Parasites that affect plants

The true lovers of gardening are involved in the correct development of their plants as if they were some of their most loved ones, and this is something inevitable when so many hours are dedicated to their care and maintenance.

Although the tasks are often pleasant and entertaining, there may also be some setbacks or unpleasant problems that we want to finish as soon as possible. One of the ones that we undoubtedly hate the most are parasites. For this reason, in this EcologíaVerde article we present a guide to parasites that affect plants most common, so that you can easily recognize them and know better how to eliminate them.

List of parasites that affect plants

You want to know what kind of parasites affect your plants? Take note, here we leave you a brief summary:

White fly: These are small white insects of between 2 or 3 mm that feed on the sap of plants. In addition to laying eggs on the undersides of the leaves (where they settle), they secrete sugar that can harm our specimens with sooty mold.
shield cochineal: They measure the same as the previous ones and have a dark and somewhat viscous shell. They are found on the stems or on the underside of leaves and also feed on sap. The leaves turn yellow, the plants slow down their development and can dry out or become intoxicated. Be careful with dark plants, because it is in these that they manage to go unnoticed to the eye.
Cottony Mealybug: these insects of about 2 or 3 mm are characterized by their pinkish surface covered by white hair. