[puravida]

I have a chilli plant that has been doing fairly well indoors on a windowsill until recently - I've noticed hundreds of tiny white lice on it that appear to turn into little flies.

Any ideas what they are and how to despatch them??

[paintedlady]

are they the start of a white fly infestation perhaps?

[gobs]

Sounds like it, you can buy predators for indoor use I believe.

[Rob the rake]

.....or use a dustbuster to vacuum them off. Werks fer me.

[richyrich7]

What colour are the flies ?

[Sally A]

Are they leaving the leaves sticky? If so sounds like a white fly infestation.

[sophiejo]

I sprayed my whitefly infested indoor chillis with water and washing up liquid last year and it worked suprisingly well!  :o

[puravida]

Yes - the leaves are a bit sticky actually.
Can't recall the colour of the flies though - I will check tomorrow. Tiny little things.
There's always a spread of what looks like white dust around but on closer inspection looks fly related!

Washing up liquid sounds like a good trick! What sort of dilution?

Thanks!

J

[Rob the rake]

Yes - the leaves are a bit sticky actually.
Can't recall the colour of the flies though - I will check tomorrow. Tiny little things.
There's always a spread of what looks like white dust around but on closer inspection looks fly related!

Washing up liquid sounds like a good trick! What sort of dilution?

Thanks!

J

Very, very dilute. I killed my aubergines last year with a too-strong WUL solution, one squirt to a gallon. I think it clogs up the stomata and prevents the plant from breathing.
Proper insecticidal soft soap is a better bet (if a tad expensive).

[sophiejo]

I used a good squirt of ecover wul in about a pint of water at a guess.
It was definately beginners luck, than years of experience, that it dealt with the whitefly and didn't kill the plant though!

[Rob the rake]

I used a good squirt of ecover wul in about a pint of water at a guess.
It was definately beginners luck, than years of experience, that it dealt with the whitefly and didn't kill the plant though!

Maybe the Ecover doesn't have the same effect as Fairy . Different chemical make-up perhaps?

[CarbonImpaired]

I use about a teaspoon of WUL to one litre of water and that has worked for me for the last two years.

[moggy]

yeah sounds like white fily, ive found that putting a couple of marigolds nearby keeps them away ;o)

[gobs]

What exact variety of marigold are them, Moggy, please, as mine don't?

[moggy]

ill check the label tomorrow for you but i use them in conjunction with those yellow sticky fly sheets and it seems to work a treat.

having said that once didnt work so i bought some organic spray stuff for veg and that worked well.