Spider mites on harvest, can I just wash the buds?

C

cananoob85

Member
I'm planning on harvesting my Mexican Airlines Auto in a few days, she's about 10 weeks old. I was not paying that much attention and have a spider mite problem, little crawling things underneath the lower leaves, some black spots (shit probably) and a few tiny webs.
Pictures:
picture 1
picture 2

What is the proper way of washing the buds? Is it cool if I use two plastic containers (5 liters, or 1.3 gallons, the plant is quite small) with room temperature water? First one will have 10 teaspoons of baking soda and 10 teaspoons of lemon juice. Each branch will have its leaves removed and dunked in the first container for a minute. Then I'll wash it off in the second container that has only clean water.

I do not have a spare tent, so they'll have to go back to the same one as before. Apparently, the remaining mites will abandon ship in the next few days. I could trap them on some sticky ducktape, just to get some revenge.
 
PopAndSonGrows

PopAndSonGrows

Well-Known Member
Always cold water on bud washes, you want to keep everything as cool as possible but not ice cold.

I'd look it up but if you're washing off bugs i believe it's at least 2 buckets, one with diluted H202 and the second just a clean cold rinse. Use 5-gal buckets as they're usually deep enough for you to dunk a bud or branch without touching the sides or bottom of the bucket.
 
go go kid

go go kid

Well-Known Member
Natural Ways to Get Rid Of Spider Mites
  • Using a vacuum on low power is a good idea. It will suck the mites of the cannabis plants. Do the job gently.
  • Mark the infested leaves and physically remove the mites. To do so, you can simply prune or cut down the infested leaves.
  • To get rid of the mites, you can also spray water. Get a hose and a forceful spray for removing the spider mites. Using a multi-hose sprayer and adding soapy water to it is another good idea.
  • You can collect some ladybugs from online or nurseries as spider mites are one of the favorite foods of ladybugs. However, this may not work like a champ if you are an outdoor grower as there is a chance that ladybugs can fly off. On the other hand, if you are an indoor grower who is growing cannabis in grow rooms or greenhouses, using ladybugs can be a great option.
  • Apply neem oil to kill spider mites. It’s one of the most useful organic pesticides that both kill the mites and prevent further infestation.
Using Insecticides to Get Rid Of Spider Mites
Saying fair and square, using insecticides should be the last thing to do to kill spider mites. Using something natural and preventative is always a better option. However, if it’s too late and your plants are covered with a huge number of spider mites, you have to use insecticides.

You will find some commercial insecticides such as Bio-advanced, Ortho, 3 in 1, and others.

And, here’s a bonus tip for you. You can use these tips below to get rid of spider mites from your plants.

  • Get a water sprayer
  • Put some black soap in the sprayer
  • Add neem oil to the black soap
  • Fill the sprayer with water
  • Spray under and above the stems, all of the foliage, and everything.
For using the black soap, the water will stick to the leaves. Also, the black soap here lets the neem oil spread all over. When spider mites join into the neem oil, they will die.

But a point to be noted here, this method is not for killing the eggs. So, you better go through these steps right after they hatch. It will kill any individuals.

Also, there are a number of insecticidal soaps and organics insecticides in the market that control spider mites. Let’s check them out:

  • Essentria IC3: This organic spray contains a combination of some useful horticultural oils. You can easily apply it to your plants with a mister. But one limitation of this spray is, it will be active for only 8-12 hours. Therefore, you should use it daily.
  • Spinosad: This organic product is also completely harmless. You can kill spider mites using it directly or add it to the plants’ water supply. It will ensure long-term protection against pests like spider mites.
  • Insecticidal soaps: Here’s another great way to spot-treat the infested parts of your plants. But you may need a couple of more treatments since soap will not be staying active for a long time.
Although the most common essential oil in order to control spider mites is Neem oil, there are some more types that work well.

  • Lemon oil
  • Eucalyptus oil
  • Peppermint oil
  • Cinnamon oil
  • Rosemary oil
You can simply mix the oils with water as well as apply them to your mites.
 
go go kid

go go kid

Well-Known Member
if you act fast, you can minimalise the infestation, but dont wait long, the little bastards reproduse fast
 
Eddit123

Eddit123

New Member
I had the same problem. Some people recommend soap and water. DO NOT DO THAT. The soap will strip the oils from your leaves. The 2 best options....1. Neem Oil. 2. (And my personal favorite) LADYBUGS. If go onto Amazon you can buy between 300 and 1500. I recommend the express shipping. That took care of the problem within days. You should NEVER use Neem oil late into flowering....but the Ladybugs are not expensive....and they are Mite Killers.
 
