Plants that repel spider mites include various herbs, shrubs, perennials, and even indoor plants. These plants act as natural pesticides against spider mite infestations and effectively control spider mites naturally.
What do these plants require to grow, and how do they help in spider mite control?
Look out for answers to these questions in this article.
Contents
Expand Your Knowledge of Plants That Repel Spider Mites
If you’ve ever gardened, you’ve probably seen spider mites. Spider mites are among the most troublesome pests in a garden. They form colonies around veins and on the undersides of plant leaves. To feed, these mites frequently penetrate or tear plant soft tissues to gain access to the nutritious sap. They weave ugly webs to defend themselves from prospective predators.
These tiny little creatures come unexpectedly and reproduce rapidly. If you don’t practice proper plant care, they will take over your home garden in a matter of weeks.
However, if you organize your garden and plant shrubs that resist or kill spider mites, you may be able to prevent your garden from spider mite damage. Keep reading to explore several plants that discourage spider mites and spider mite infestation.
1. European Dill
Dill, a fragrant herb with a long history, is known for its strong taste and rich oils in its threadlike leaves. The plant’s characteristic aroma is released simply by stroking the leaves or breaking off a few leaflets. Dill has antibacterial phytochemicals due to its rich cocktail of essential oils.
Some of them are inherently acaricidal, meaning they are something spider mites hate.
It is recommended to grow dill with companion plants and herbs such as tomatoes, cabbage, cucumbers, broccoli, and lettuce to enhance its usefulness as a pest control plant.
If you want to attract beneficial insects that are likely to feed on spider mites, allow the shoots to bloom before pruning them back. However, dill flowers’ formation may interfere with neighboring plants’ growth.
– Growing Season
Dill is a cool-season plant. This means you should plant it in the spring and again in the late summer for a year-round supply of fresh dill. It dislikes having its roots disturbed or relocated, so plant it in large pots or directly in the ground. Sow the seeds thinly in 0.5 inch deep drills and cover gently with soil.
– Specific Needs
Dill grows best in direct sunlight (with a bit of afternoon shade in the South). While it is reasonably tolerant of low soil conditions, it favors well-drained sandy or loamy soil.
The plant is a light feeder, so it does not require extra fertilizer if planted in reasonably fertile soil. Dill thrives in areas with warm summers and long daylight hours. To plant, select a warm, sunny location with fertile soil.
2. Chinese Parsley
Chinese parsley is a common annual leafy green herb with various culinary uses. Its leaves and roots have a strong odor and produce an even more distinct flavor.
Like many other plants with citrus-like aromas and flavors, its botanical uses considerably outnumber those in the cooking. It is an excellent species to grow as a natural insect deterrent in a herb and organic garden.
Chinese parsley plants repel spider mites as they contain essential oils in various parts. These oils are rich in active insecticidal compounds. They are an efficient acaricide against various bothersome garden pests in their extracted forms.
The fruit’s oil, primarily made of linalool, is particularly effective. As a result, many insects and pests like red spider mites are likely to avoid dense stands of this species. Pruning regularly should improve its repelling smell.
– Growing Season
Chinese parsley is a cool-season herb. When grown in hot conditions, it will go to seed. Sow seeds in early spring, after the frost has passed, or in early fall.
– Specific Needs
Chinese parsley is a plant that may be cultivated both indoors and outdoors. The plant prefers full sun and well-draining soil to grow at its best. If it grows well in your garden but does not appear to repel spider mites, you could try mixing its leaves into a DIY pest-repellent spray.
3. Onion
Onion is one of the outdoor plants known for its spider mites repelling abilities. It belongs to the Allium genus, which is the best pest control plant family because of its intense odor.
The humble onion is the most popular for its culinary use; it possesses a high concentration of pesticide phytochemicals.
Its derived oils are known to be efficient acaricides on some ticks, implying that they are also harmful to spider mites. Onion extract is also useful as a pesticide when sprayed directly on afflicted plants.
– Growing Season
Onions are ideally sown in late winter/early spring for harvest in late summer/early autumn. Onions can be planted in the autumn, but they won’t be ready until the following summer and must be protected throughout the winter in really cold places. Plant seed directly in the ground or in trays.
