July 31, 2020
Growing indoor plants can be an incredibly rewarding process. The satisfaction of watching your crop thrive while knowing exactly how the end product was cultivated is unparalleled. However, growing indoor plants does come with its challenges. Whether you are cultivating a crop indoors within a indoor grow tent or outside in a garden bed or greenhouse, pests are more than likely to assault your operation at some point.Rest assured, your indoor grow room doesn’t have to suffer because of its popularity.
Many lifeforms have a taste for indoor plants—from the macro to the micro. There are numerous steps that can be taken to prevent these pesky critters from indulging too heavily and annihilating your crop.
HOW TO DETECT BUGS IN YOUR GROW ROOM EARLY
Pest infestation can be one of the biggest headaches in an indoor grow room. Early detection is key in pest control to prevent from an unfortunate outbreak.
Hanging sticky-traps can be of major benefit in the grow room for two reasons.
The strips catch any flying pests
They act as a good meter of how many (if any) pests are appearing in your grow room/indoor grow tent.
The more insects you see stuck on a trap, the more insects are in the room, so act immediately. Flystrips, or “ribbon” strips, can be hung from the ceiling with a tack. These traps spiral down, creating a landing surface for the flying pests.
Other styles of applicators include trays and square paper. Trays can be set on any horizontal surface, such as a table or desk. Square paper can be mounted onto a vertical surface such as a wall or hung from the ceiling like the ribbon strips.
Once pests are stuck on the strips you can act immediate to prevent an outbreak. No matter which option you choose, be sure to read the instructions and warnings on the packaging.
Use Bugs to Fight Bugs
Some insects are not desirable around our plants, while others we welcome with open arms! Many insects prey upon other pest insects. Ladybugs and lacewings are prime examples. To boost their populations, we buy and release beneficial insects in our garden. This is something I suggest for any type of garden and plants, not just for indoor plants pest control.
Nicotine, the active ingredient in tobacco plants is the most effective insecticide for plants. Growers use it throughout the whole world. It is also quite an affordable solution. To make aerosol tobacco pesticide soak 2 tablespoons of tobacco in 2 liters of water. After 24 hours, pour the mixture into a spray bottle. You will have to dilute the mixture by adding additional water (The exact combination should be 60% tobacco water with 40% of regular water). After that, simply spray the mixture on your plants and get rid of those unwanted pests.
Neem oil is a plant-based concentrated oil, extracted from primarily the seeds of the India-native neem tree. Cold-pressed extractions yield the highest quality virgin neem oil, and contain all the desirable active constituents. That is what we use! Check out a highly-recommended, cold-pressed neem here. In addition to being a natural, mild insecticide, neem also has healing medicinal properties and is commonly used in personal care products.
Neem oil is particularly effective against small soft-bodied insects. Examples include aphids, thrips, spider mites, mealybugs, and white flies – many of those so common to indoor plants. However, it doesn’t seem to bother larger beneficial insects like ladybugs or bees – especially if you take care to spray it only in the evening hours, when beneficial insects are least active. Note that neem doesn’t do much to control caterpillars.
Additionally, that protective shine that neem oil adds to the leaves makes them less susceptible to fungal diseases like powdery mildew, rust, or blight.
As moderate health-nuts and toxin-phobes, we have done quite a bit of research on neem oil. Studies show that the only risk of acute harm to mammals or humans is if they’re exposed to high concentrations of undiluted neem oil. Even with prolonged ingestion of high doses, the internal damage caused typically heals once the exposure is removed! Neem is not carcinogenic, and no chronic health effects from exposure have been found. However, neem concentrates can be toxic to fish and amphibians, so extra precaution should be taken around aquatic environments.
Insecticidal soap is a safe and common organic pesticide. It should be used sparingly to avoid a burning effect, but it can sufficiently kill things like aphids and mites.
Just as the peppermint and neem odors are unappealing and therefore deter pests, essential oils can be used to accomplish the same thing. Essential oils are very, very concentrated – a little goes a long way! If you’d like, try adding just a few drops to the recipe above for a little extra protection. 5 drops or so per gallon of water is good.
Peppermint, lavender, orange, tea tree, or eucalyptus are some good examples of essential oils that act as natural insect repellents, though there are many others as well! We personally love this little mix-pack of certified organic EOs, for personal, home, and garden use.
I hope you found these tips informative and useful! May they help keep your nugs free of bugs.