Herb & Suds

Herb & Suds

Well-Known Member
Eddit123 said:
I had the same problem. Some people recommend soap and water. DO NOT DO THAT. The soap will strip the oils from your leaves. The 2 best options....1. Neem Oil. 2. (And my personal favorite) LADYBUGS. If go onto Amazon you can buy between 300 and 1500. I recommend the express shipping. That took care of the problem within days. You should NEVER use Neem oil late into flowering....but the Ladybugs are not expensive....and they are Mite Killers.
Click to expand...
And WELCOME to RIU :weed:
fresh new member
 
Milky Weed

Milky Weed

Well-Known Member
go go kid said:
Natural Ways to Get Rid Of Spider Mites
  • Using a vacuum on low power is a good idea. It will suck the mites of the cannabis plants. Do the job gently.
  • Mark the infested leaves and physically remove the mites. To do so, you can simply prune or cut down the infested leaves.
  • To get rid of the mites, you can also spray water. Get a hose and a forceful spray for removing the spider mites. Using a multi-hose sprayer and adding soapy water to it is another good idea.
  • You can collect some ladybugs from online or nurseries as spider mites are one of the favorite foods of ladybugs. However, this may not work like a champ if you are an outdoor grower as there is a chance that ladybugs can fly off. On the other hand, if you are an indoor grower who is growing cannabis in grow rooms or greenhouses, using ladybugs can be a great option.
  • Apply neem oil to kill spider mites. It’s one of the most useful organic pesticides that both kill the mites and prevent further infestation.
Using Insecticides to Get Rid Of Spider Mites
Saying fair and square, using insecticides should be the last thing to do to kill spider mites. Using something natural and preventative is always a better option. However, if it’s too late and your plants are covered with a huge number of spider mites, you have to use insecticides.

You will find some commercial insecticides such as Bio-advanced, Ortho, 3 in 1, and others.

And, here’s a bonus tip for you. You can use these tips below to get rid of spider mites from your plants.

  • Get a water sprayer
  • Put some black soap in the sprayer
  • Add neem oil to the black soap
  • Fill the sprayer with water
  • Spray under and above the stems, all of the foliage, and everything.
For using the black soap, the water will stick to the leaves. Also, the black soap here lets the neem oil spread all over. When spider mites join into the neem oil, they will die.

But a point to be noted here, this method is not for killing the eggs. So, you better go through these steps right after they hatch. It will kill any individuals.

Also, there are a number of insecticidal soaps and organics insecticides in the market that control spider mites. Let’s check them out:

  • Essentria IC3: This organic spray contains a combination of some useful horticultural oils. You can easily apply it to your plants with a mister. But one limitation of this spray is, it will be active for only 8-12 hours. Therefore, you should use it daily.
  • Spinosad: This organic product is also completely harmless. You can kill spider mites using it directly or add it to the plants’ water supply. It will ensure long-term protection against pests like spider mites.
  • Insecticidal soaps: Here’s another great way to spot-treat the infested parts of your plants. But you may need a couple of more treatments since soap will not be staying active for a long time.
Although the most common essential oil in order to control spider mites is Neem oil, there are some more types that work well.

  • Lemon oil
  • Eucalyptus oil
  • Peppermint oil
  • Cinnamon oil
  • Rosemary oil
You can simply mix the oils with water as well as apply them to your mites.
Click to expand...
The vacuum is an amazing idea, thanks For that. I wonder if you can vaccume aphids too?
 
xtsho

xtsho

Well-Known Member
NanoGadget said:
damn.. I am so glad I've never dealt with the borg. little fuckers. Hopefully someone who has battled them will chime in with good advice. best of luck!
Click to expand...
The best advice is good IPM so you don't get them. I had them bad one time years ago. I had heard about them and thought I couldn't get them. Then BOOM they showed up. Dozens of plants affected, webbing and all that. It was so late in flower that I used the vacuum trick to suck up what I could. It sucked pretty bad. After that I started using neem weekly in veg. I have kept a closer eye on my plants since then and have only had a few small outbreaks that I knocked out with citric acid before they had a chance to spread to more than a few leaves. It's much easier to identify them early now that I don't have an entire basement filled with plants. Now it takes me just a couple minutes to give my plants a good looking over a couple times a week.

They are really easy to spot early on if you keep an eye on the leaves. There is no mistaking those small white spots on the tops of the leaves from where the mites are sucking the blood from the plant on the undersides of the leaves.
 
R

Redeyes82

Active Member
Eddit123 said:
I had the same problem. Some people recommend soap and water. DO NOT DO THAT. The soap will strip the oils from your leaves. The 2 best options....1. Neem Oil. 2. (And my personal favorite) LADYBUGS. If go onto Amazon you can buy between 300 and 1500. I recommend the express shipping. That took care of the problem within days. You should NEVER use Neem oil late into flowering....but the Ladybugs are not expensive....and they are Mite Killers.
Click to expand...
I used dawn dish soap and water to treat spider mite infestation with no ill effect on plant appearance or growth. I even quit rinsing it off after I got comfortable with it. Took a great deal of time wiping each leaf with a soapy sponge and even dipping whole plants upside down in buckets or trash cans of soapy water. Did this every three days for a half year or so. Of course id stop after three weeks flower. Took a long time but I won.
 
