Mealy Bugs

• Mealy bugs are small insects that need humidity and warmth to survive. They feed on the plant juices in the leaves and stems of plants. Male mealy bugs have wings, while female mealy bugs are small, oval shaped and white. The mealy bugs may appear to be furry, and they somewhat resemble tiny trilobites.
  
  

Identification

• A large mealy bug infestation will appear as large, white, furry scabs all over a plant, which may be concentrated in various nooks and crannies such as where the leaves meet the stem of the plant. The mealy bugs deposit a substance called honeydew on the leaves of the plant. This substance looks shiny and is sticky to the touch.
  
  

Problems

• Mealy bugs feed on the fluids, or sap, from inside of the leaves and stem of the plant. Female mealy bugs can lay up to 300 eggs and cause a large infestation. This many mealy bugs can remove enough of the plant's important fluids and nutrients that the plant's vascular system collapses, and the plant wilts, loses leaves and eventually dies.
  
  

Management

• Mealy bugs' fuzzy bodies repel liquids very well, so any liquid chemical used on them will have to be used repeatedly until there are no more mealy bugs left. The mealy bug-infested plant should be isolated from other houseplants as much as possible. Place the plant in another room. Insecticidal soaps can remove mealy bugs, as can home remedies such as rubbing alcohol mixed with soap and dish soap mixed with warm water. Soap is effective against mealy bugs because it clogs pores in their bodies and suffocates them.