little, but the problem is not completely eliminated in such ways.

The risk of infection increases significantly if the immunity of the bushes is weakened by poor-quality care. Also, the plant is negatively affected by the wrong choice of a landing site.

At home, spider mites most often get on roses after buying new, already infected instances of indoor flowers. Therefore, it is impossible to neglect the “quarantine” for them and preventive treatments. Much less often it is “blown away” through an open window, but this option is also not excluded.

The gardener himself can unintentionally “bring” a spider mite onto roses

Aftermath

Spider mite is a pest that feeds on plant sap. And because of the large number of the process is very fast. Accordingly, if you do not poison spider mites on garden and indoor roses, the negative consequences, first of all, appear on the aerial part.

They are as follows:

1. Numerous small discolored dots appear on the leaves – areas of tissue from which the pest sucks the juice. As the tissues dry out and die, they turn into black “specks”.
2. The leaves dry completely, starting with the appearance of a narrow border around the edge, turn yellow, curl up and die. At first, roses lose 1-2 leaves per day, but rather quickly the leaf fall becomes “massive”.
3. The development of plants greatly slows down, practically stops, they weaken and lose their tone literally before our eyes. Bushes cease to bloom and form buds. The existing ones dry up and fall off.
4. The rose is almost completely entangled in the threads of the web. The “carpet” of them seems to be “moving” due to the large number of adults.

The spider mite feeds on the sap of plants, so the leaves of roses inevitably dry out.

If you do not fight spider mites on outdoor roses, you can almost certainly say that the plant will die due to radically disrupted photosynthesis and metabolism. The root system will not cope with the task of restoring the above-ground part.

Control measures for spider mites on roses

There are a lot of means to combat spider mites on roses. A suitable option is chosen, taking into account the severity of the lesion, the location of the rose, its own principles for growing different crops in the garden and other factors.

Chemical preparations for spider mites on roses

Chemicals in the fight against spider mites on roses are a kind of “heavy artillery”. Such drugs are used when there are no other options left, since the infection process has already gone too far.

Many of them are hazardous to human health, pets and the environment. Therefore, processing is carried out in strict accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions. This is especially true of their frequency and concentration of the working solution.

To save roses from spider mites, gardeners use:

1. Actellik. Insectoacaricide of enteric-contact action based on pirimiphosmethyl. Most often, in order to get rid of the pest, two treatments with an interval of a week are enough.
   
   

   Actellik, due to its toxicity, is only allowed to be used outdoors.

2. Apollo. Acaricide based on clofentezin. After a single treatment, it provides protection for 2-3 months. It destroys eggs and larvae at all stages of development, “sterilizes” adults, depriving them of the ability to reproduce.
   
   

   Apollo is valued by gardeners for its economical consumption – to prepare a working solution, an ampoule (2 ml) is diluted in 5 liters of water

3. Floramaite. The effectiveness of this acaricide provides bifenazat. After processing, it begins to “work” very quickly – within 1,5-2 hours. Pests on the bushes do not remain for 3-4 days, protection lasts for 3-3,5 weeks.
   
   

   Floramite is used strictly according to the instructions, otherwise, the pest quickly develops resistance to the drug.

4. Fufanon. Insectoacaricide based on malathion. The mechanism of action is contact. It not only destroys
   
   

   It is not advisable to use Fufanon for two consecutive seasons – its effectiveness is noticeably reduced.

Folk remedies for spider mites on roses

Folk remedies, if the spider mite has already settled on roses, it is inexpedient to use in most cases. They are recommended for prevention, for example, when a pest is found on other plants in the garden.

To treat roses from spider mites, you can use:

1. Infusion of onion or garlic. You can use both “feathers” and cloves, heads crushed into gruel. Approximately 0,5 kg of raw materials are poured into 3 liters of warm water. Insist in a dark place for a week. The finished liquid is filtered, diluted in water at the rate of 80-100 ml per 10 liters of water.
   
   

   Onions and garlic are effective not only against spider mites on roses: the pungent smell is unpleasant for many insects

2. A decoction of tobacco. You can use both fresh leaves and tobacco chips. About 300 g is poured with boiling water for a day, then boiled over low heat for 1,5-2 hours. The finished product is cooled to room temperature and filtered.
   
   

   To enhance the effectiveness of tobacco decoction, you can add mustard powder or ground chili to it.

3. A solution of household or green potassium soap. Approximately 80-100 g is rubbed on a fine grater and whipped into foam in 10 liters of water.
   
   

   Soapy solution is used only to treat the bushes themselves, they do not spray the soil in the flower bed

Biopreparations

A significant advantage of drugs of biological origin is their safety for human health and the environment. They can be used to treat both home and garden roses from spider mites. However, in the most “severe cases” they most likely will not help.

How can you cure roses from spider mites:

1. Fitoverm. A very broad-spectrum insecticide based on several types of soil-dwelling fungi. It begins to act when it enters the digestive system and in direct contact with the integumentary membranes. To achieve the desired result, 3-4 treatments with an interval of 7-8 days are required.
   
   

   Fitoverm is not always only useful: with frequent treatments, it destroys the “necessary” insects in the soil and on the bushes

2. Bitoxibacillin. Insectoacaricide of intestinal action. Destroys only adults and spider mite larvae on roses, paralyzing them. It is safe for eggs, so one treatment will not work.
   
   

   Bitoxibacillin is most effective in cool weather (up to 22 ° C)

Prevention of spider mites on roses in the garden and at home

It is impossible to completely guarantee that the spider mite will not attack roses. But a set of simple preventive measures can significantly reduce the risk:

1. Thoroughly inspect roses for suspicious signs similar to spider mite infestation upon purchase. The specimens already in the garden and on the windowsill also need to be inspected at least once every 7-10 days. Having found yellowing foliage, it is recommended to carry out preventive treatment with folk remedies against spider mites.
2. Be sure to send purchased seedlings and indoor flowers to the “quarantine”. For the pest to “show itself”, 7-10 days are enough.
3. Every year at the end of the season, remove vegetable and other debris from the flower bed with roses, loosen the soil deeply. The spider mite, and even more so its eggs and larvae, having lost their shelter, will not endure the winter cold. The collected garbage cannot be “stored” on the site, it is burned or destroyed in another way.
4. Regularly prune, follow the rose planting pattern, take other measures to prevent “crowding” in the flower bed. The “closer” the landing, the faster the spider mite spreads.
5. Periodically irrigate plants from the “soul”. Spider mite does not tolerate high humidity. However, it should be borne in mind that the flowers of many varieties of roses lose their decorative effect after such a procedure, so it can not always be carried out.
6. Provide roses with competent care, first of all, watering and top dressing. High-quality agricultural technology has a positive effect on the overall tone and endurance of the plant, it becomes less susceptible to diseases and pest attacks, including spider mites.

Even the most healthy and “blooming”-looking roses are recommended to be regularly examined for signs of damage.

Conclusion

Spider mite on a rose is a dangerous pest that feeds on plant sap. In severe cases, his attack on the bushes leads to their death. Therefore, it is impossible to ignore the symptoms indicating its appearance on the bushes. To combat spider mites, both folk remedies and specialized preparations are used.