If you overwinter your plants indoors and are not careful, you often have to deal with pests such as aphids.
There is a need for quick action here.
Now that the plants have been brought to safety from the frost just in time, the next danger is already looming in the winter quarters: pests such as aphids and mealybugs, spider mites or whiteflies warmly welcome the green newcomers to the four walls - if they haven't already left were brought in outside.
A regular check for pests is therefore the be-all and end-all when overwintering potted plants from the garden or balcony.
Aphids, spider mites & Co.: Get rid of them quickly during the winter
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The rather inconspicuous scale insect is one of the most common plant pests in winter quarters.
© Manfred Ruckszio/Imago
If you don't take the vermin seriously and fight them promptly, you can lose your otherwise carefully cared for plants within a few weeks - and this applies not only to those from the garden, but also to indoor plants to which the pests can migrate.
The pests really scent the sensitive plants.
Temperature differences, little fresh air, different lighting conditions and lack of care in the winter quarters weaken geraniums and the like and attract the pests like ticks attract blood.
To prevent this from happening, you should remove diseased and withered leaves during the winter and check the potted plants for pests immediately.
Very common are:
Whitefly: According to
Gartenflora.de
, adult animals, larvae and eggs can be found on the underside of the leaves.
Control: with yellow tablets, soapy water and rapeseed or neem oil preparations.
Aphids and scale insects: Brown or green aphids and sticky marks on leaves and branches.
Control: Remove animals with kitchen paper or the back of a knife and treat the plant with a rapeseed oil preparation or a mixture of soft soap and alcohol.
Mealybug: White, sticky, "woolly" lice on leaves and in top soil.
Control: Neem oil for the leaves;
Remove lice from the soil, repot the plant if the infestation is severe.
Spider Mite: A fine, often reddish, spider web-like web containing tiny spider-like animals.
Control: shower the plant, spray it regularly with water and possibly wrap a plastic bag around the plant so that there is high humidity.
Fight pests in the garden: 10 suitable home remedies
Fight pests in the garden: 10 suitable home remedies
Create good conditions for plants in winter quarters
The best way to be on the safe side is to isolate the affected plants from others.
The following measures are also important when moving to the winter quarters:
Depending on the plant, pruning is beneficial as it reduces the leaf mass, robs it of its strength and in which even more pests can nest.
A rather low room temperature protects the plants better than too warm, dry heating air.
Don't water too much.
In a room that is too dark, plant lights provide energy and strength to resist pests.
According to Mein Schönen Garten
, the plants tolerate
a cold phase in front of the door on mild winter days.
You can find even more exciting garden topics in the regular newsletter of our partner 24garten.de.
Even if everything went well in the beginning, you should still check the plants for pests about once a week.
List of rubrics: © Manfred Ruckszio/Imago
