Plant Health — Diseases & Pests

Most treatments only work if you are fighting the right problem, and that is exactly where it goes wrong. Spider mite, thrips and aphids all produce mottled leaves but respond to different treatments. So look with a loupe from Microscopes first, then choose specifically.

One product per problem

The A.R.T.S. line is built per pest, each in 250 ml: Spired against spider mites, their eggs and larvae, which also breaks down stubborn webbing; Velgro against thrips, which works through the insect's gut and is strongest at the larval stage; Aphids-0 against green and black aphids, whitefly and other flying pests; Fungus Free against botrytis, mildew and rust; and one against root rot based on Fosphite, tackling harmful soil fungi at the source. So you buy what matches your problem rather than a broad product that works a little on everything.

Cannacure: mind which bottle

From Canna there are two versions you should not mix up. The spray bottle at 0.75 litres is ready to use and sprayed directly; do not dilute it. The concentrate goes at 330 ml per litre of water, roughly a third product, and it is deliberately that rich: it works as a covering layer on the leaf rather than as poison in a small dose. Treat it like an ordinary concentrate and dilute more sparingly, and you get no layer and therefore no effect.

Sticky traps are your earliest signal

The sticky traps do two jobs at once and are underrated for it. They catch, but above all they tell you what you have and how much. Yellow attracts whitefly, fungus gnats, leaf miners and aphids; blue is the second colour, hung in the crop from the start of the grow to signal flying pests. Both come in tens at 25 x 10 cm. Put them up before you have a problem and you see an outbreak coming rather than discovering it.

Frequently asked questions

How do I tell spider mite from thrips?
By the animal, not by the leaf. Spider mite leaves fine webbing and sits with its eggs on the underside; thrips leave silvery streaks and black specks. Under a loupe that difference is immediate; with the naked eye it is not.

When is the best time to spray?
Not with the lamp at full power, because droplets on warm leaves dry too fast. At the end of the day the product has time, and above all hit the underside of the leaf, because that is where the pest is.

Do I need to repeat?
Usually yes. Eggs survive a treatment that reaches the adults, so a second round after a few days catches the generation that hatches next. Working on resilience beforehand is under Prevention.