White flies

I was hosing off a large plant which had white flies on it and was told by a neighbor that hosing the plant with water from the hose was a way of controling them. Anyway, very soon after I started spraying a strong stream of water onto the plant, 3 brown grass hoppers (at least they looked like grass hoppers --they were about 1/5 inches long) flew out of the plant and landed on the side of the house. I now wonder if I was messing with Mother Nature? Do the grass hoppers eat the white flies? Fortunately I didn't harm the ones that flew out, but perhaps there were more than 3 in there and my strong hosing injured them. Thanks, John

Hello John,
Whitefly can be a terrible problem if you don't try to control them. You did not say what they were on.
How you choose to get rid of them might depend on the type of plants they are on. Some plants get heavy infestations, others they don't bother. In any case it would be best to try and get rid of them or at least keep the numbers down. Hosing off plants usually will get rid of the bulk of them. Those washed to the ground will probably stay there and die. Those still flying around, might land on a plant and start the problem all over again. Hosing off the plant probably will not destroy the eggs, which can hatch out and in a short time you have them all over again.

There are some sprays that might be more effective by 'killing' the Whitefly and have a residual on the foliage to keep them off a little longer. Some of the 'Orgainc' sprays will do a good job killing any Whitefly they hit, but do not have a residual for longer control. Some of the chemical sprays that list Whitefly will last longer. In many cases you can't use 'some' of the chemical sprys on food crops, so you need to be careful how you select the right spray.

The way I control Whitefly, is I use WORMCASTINGS under suseptable plants. I spread this under the plant about once a year. Usually an application of 1/8" to 1/4" deep under the plant or tree in spring will do a great job. After application water the area to wash the 'worm tea' into the soil.

Example: I have a Tangerine tree, that used to get Whitefly every year, usually about mid spring, and through the summer. I put down the wormcastings in March, no more Whitefly! It only needs to be applied once a year, generally. I use about 20 pounds of WORMGOLD spread under the tree, this is a medium sized tree, not fully mature. A large tree may take more to be really effective. There is something in the wormcastings, that is taken up by the plant and the Whitefly do not like to feed off of those plants.

There is also an added benifit to using WORMGOLD. There are some neutrients in there to help feed the tree and the 'orgainc' material in WORMGOLD helps improve the soil. I think you will be surprised how well this works. If you have a plant heavily infested with Whitefly it will take about 4 to 6 weeks to see a difference, but it will happen. You could do it now, should keep the plant clean for the rest of the season, but re-apply again about March 2010. You are good for the rest of the year. Wormgold will not harm the fruit or foliage if you plan to eat those parts.