go go kid

go go kid

Well-Known Member
Milky Weed said:
The vacuum is an amazing idea, thanks For that. I wonder if you can vaccume aphids too?
Click to expand...
it works well, but i use
https://www.dragonfli.co.uk/collections/spider-mite/products/sb-plant-invigorator
and preditor mite sachets, you just hang them up on your plant branches
www.dragonfli.co.uk

Spidex Boost - Curative, Fast-Release Spider Mite Sachets

What Are Spider Mites & How Do I Identify Them? There are several species of Spider Mite with the most common being the Two Spotted Spider Mite (tetranychus urticae). These mites have an oval body and eight legs. They vary in colour from green, yellow, orange-red and dark brown. The eggs are...
www.dragonfli.co.uk www.dragonfli.co.uk
if you get them now, you should be able to controle them, along with the vacuume cleaner, with the vac, cut a mild bottle up and make a funnel out of it and stick it to the end of you vacuume nozzel, you get enough suckshion without damaging your polants
 
Eddit123

Eddit123

New Member
Redeyes82 said:
I used dawn dish soap and water to treat spider mite infestation with no ill effect on plant appearance or growth. I even quit rinsing it off after I got comfortable with it. Took a great deal of time wiping each leaf with a soapy sponge and even dipping whole plants upside down in buckets or trash cans of soapy water. Did this every three days for a half year or so. Of course id stop after three weeks flower. Took a long time but I won.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the info.... maybe I used too much soap...and I didn't rinse....
 
dank'd

dank'd

Well-Known Member
in two days the mites left my plants after hanging them(3 balcony plants yielding over 6 ounces each)

check out the gross pics

although rh was so low being it was almost mid october they lost all their good flavour just within those two days

the mites weren't on any buds btw

2020-10-03_mites.JPG
2020-10-12_mites1.jpg
2020-10-12_mites4.JPG
^ a city of mites covered in a dome of slime at the top of the hanging plants stem. smells like puss
2020-10-12_mites5.png
^close up of the slime encased mite city
2020-10-12_mites7.JPG
clean source of nutrition
 
R

Redeyes82

Active Member
Bro you got mites that close in on fans and sugars like you have in that pic and you definitely have mites in your bud. No biggie though. I have no problem smoking spites. Its not what I prefer but if it happens than I’m still gonna smoke it
 
PadawanWarrior

PadawanWarrior

Well-Known Member
cananoob85 said:
I'm planning on harvesting my Mexican Airlines Auto in a few days, she's about 10 weeks old. I was not paying that much attention and have a spider mite problem, little crawling things underneath the lower leaves, some black spots (shit probably) and a few tiny webs.
Pictures:
picture 1
picture 2

What is the proper way of washing the buds? Is it cool if I use two plastic containers (5 liters, or 1.3 gallons, the plant is quite small) with room temperature water? First one will have 10 teaspoons of baking soda and 10 teaspoons of lemon juice. Each branch will have its leaves removed and dunked in the first container for a minute. Then I'll wash it off in the second container that has only clean water.

I do not have a spare tent, so they'll have to go back to the same one as before. Apparently, the remaining mites will abandon ship in the next few days. I could trap them on some sticky ducktape, just to get some revenge.
Click to expand...
Everytime I see Mexican Airlines I think of S&M Airlines by NOFX.
 
D

DaFreak

Well-Known Member
cananoob85 said:
I'm planning on harvesting my Mexican Airlines Auto in a few days, she's about 10 weeks old. I was not paying that much attention and have a spider mite problem, little crawling things underneath the lower leaves, some black spots (shit probably) and a few tiny webs.
Pictures:
picture 1
picture 2

What is the proper way of washing the buds? Is it cool if I use two plastic containers (5 liters, or 1.3 gallons, the plant is quite small) with room temperature water? First one will have 10 teaspoons of baking soda and 10 teaspoons of lemon juice. Each branch will have its leaves removed and dunked in the first container for a minute. Then I'll wash it off in the second container that has only clean water.

I do not have a spare tent, so they'll have to go back to the same one as before. Apparently, the remaining mites will abandon ship in the next few days. I could trap them on some sticky ducktape, just to get some revenge.
Click to expand...
If you're cutting down I would just wet trim them and let them hang. Any bugs that you didn't cut off in the wet trim or drop off will go to the top of the stem hanging down. Anything left is protein.
 
Drop That Sound

Drop That Sound

Well-Known Member
They'll just lay eggs in the vacuum that can hatch 3-4 months later. Don't get me wrong though, sucking up pests is the most satisfying feeling ever. Mites, wasp nests, ant colonies... I would filter the exhaust somehow at the least.

I would just go ahead and smoke it as is after that (one plant no big deal), trying not to spread them even more, and put all your gear (including the tent) in large garbage bags with hot shot no pest strips for a week. The vacuum too, after you use it, if you do.

Your next run will be even more infested unless you shut down and exterminate every last one. Quit growing for months and bomb the house over and over.

Or, you know, continuously spray and spend upwards of hours per week trying to keep them in check. Unfortunately, that may be the only option. Come to terms and try to form a symbiotic relationship. One where you and the mites can exist together, and still enjoy the harvest.
 
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