little bugs crawling in my soil

[wub]

hey,

im a first time grower. and i have little tiny bugs crawling around in my soil. i have done some research and i could almost say they are spider mites. but they arent nescesarily on the plant. its a baby seedling and i see one or two of the suckers on the plant crawling around but most are just running around in the soil and on the rim of my pot. the temps in my growbox are about 32- 35. they are whiteish yellow and they look closest to spider mites.

 

yeh so any help would be appreciated

[need4weed3]

Hey wub got any pictures man???

[wub]

hey man cheers for the quick reply i didnt think i could do it. but i think i have. was hard work but got a picture of one of the suckers.

[Radic]

dont panic

not all bugs are nasty

some are predatory

they eat the nasty bugs

and that looks like hypoaspis miles

check dis link

http://www.biconet.com/biocontrol/hypoaspis.html

 

try and get a positive id before you take any action

 

irey giudance

[67Special]

dont panic

not all bugs are nasty

some are predatory

they eat the nasty bugs

and that looks like hypoaspis miles

check dis link

http://www.biconet.com/biocontrol/hypoaspis.html

 

try and get a positive id before you take any action

 

irey giudance

I hope you're right radic! My little aquaponics setup is crawling with these buggers. If they were Spider mites they'd be all over the plant I think, but these love really damp/soaked soil it seems.

They don't seem to worry established plants in the system, but I'm blaming them for chewing the guts out of the last round of cuttings that I had in there but that could be unrelated entirely

Since then I've changed things so they get flooded out. The fish love em

 

Do they seem to be worrying your seedling wub?

 

 

PS That link is a ripper Radic

[Radic]

i am only guessing too

that is not a very clear pic either

 

do some research

it is important to get a positive ID of you pest

use google image

yer that is an irey site

i didnt really look it

i just put --->hypoaspis miles <----in the google scearch and that was the first site that came up

google rulez

 

i would love to try aquaponics

yes i

gotta love dat

 

irey guidance

[wub]

yeh i just checked on my baby just then and there are a significant increase in them since last night however they just crawling in my moist soil and i cant even see one on my little seedling. so yeh that picture looks like the little suckers but mine are completly whiteish yellow with now brown on them. they do look like they have antennae as well. its pretty hard to get a glim[se of them though because they dont sit still. also when i looked there was a white layer of something on like a small woodchip. and there were a couple of them. fungus? ooo i hope theyre mushies hahah. but yeh seriously i think its those mile things and should i just leave them? i hope they arent attacking my root system.

thanks for your help.

[nitram]

Hi wub,

 

If they were Spider mites they'd be all over the plant I think, but these love really damp/soaked soil it seems....... yeh i just checked on my baby just then and there are a significant increase in them since last night however they just crawling in my moist soil[

 

This is all a stab in the dark & a possibility for you to consider & as Radic points out it is essential you get positive identification & confirmation of the species to deal with them, if at all.

 

Consider ;

 

I think you can count out spider mites - my stab in the dark is 'sacred fly' or some form of fungus 'gaunts' [? spelling?] .

 

Spider mites, as I am sure your are aware, are not moist medium dwellers but leaf feeders, who are suckers that multiply (like all /most insets pests at high rates. The photo you provided is great by the way.

 

 

Do the little fella's look like they may develop wings & set flight ?

 

Have you seen any small black flys in your grow room lately?

 

How are the roots - can you see them or not ?

 

In you picture & post say say your compost is "moist"'

"sacred fly" I believe, is a medium dweller which likes to lay eggs in moist/wet mediums. By reducing the moisture in the medium can be a way of interrupting the life cycle. Those moist conditions are ideal for them to multiply.

 

I can't recall how your watering, what stage the plant(s) is at and if there is any leaf damage occurring that is noticeable. Would you consider letting it (the compost) dry right out?

 

If you have seen any little small black fly's (a lot like fruit flies) get some "sticky fly traps" form you local supermarket & hang them up in your grow room.

 

The "scared fly's" lava eat the roots. How is the plants new growth going ?

 

 

I am no pest expert as I tend to avoid them like the plague.

 

Good luck and let us know what you think once considering my superposition on "sacred Fly".

 

Nitty.

[Cyclone]

In addition to what Nitram was just saying,

the best was to check if they are going to be a Pest problem is of corse to monitor the rate in which they multiply.

If they are multiplying fast their must be a dominant food source and that leads to question is that food the plant?

or something in the soil that the plant needs, or its eating some other pest and therefore is considered a prey.

 

Find a section of the soil more toward the boundry and take a test of soil say, 2cm deap, then do the same much closer to plant, check the different ratio's of bug's found or if any. If none are under the soil their shouldent be a problem...

 

If the amount of bugs are equal from away and close to the plant they must be after the soil, if they are just close to the plant they are eating roots. . .

 

I Hope this help's you discover what these little bug's are after.

I'm no pest expert either, but that should be a good method to determine what they are after.

 

Cyclone -

[nitram]

Hi wub,

 

This link will definitely sort out some things for you."now your Pests" by bart - UK420

 

I was doing some study on pests a while ago loking at thrips & sapidermites & . It's a canna site & you won't find navigation a problem. could be "thrips"

 

UK420 KNOWLEDGE BASE - checkout "Fungus Gnats" in the knowledge base.

 

I knew my spelling was out before

 

Cyclone great addition - very logical and conclusive.

 

:yinyaang:

Nitty.