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By frankgrimes087
Posts:  187
Joined:  Thu Aug 04, 2016 5:20 pm
#417829
The other day I noticed webs on the inside of one of the flytraps on my megatraps and was wondering if these were just from a spider or spider mites? At first I really didn't think too much of it because I usually always have spiders making webs on my flytraps, but what I'm not sure about is what's caught in the webbing? I zoomed up close and they did not look like spider mites. I don't see any signs of damage anywhere so I ended up just spraying them with water and they haven't returned but was curious to what others thought.

Thanks!
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By frankgrimes087
Posts:  187
Joined:  Thu Aug 04, 2016 5:20 pm
#417831
VFTnPups wrote: Sat Aug 06, 2022 9:28 pm It looks like pink pollen. I don’t think that’s mite webbing either. Set your plant aside away from your other vft just in case and observe for the next week or so to see if it comes back.
Thanks for the quick reply appreciate it! I really did not think it was mites but just being cautious! I have sprayed twice this summer so far for spider mites because they love the hot and dry weather here in Phoenix! I know I have been told that you will usually see the damage caused by spider mites before you actually see them.
By frankgrimes087
Posts:  187
Joined:  Thu Aug 04, 2016 5:20 pm
#417833
jetfire245 wrote: Sat Aug 06, 2022 10:38 pm Definitely not spider mites.