– Specific Needs
Plant them in a sunny location with fertile, well-drained soil with a pH level of 6.0 to 6.8. Mix in several inches of aged compost or rich organic matter to improve your local soil. Because onions are poor at absorbing water, it is critical to maintain the soil moist so that their thin roots may drink.
To improve moisture retention, you can also add diatomaceous earth to potting mix, soil, and sandy soil. It does so by holding more fluid and drying at a slower rate.
4. Chives
Chives are an excellent companion plant for tomatoes, and are particularly susceptible to red spider mites (Tetranychus urticae). This perennial plant is farmed mostly for its delicious leaves.
The leaves, which are frequently used as a garnish in Eurasian dishes, contain a plethora of chemicals that have the potential to act as natural biological control agents. Furthermore, their anti-inflammatory and antifungal qualities make them pharmacologically useful.
It can be cultivated indoors, either directly in the kitchen, where sprigs can be cut and thrown into a pan. You can also grow them adjacent to tropical houseplants that are more sensitive to spider mites.
– Growing Season
Chives are a cool-season crop, which means they thrive in the spring and fall. Summer’s harsher temperatures normally drive them to hibernate until cool weather returns. In colder climates, plant chive seeds inside 6 to 8 weeks before the final spring frost.
– Specific Needs
Chives flourish in full light and well-drained, organic-rich soil. It is recommended to get your soil tested. A pH of 6.0-7.0 is ideal. They can handle little shade, but direct sunlight for six to eight hours per day is ideal.
Chives are quite simple to care for. Keep them properly watered, especially during summer’s lengthy dry spells. Remove any fading foliage or wasted blooms. Lift and divide huge clumps into smaller clumps every few years to rejuvenate them.
5. Rosemary
Rosemary is another culinary classic with many attractive garden benefits. It belongs to the sage family (Lamiaceae) of strongly-scented herbs. It is commonly planted as a shrub in loamy to sandy soils. Its progressively woody stems can grow up to 5 feet tall. The plant’s blossoms can occur all year in warm climates, attracting numerous pollinators and beneficial creatures.
This hardy herb is undesirable to many pests, including spider mites, because of the roughness of its leathery leaf and the bitter flavor. This flavor represents the potency of its rich essential oil, which has been scientifically tested against pests and insects. The pure extract and other formulations containing rosemary oil as a foundation component have demonstrated efficacy as a spider mite killer.
– Growing Season
Rosemary is an evergreen plant; therefore, it has a life cycle all year round. However, the finest flavor comes from tender young growth in the summer. The ideal season to plant rosemary is spring or fall. Although rosemary is frost-resistant, the combination of cold and waterlogging can kill young plants.
– Specific Needs
Rosemary thrives best in full sun. Additionally, the planting area should have well-draining soil; rosemary only sometimes tolerates dampness or moistness. Ideally, the soil should be reasonably rich (add compost before planting to boost nitrogen levels), slightly acidic in pH (6.0 to 7.0), and loamy in texture.
Rosemary plants require nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, sulfur, and magnesium to thrive and provide good yields for more than a decade. In most circumstances, the plant responds strongly to nitrogen supplementation, especially when provided after harvest. New growth is encouraged in this instance.
6. Bok Choy
Bok choy is a Chinese annual or biennial aromatic vegetable plant. It features thick, green stems that grow vertically in a rosette-shaped bunch and bright green leaves that bloom upwards and outwards.
Bok Choy, often known as white Chinese cabbage, is a green vegetable in the Chinese brassica family. Bok choy has thick, crisp white or green stalks with light to dark green broad leaves. Sizes range from 4 to 12 inches tall. All portions, including the stems and leaves, are edible.
Bok choy is frequently attacked by other bugs, including aphids, cabbage loopers, and cutworms, to mention a few, although it is unattractive to spider mites in general.
– Growing Season
The ideal season to grow bok choy is spring and summer. Planting the seed in July is recommended. Chinese cabbage matures in about two months, so planting in early July will be ready to harvest before a strong freeze. Bok choy matures faster and can be harvested before the creation of the head. Planting in late July will be ready before the cold weather arrives.
– Specific Needs
Bok Choy requires fertile soil high in nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. When planting, add enough compost and organic fertilizer to the soil. It prefers full light but may tolerate partial shade. Afternoon shade is beneficial in hot regions because it delays bolting.
Although bok choy appreciates damp soil, overwatering can cause root rot. During the growing season, water your bok choy plants about one inch each week, keeping the top inch of soil continuously moist.
