With more than 6000 species identified, Thrips are one of the most common insects found in indoor and outdoor gardens. They are slim insects with unique asymmetrical mouthparts that they use for feeding on plants. Thrips are ordered as Thysanoptera which means having slender fringed wings with long hair however not all of them have wings. They cause damages to plant by sucking juices and scraping fruits, leaves and flowers thus resulting to dull color, stain and lifeless plant.
The majority of thrips measure 0.06 to 0.12 inch long, color depends on the development stage and is tiny enough to enter the smallest flowers or bark cracks. Adult thrips are normally white to brown or black in color while larvae maybe yellow, orange or red. They possess a hexagonal shape of the body with spines, body flanges and bristles that extends to the tip of the forks.
Thrips have distinctive uneven mouthparts used to puncture and suck the outermost layer of the plant to extract sap. On the other hand, some thrips use their mouthparts to puncture other insect’s skin to release their body fluids.
Unlike any other insects, thrips undergo a process called metamorphosis that happens gradually. Thrips that feed on flowers and plants lay up to 80 eggs using ovipositor. The eggs are can be noticed as circle-like spots on the leaves or fruits but during the pupal stage, they cause an apparent discoloration. When the egg is hatched, the nymphs emerge and stay wingless for 2 stages so they have to crawl from one plant to another until their wings grow. Before reaching adulthood, the nymphs stops feeding and will find a safe place to molt. Thrips larvae turn into an adult within 20 days.
Thrips are highly capable of damaging crops and flowers. After feeding on the host plant, they will leave it deformed with some black marks. Their favorite plants to attack include squash, beans, carrots, onions and other vegetables as well as flowers like roses and gladioli. Thrips at the stage are attracted to light colored flowers spreading diseases like necrotic spot virus and tomato spotted wilt virus. They do not enter the house but can be possibly brought in by indoor plants.
Determine the population of thrips first, if your house garden is heavily infested using chemical treatments is one of your best options. However, if the affected area is not large, using non-chemical solutions may work best. If none of these work, it may be the right time to get help from a pest management professional.
At Fleming Lawn and Pest Services, we protect your home or business with superior care. Unlike the “Big Pest Control companies” we don’t pay our technicians based on how many locations they treat in a day.
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