Chonk monster inspecting one leaf for indoor plant pests

CHONK DIRECTORY · Indoor plant care · Guide 6 of 9

Handle houseplant pests

Identify the pest, isolate the plant and work up from physical controls. Treat only after you know what you are treating.

2 min picture guideReviewed 29 August 20266 sources

Picture guide · three scenes

Identify first. Treat second.

Isolate the plant, inspect the signs, then climb from physical controls to a pest-matched response.

01Read the signs

Scene 1

Look before you treat

Inspect several leaves with a hand lens, especially undersides and new growth, then match damage, spots, webbing or wax to the pest.[1][2][3]

  • Shake over white paper
  • Check for webbing
  • Find wax or bumps
02Climb the ladder

Scene 2

Separate, clear, repeat

Isolate the plant, remove dead material and accessible pests, clean the growing area, then monitor repeatedly.[1][3]

  • Separate the plant
  • Remove accessible pests
  • Clean and monitor
03Match the control

Scene 3

Right pest, right response

Use pest-matched biological controls under their required conditions; check pesticide compatibility, authorisation and the current label before applying.[4][5][6]

  • Match pest and control
  • Check required conditions
  • Verify UK authorisation
Open the full pest-control checklist

01

Read the signs

Use a hand lens and inspect more than one leaf.[1][2][3]

  • Thrips: silvery or dull damage with tiny black excrement spots; shake foliage over white paper.
  • Spider mites: fine pale mottling underneath leaves and webbing when severe.
  • Mealybugs: white cotton-like wax in leaf joints; scale: waxy shell-like bumps on stems or leaf undersides, sometimes with sticky honeydew.

02

Use an action ladder

Separate the plant, remove dead material and accessible pests, clean the growing area, then monitor repeatedly. Warm, dry and crowded conditions favour spider mites, but humidity alone will not control an outbreak.[1][3]

03

Match control to the pest

Biological controls are living organisms with specific temperature and humidity needs. Predatory Phytoseiulus mites can control two-spotted spider mite; thrips need a different matched control. Pesticide residues may harm biological controls, so check compatibility first.[4]

Controls and safety

Match the control to the pest

Biological controls are sold by pest and life stage. For pesticides, verify the exact product in the HSE database before buying or applying it.

Evidence used (6 sources)
  1. 1
    Sap-feeding insects on indoor plants ↗Royal Horticultural Society
  2. 2
    Thrips ↗Royal Horticultural Society
  3. 3
    Glasshouse red spider mite ↗Royal Horticultural Society
  4. 4
    Biological control in the garden ↗Royal Horticultural Society
  5. 5
  6. 6
    Garden pesticide product search ↗Health and Safety Executive