Source: Just had spider mites try to take over my plant. Their existence was terminated with neem oil.
I'm glad that you got rid of them, they truly are a nuisance! Just curious, were you getting webbing from the spider mites or the typical damage that they make?
By VFTnPups
Posts:  221
Joined:  Mon Jul 25, 2016 1:08 pm
#417834
frankgrimes087 wrote: Sat Aug 06, 2022 9:34 pm Thanks for the quick reply appreciate it! I really did not think it was mites but just being cautious! I have sprayed twice this summer so far for spider mites because they love the hot and dry weather here in Phoenix! I know I have been told that you will usually see the damage caused by spider mites before you actually see them.
You definitely see the damage first. I’ve only seen red spider mites on my plants and have never seen any kind of webbing from them. There were a handful of mites on this trap and they were reddish-brown and orange-red. I couldn’t get the mites to show up in the pics, but the pocketed brown damage around the trap and under the petioles is clear as day.
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By frankgrimes087
Posts:  187
Joined:  Thu Aug 04, 2016 5:20 pm
#417836
VFTnPups wrote: Sat Aug 06, 2022 11:50 pm
frankgrimes087 wrote: Sat Aug 06, 2022 9:34 pm Thanks for the quick reply appreciate it! I really did not think it was mites but just being cautious! I have sprayed twice this summer so far for spider mites because they love the hot and dry weather here in Phoenix! I know I have been told that you will usually see the damage caused by spider mites before you actually see them.
You definitely see the damage first. I’ve only seen red spider mites on my plants and have never seen any kind of webbing from them. There were a handful of mites on this trap and they were reddish-brown and orange-red. I couldn’t get the mites to show up in the pics, but the pocketed brown damage around the trap and under the petioles is clear as day.
Oh yeah that is definitely classic mite damage! Thanks for sharing the pictures, it is always good to have example of spider mites! Did you use a dedicated miticide? for the past 3 years or so I have used bio advanced 3-1 and it has worked well for me but I need to have something else on hand. I have been thinking about trying Avid that Matt sells at flytrapstore.
By VFTnPups
Posts:  221
Joined:  Mon Jul 25, 2016 1:08 pm
#417839
No miticides on this one. I was able to isolate it and gave it a repeated 24 hour soak in pure water. Seems to have worked. I had an infestation last year on half of my plants. 3-in-1 seemed to be killing all insects/mites except for the spider mites so, I gave all of them 2 treatments of Avid and 2 of Floramite. It worked, but I really hate using those chemicals. Avid especially seems super toxic.
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By frankgrimes087
Posts:  187
Joined:  Thu Aug 04, 2016 5:20 pm
#417843
VFTnPups wrote: Sun Aug 07, 2022 12:21 am No miticides on this one. I was able to isolate it and gave it a repeated 24 hour soak in pure water. Seems to have worked. I had an infestation last year on half of my plants. 3-in-1 seemed to be killing all insects/mites except for the spider mites so, I gave all of them 2 treatments of Avid and 2 of Floramite. It worked, but I really hate using those chemicals. Avid especially seems super toxic.
I always forget about soaking the plant for 24 hours so I will have to remember that. I agree with you about using pesticides, I honestly hate using them and only do if it is absolutely necessary. That's interesting that you mentioned that Avid seems super toxic. Was it really harsh on your plants?
By VFTnPups
Posts:  221
Joined:  Mon Jul 25, 2016 1:08 pm
#417847
No, the plants were fine. The warning labels for Avid were something else, though. I seem to remember having to wear long sleeves, long pants basically no exposed skin, gloves, protective goggles, mask and then wash clothes and taking a shower immediately after. Moving all my plants to an area out of reach from my dogs is also a hassle. I don’t want any of those chemicals anywhere near my pups. I think if I have another serious infestation, I’d like to try predator mites. I need to do more research on those.
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By ChefDean
Location: 
Posts:  9236
Joined:  Tue Sep 18, 2018 12:44 am
#418011
Just found the beginnings of a spider mite invasion.
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It was limited to this one trap and two leaves, and was treated with Avid. Just as a precaution, I also treated the plants around it. In my experience, catching it early like this will only necessitate a couple treatments for the area, and maybe three or four for that specific plant.
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By frankgrimes087
Posts:  187
Joined:  Thu Aug 04, 2016 5:20 pm
#418122
ChefDean wrote: Tue Aug 09, 2022 11:53 pm Just found the beginnings of a spider mite invasion.
20220809_184323.jpg
It was limited to this one trap and two leaves, and was treated with Avid. Just as a precaution, I also treated the plants around it. In my experience, catching it early like this will only necessitate a couple treatments for the area, and maybe three or four for that specific plant.
I most definitely recognize the tell tale signs of spider mites like the example you provided, but what about in my case? As I was watering this morning I found another flytrap with those same little black dots ( and I thought I even saw red dots this time but not completely sure) like in the picture I provided so something is there. The thing is I'm not seeing the typical spider mite damage but I still sprayed because I just never see this on my plants and it started to get me worried lol... Was it a bad move on my part to spray or is it good once in awhile to do a preventive spray in a situation like mine?
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By ChefDean
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Posts:  9236
Joined:  Tue Sep 18, 2018 12:44 am
#418130
Flytraps are pretty tough, so an unnecessary treatment won't really be a problem for them. I would just recommend against using any chemicals if you didn't need to. Any preventative applications should probably be limited to the surrounding plants of a known infestation.
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By frankgrimes087
Posts:  187
Joined:  Thu Aug 04, 2016 5:20 pm
#418131
ChefDean wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 10:06 pm Flytraps are pretty tough, so an unnecessary treatment won't really be a problem for them. I would just recommend against using any chemicals if you didn't need to. Any preventative applications should probably be limited to the surrounding plants of a known infestation.
That's what I try to do because I do not like spraying unless it is absolutely necessary, but in this case I honestly didn't know what to think about it. I felt like it was some kind of pest and didn't know if it would be wise to leave them un treated. I still feel like maybe I jumped the gun since there technically was no damage done but I just cant explain the webbing with the little dots and some that looked red (I think). I know I have lots of spiders on my plants making webbing so yeah idk haha!
By frankgrimes087
Posts:  187
Joined:  Thu Aug 04, 2016 5:20 pm
#418132
ChefDean wrote: Thu Aug 11, 2022 10:06 pm Flytraps are pretty tough, so an unnecessary treatment won't really be a problem for them. I would just recommend against using any chemicals if you didn't need to. Any preventative applications should probably be limited to the surrounding plants of a known infestation.
I forgot to add that someone did mention to me that they could be some sort of mite. I know there are predatory mites, but are there other mites that are also harmful to plants?

I went ahead and just updated this post because I wanted to see what you thought about this example that I found while was looking at the plants this morning. This looks similar to what you showed me yesterday except in my picture it is very small, or can this be some type of trauma? See this is where I get confused with spider mites.
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