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DancingWolf
FluffButt



Registered: 08/31/19
Posts: 797
Last seen: 1 month, 5 hours
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Filthy little vermin bugs, what are they?
#26444010 - 01/20/20 10:07 PM (4 years, 9 days ago) |
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So I have these tiny white flies that seem to cause rotting on cactus. I think they start as tiny clear worms that are a little bit thicker than a hair, sorry, no pictures of them ATM. They caused all kinds of problems in the past with my Opuntia cuttings because they would chew on the calloused area, make tiny wounds and rot the plant. I almost lost a Bridgesii cutting not long after I bought it because the demons chewed on the bottom, then it spread all over. The bugs bring black rot and thrive in it, laying worms, eggs, and continuing to destroy like they alone own the plant.
Here is the cutting that I saved last year. I recall halting the scrotes destruction by washing it in copper sulfate, then baking the cutting in the sun so they had nothing left that was wet to live in.

I learned why two of my Gymnocalyciums weren't re-rooting, or uptaking water for the last year. The roots rotted out and up into the core. One was salvageable, the other, maybe, its probably too weak to root. I checked for the same on a domino cactus since it recently had the same problem of slowly dehydrating. After cutting the bottom off, I found a hollow, rotted out cavity where these bastards setup shop, slowly chewing away at it.

Its all cleaned up now, it might root, it might not, its dusted up in sulfur and drying now so it at least gets a chance. The bottom line is, what are the little ****s and how do I prevent them and exterminate their meaningless existence? They are quite tiny, about half a grain of sand, solid white, and fly around.
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BotanicalWizardry
Stranger

Registered: 03/19/19
Posts: 37
Last seen: 1 year, 10 months
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Re: Filthy little vermin bugs, what are they? [Re: DancingWolf]
#26444307 - 01/21/20 05:37 AM (4 years, 8 days ago) |
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Look like fungus gnat larva to me?
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DancingWolf
FluffButt



Registered: 08/31/19
Posts: 797
Last seen: 1 month, 5 hours
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Everything about them has always come across as fungal gnats, but fungal gnats are black and these are entirely white. I have yet to see pictures of white gnats or really any documentation on them and its highly unlikely I have some unique variety, hence why I err as to what they are.
The red boxes aren't larva, they are the flies, they are tiny.
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BotanicalWizardry
Stranger

Registered: 03/19/19
Posts: 37
Last seen: 1 year, 10 months
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Re: Filthy little vermin bugs, what are they? [Re: DancingWolf]
#26444715 - 01/21/20 11:44 AM (4 years, 8 days ago) |
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Ohh I can see the pic so much better on my pc, do they fly? Could be white flies, but actually looks like thrips. I thought they were the bottom of the larvas but sticking out of the soil previously.
Edited by BotanicalWizardry (01/21/20 11:45 AM)
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DancingWolf
FluffButt



Registered: 08/31/19
Posts: 797
Last seen: 1 month, 5 hours
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Yes, they fly around if given the chance.
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Mateo
High on LIFE!



Registered: 06/24/11
Posts: 2,689
Loc: North Europe
Last seen: 3 years, 3 months
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Re: Filthy little vermin bugs, what are they? [Re: DancingWolf]
#26458454 - 01/29/20 12:21 PM (4 years, 10 hours ago) |
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Have you tried some dilute H2O2 (1-3% Hydrogen peroxide) and water the soil with it? It starts fizzing when the H2O2 goes down the soil and it should kill the larva in the soil and it should not be dangerous to the plant.
-------------------- A wise rat has many holes
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