Soft Scale on Houseplants
Coccus hesperidum
Houseplants (general)pest
A sap-sucking pest that attaches to stems and leaves under a waxy, shell-like covering, making it easy to miss.
Symptoms
Small, flat, brown-to-yellow oval bumps attached to stems and leaf undersides, sticky honeydew residue, and sooty mold on heavily infested plants.
Cause & development
A broad host range across many common houseplants. EPPO code COCCHE.
Favorable conditions
- •Warm indoor conditions
- •New plants introduced without a quarantine period
- •Low natural predator pressure indoors
Management
- 1Scrape off visible scale with a soft brush or fingernail, or wipe with rubbing alcohol
- 2Apply horticultural oil or insecticidal soap to smother remaining scale and crawlers
- 3Repeat treatment every 1-2 weeks since the waxy covering protects adults from a single treatment
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