I noticed (& ignored) some mealies on one of my Sedeveria 'Starburst' or 'Peckerwood' plants. Then I noticed the new growth was super tiny compared to the already small quarter-width normal growth - you can see it in the background. 1/ #sedeveria #mutation #plantmutation #mealybugs #surprisesurprise - ThreadSky

sucsforyou.bsky.social • 23 days ago

I noticed (& ignored) some mealies on one of my Sedeveria 'Starburst' or 'Peckerwood' plants. Then I noticed the new growth was super tiny compared to the already small quarter-width normal growth - you can see it in the background. 1/
#sedeveria #mutation #plantmutation #mealybugs #surprisesurprise

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guineamexico.bsky.social•23 days ago

Quite interesting! How do you treat the mealy bug? I happen to have some plants infected. Been treating it with a pesticide, but I don't think it works good enough

sucsforyou.bsky.social•22 days ago

Oh and also 😅
https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:orueuxpb2tuemg5rcfp6u2nl/post/3lorzksjl3c23

sucsforyou.bsky.social•23 days ago

I think diligence is more important than the method. If it's really bad, I use a systemic but make sure no flowers are allowed to bloom that might affect pollinators. I really rarely do more than just hose the heck out of the plant every other day or so and/or manually remove the pests I can see.

sucsforyou.bsky.social•23 days ago

I also try to catch predatory bugs and put them on my plants. I managed to catch a whirligig mite the other day and put it on this plant. I'll move the plant away from others and hope the rain and predators help.

guineamexico.bsky.social•23 days ago

Thank you for sharing! Not many predatory bugs where I live 😑 (I'm worried about the lack of biodiversity). I will keep up with the manual cleaning 👍 it just gets overwhelming sometimes😅 I tried to be patient but it's not easy

sucsforyou.bsky.social•23 days ago

Welcome! You can try spraying w/ rubbing alcohol and rinsing well after letting it sit for several minutes. You have to be careful not to expose to full sun during the treatment because the alcohol can remove the protective coating on succulents...

sucsforyou.bsky.social•23 days ago

Also need to be cautious about any topical treatment when it's hot out. My favorite predators are lacewing larvae - second best is ladybug larvae. Nurseries sell them sometimes and you can order them as well.

boblovessucculents.bsky.social•22 days ago

I'm trying rubbing alcohol on a plant now. I also like to just scrape them off but haven't had much of a problem so far.

sucsforyou.bsky.social•23 days ago

Definitely a side effect of mealybug damage but honestly, I'm really not mad. I have plenty more that are pest-free and it's interesting to see the mutation and to know how it happened. 2/2

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