Not all homeowners have the luxury of having mineral-rich soils, especially if they don’t have enough space to have an outdoor garden. Thankfully, indoor setups don’t always have to restrict you with potted plants. Hydroponics is an excellent way to create an indoor garden without needing large spaces and heavy maintenance on soils. Although hydroponic setups have several growing advantages, that doesn’t mean they’re free from the threat of indoor pests.
Identifying potential pests in hydroponic gardens
Knowing what kinds of pests you’ll potentially deal with is the first step to setting up a prevention strategy. Since every insect past has a unique pattern of activity, you can pre-empt and mitigate the potential threat they can bring to your hydroponic plants. Listed below are three pests you should expect with a hydroponic setup.
- Whiteflies
Although they’re practically harmless to humans, whiteflies are troublesome to handle since their eggs can come with purchasing your gardening essentials. If you have a store-bought plant replanted into your hydroponic setup, there’s a chance that whitefly eggs may already come with it. Otherwise, they can come from outdoors and sneak into your home undetected since they generally don’t make a distinct sound.
Whiteflies suck the juices from your plant, causing leaves to turn yellow and drop prematurely. If you’re dealing with a sizable infestation, they can cause eventual plant death. Thankfully, whiteflies are pretty easy to spot, similar to tiny white moths that easily fly away when spotted.
- Spider mites
Spider mites are a bit trickier than whiteflies since they’re much smaller in size, being just under 1mm in length. They’re much harder to detect because of their size, making it difficult for your plants to escape an infestation if you detect them too late.
Spider mites cause direct damage, which can affect ornamental plants’ appearances significantly. Although they’re not harmful to humans and animals, they can cause yellow and brown spots to sprout from where they harmed your plant. This may seem ignorable at first but can stunt a plant’s growth or kill them prematurely. If you notice signs of webbing on a plant, spider mites are likely nesting nearby.
- Thrips
Thrips are common indoor pests that damage plants by sucking the sap from your plants. Additionally, they have a habit of scraping at fruits, leaves, and flowers, causing them to turn pale and splotchy over time. The injured plants also turn scarred and twisted, with a noticeable blackish hue. Thrips look similar to litter worms which makes them a lot more visible than spider mites or whiteflies.
Although they’re easier to spot, they’re also more deadly indoors. Adult and larval thrips are known to bite people that can cause rashes and other dermal reactions. Thankfully, they aren’t harmful enough to transmit diseases. However, the irritations from these bites can be more severe for people with sensitive skin.
Conclusion
It’s best to be cautious about dealing with pest problems since your potential solutions can cause damage to your plants. For this reason, it’s better to use natural products that can effectively remove pests without harming your crops. Unlike traditional pest control methods, our Clove Oil solution is an eco-friendly method that can keep your plants healthy and safe from danger. It removes fungi, bacteria, and other insects that will attempt to harm your plants.
Maintaining your hydroponic setup requires you to purchase gardening essentials that can assist your crop’s growth. At Organic AG Products, we provide gardeners with the best natural insecticides, quality organic fertilizers, weed killer sprays, and more! Shop through our online store today!