AT A GLANCE
What are little black animals on basil?
What kind of damage do thrips and aphids leave behind?
Thrips are sucking pests, which literally suck the leaf tissue dry. This can be seen at first silvery gray spots on the leaves. As time goes on, the leaves will change color brown and die off. The little animals themselves are there with bare Eye often very difficult to detect.
It is about aphids, which are a little larger and showier are the leaves perforated. However, discover them black beads below the basil, it is caterpillar droppings.
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Can thrips also transmit viruses?
The thrips are virus carriers. If they are not fought in time, they can cause far greater damage to the basil and neighboring plants than the animals themselves can galling
do. Basil affected by viral diseases should no longer be eaten. The plants must be disposed of so that the viruses do not continue to multiply via the living host plant.What can you do against the pests?
To combat thrips and save the plant are Very suitable home remedies:
- Water: When the infestation begins, rinse the basil several times and shake it off thoroughly
- soft soap:(€5.00 at Amazon*) use a solution of water and soft soap to rinse off or spray onto the leaves with a spray bottle (even if infested with aphids); wash the leaves thoroughly before eating
- blue panels: the pests are magically attracted to these sticky traps
Can I also combat the pests chemically?
From chemical pesticides is discouraged. Since you still want to eat the kitchen herb (only if it is light infestation with thrips, which is quickly discovered and combated!), only tried and tested home remedies should be used.
How can I prevent pest infestation?
To prevent pest infestation, it can help enrich the air surrounding the basil with moisture. While houseplants can be repeatedly sprayed with water, basil doesn't particularly like this preventive measure. We recommend placing a bowl of water near or on the heater. In addition, it can be helpful to put a thin layer of dry coffee grounds on the Earth distributed to keep pests away. Most of them don't like the smell of coffee at all.
Tip
Do not confuse with the spider mite
Both pests love dry heating air in the home. However, if only the damage to the leaves can be seen in thrips, an infestation will also show up spider mites the characteristic webs between the leaves.
