Question
I have a collection of African violets, about a hundred of them. This autumn I brought in my plants from outside and accidentally brought back thrips too. Now they’re everywhere! No matter how much I treat with a homemade insecticidal soap, I can’t get rid of them all: they keep coming back. I know there are systemic pesticides, but I don’t want to use these products, which are harmful to me and to the environment. Are there any natural systemic products? Or do you have any other tips?
Answer
First of all, thrips are tiny insects that scratch plant tissue, causing distorted growth. They spread to other plants by jumping and are difficult to control. In African violets, the most troublesome species is the flower thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis), which bore holes in the anthers, spreading yellow pollen everywhere.
The bad news is that, no, there is no systemic insecticide that is organic. There is, however, a way to suppress flower thrips without pesticides. Since thrips on African violets necessarily spend part of their cycle in the flowers, if you remove all the flowers and flower buds, you’ll eventually starve the thrips and prevent them from reproducing. However, you need to continue for 3 months, removing any flower buds as soon as you see them, if you want it to be effective. In addition, there must be no other thrips-infected plants in the vicinity. Although it’s sad not to see flowers for 3 months, imagine the profusion of flowers you’ll see afterwards, as your plants will store up their energy and bloom like never before at the end of the treatment!
Larry Hodgson published thousands of articles and 65 books over the course of his career, in both French and English. His son, Mathieu, has made it his mission to make his father’s writings accessible to the public. This text was originally published in Le Soleil newspaper on January 15, 2006.
Can she not use neem oil? Would you still need to remove all flowers? Just a thought
Neem oil is no longer approved on Canada as an insecticide. Even if it works, we couldn’t suggest it.
And I’m encountering a group of locusts that regularly eat small flower bushes in front of my house. What should I do? Can someone give me advice?