White Flies on African Violets?

Question:

How can I control white flies on my African Violets?

Hardiness Zone: 9b

Judi from Camarillo, CA

Answer:

Judi,

Here are a couple of things to try:

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1. If your violets are indoors, try to isolate your violets from other houseplants by moving them to a separate room. Modest success in reducing adult fly numbers can be achieved by hanging yellow sticky traps in the room near your plants. I realize these are unsightly, but they can be effective and they are only temporary.

2. Another solution is to use a small hand-vac to vacuum the flies off of the leaves. This should be done first thing in the morning when flies are least active. Put captured flies into a plastic bag and place them in the freezer overnight to kill them or turn them loose outdoors in winter temperatures.

3. Carefully remove whiteflies from the leaves using a cotton swab slightly moistened with alcohol. You can also use a solution made from 1 part household ammonia to 7 parts water. Either of these can injure the plant's leaves so avoid direct contact as much as possible. Follow up by misting the leaves and gently drying them with dry cotton swabs.

Ellen