7. Garlic
Garlic is one of the most commonly cultivated crops used abundantly for culinary purposes. It is a fantastic source of flavor as well as health benefits. Garlic is just one of several plants that have substances that are helpful against spider mites and two-spotted spider mites, both of which regularly damage mass-cultivated crops and herbs.
While garlic’s aromatic scent and flavor may appeal to humans, many insects and grazers despise it. As a result, garlic is commonly found in many handmade or organically produced pest-repellent sprays for use in the garden. Its extract is an excellent, environmentally friendly weapon against spider mites and the like!
– Growing Season
Garlic is often planted in the fall (between late September and November). Sow garlic cloves 6 to 8 weeks before the first fall frost date. Planting before the ground freezes in hard frost locations is ideal.
– Specific Needs
Garlic thrives in well-drained, moisture-retentive soil with a pH of 6.0 to 7.0. Improve the organic content of your soil by adding well-rotted manure or compost in the spring or fall. It is recommended to avoid using fresh manure since it may contain hazardous microorganisms and exacerbate weed problems.
8. Peppermint
Peppermint is a mint family plant. It’s a natural cross between spearmint and wild mint. The leaves and oil of this plant are utilized in traditional medicine. Because of its appealing garden varieties, peppermint is one of the most popular forms of mint plants. Many of these are grown professionally and used to make food-grade extracts. The extracts contain chemicals that could be used as natural pest killers.
Does mint repel spider mites? This is a common question. The major phytochemicals in the oils of several mint species, i.e., pulegone, and menthone, are particularly effective at repelling pest insects. Menthol, a terpenoid found in peppermint, has been demonstrated to be effective against the two-spotted spider mite.
– Growing Season
The ideal time to plant peppermint is early April when the last frost of the winter has passed. Peppermint grows in USDA hardiness zones 5 to 9. It can withstand short bursts of frost but cannot withstand temperatures that remain cold for extended periods.
– Specific Needs
Peppermint is a highly adaptable plant, but it thrives in a cool, damp climate with well-draining, loose, organically-rich soil. You can do a soil test using a testing kit to evaluate your soil’s nitrogen balance and pH. The soil pH should be between 5.5 and 6.0
Peppermint grows in damp areas such as stream banks and drainage ditches. It is usually sterile because it is a hybrid. It produces no seeds and reproduces only vegetatively through runners. It can grow practically anywhere if properly planted.
9. Okra
Okra, commonly known as lady’s finger, is a flowering plant. Okra leaves have three to five lobes and are heart-shaped. The fruit, or pod, is a tapering 10-angled capsule 4 – 10 inches long (unless in dwarf variants) containing numerous oval dark-colored seeds.
Grow okra in your yard if you want high-yielding summer plants that are resistant to pests and prevent spider mites. The okra stem also serves as an excellent natural trellis for other plants such as beans, Malabar spinach, peas, sweet potatoes, and other climbing plants.
– Growing Season
The ideal season to grow okra plants is spring and summer. It is planted in the rainy season from June to July and in the spring from February to March. Row-to-row spacing of 18 inches is recommended, and plant-to-plant spacing of 6 – 8 inches is ideal. Plant the seed 0.5 – 1 inch deep. For the sowing, the dibbling method is utilized.
– Specific Needs
Okra is a relatively easy-going plant. It doesn’t need to be supported by a trellis or post, but it will benefit from some mulch to keep the soil colder. Okra likes full sun and hot weather, with evening temperatures in the 60s (Fahrenheit) or warmer.
The soil must be healthy and well-drained, with a neutral pH of 6.5 to 7.0. Before planting, amend the soil with old manure and compost.
Conclusion
Spider mites are a common problem faced by most plant lovers, especially in the growing seasons. Finding organic and natural solutions is the best way to cure the problem instead of using artificial sprays or insecticidal soaps. For this reason, we have listed plants that can help you prevent insects like spider mites:
- Garlic is the best spider repellent if you also want to enjoy its flavor and medicinal advantages.
- Chives are one of the best indoor plants resistant to spider mites.
- Mint is among the herbs that repel spider mites.
After discovering these plants and their characteristics, which one would you like to grow in your garden?
References
- https://entomology.ca.uky.edu/ef438
- https://attra.ncat.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/spider-mites-tip-sheet.pdf
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