How to Get Rid of Soil Mites: Easy Techniques to Learn

How to Get Rid of Soil Mites: Best Tips in 2023: Soil mites are a curse for any grower, as they can quickly ruin a promising crop. You take one look at your plants, only to find them covered in cobwebs and thousands of mites. And despair settles in your heart. It’s a nightmare that growers around the world hope never becomes a reality. Soil mites! Then you wonder where do soil mites come from? How to get rid of soil mites?  These little pests can quickly turn a healthy plant into one that is struggling with death. Fortunately, soil mites can be managed quite well if you catch an infestation early. However, all is not lost and a grower with the right knowledge has a good chance of warding off these parasites, giving the plant a chance to recover.

Soil Mite Detection

 

 

The first thing is how do you detect soil mites? All you need to do is to recognize soil mites correctly. This allows the grower to be on the lookout for them, potentially detecting them before they become full-blown infestations. Soil mites are usually 0.2 to 0.5mm long, pear-shaped, yellow, green, brown, or red in color, and have eight legs. They love a dry, warm environment, and often their target is an already weakened plant.

Soil mites are incredibly easy to spot when their numbers reach the point of infestation. Soil mites spin a protective web over the plant, making it look like there are soils on it. Some soils can actually help protect your plant by killing off harmful insects, but soil mites do it no such favor. There are often hundreds, if not thousands, of the little crawlers in the soil mite’s web, so you will easily find out if the inhabitants are soil or it is a soil mite infestation.

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Prevention 

Now, how to prevent soil mites. The best way to avoid a soil mite infestation is to make sure they don’t become a problem in the first place. Outdoors, this may be a matter of luck and you will have to watch over your plants with eagle eyes. But with infected soil mites indoor plants, there are a few steps you can take. The first is to keep the grow area sterile and tidy. This can help you identify problems and minimize risks. The second is to never bring anything from outside into the grow area – especially soil. Soil and other vegetation can be carriers for pests.

How to Get Rid of Soil Mites

Dealing With Soil Mites Step 1: Clean Your Growing Area

 

 

(If you are growing outdoors, you can skip this step and proceed to Step 2. Other than cleaning the growing area and the plants themselves, there is little you can do).

Now, we show you how to get rid of soil mites. If you are growing indoors, we are sorry to say that you have a lot of work ahead of you. But it can be done. The first thing you need to do is move everything out of the growing area – plants and accessories included. Then you need to clean the entire area, cleaning the floor, walls, and ceiling with soapy water and where it’s safe with bleach. The same goes for all equipment, though of course electrical equipment must be handled with care. Electrical equipment in no way should not be cleaned with water. Where it can be done without danger, simply wipe down the surfaces. These steps should rid your growing area of soil mites – the next step focuses on the plants.

Dealing With Soil Mites Step 2: Save Your Plants

Next, comes removing the mites from your plants. This should be done outside of the recently cleaned growing area. The first action is to spray the plant with something that will kill the mites. For this, you should not use pesticides for general use. First, they could also kill all the beneficial insects, and second, soil mites are resistant to many pesticides.

The best sprays are either neem oil or a miticide. The former is both natural and effective, but less harmful to other life, such as bees, when used in reasonable amounts. A miticide, as the name implies, is a targeted pesticide that is very effective against mites. Note: Both can affect the overall quality of the finished crop, but at least it gives you a chance to actually have one.

Now, we show you how to get rid of soil mites naturally. The second measure you can take, especially if you are growing outside, is to plant natural enemies of the soil mite on your plants. These include:

• Ladybugs
• Lacewing
• Gall midge
• Predatory bug
• Ichneumon fly

These predators will often stay on the plants and make sure the job is done and defend them against future infestation. Depending on where you live, it is also possible to buy some of them, like ladybugs, in bulk on the internet. This can provide complete coverage of the garden. Sure, some will fly away, but many will also find their food.

Tips: If you are growing indoors, be sure that the problem of an infestation has truly been eliminated before you bring your plants back to the growing area.

Final Thoughts: How to Get Rid of Soil Mites

There you have it! Now you know how to get rid of soil mites. Actually, dealing with these parasites is quite easy if you know the process. You just have to be willing to put in the work. And remember, the best solution is prevention. So, keep your eyes open and tackle potential problems right away before they get out of control.

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Frequently Asked Questions 

Should I get rid of soil mites?

Soil mites usually do not cause great damage to the plants and the soil. However, if they start to cause harm to your plants, you should definitely get rid of them.

Is it normal to have soil mites garden soil?

Soil mites are probably the most common pests in houseplants. Gardeners often notice these bugs crawling out of the potting soil, or wandering around the plant whenever the soil is disturbed in any way. 

How to control soil mites?

There are several natural and chemical ways described in this article to get rid of soil mites. Depending on the current condition of your garden you can use any of the methods and spot treat the infested areas.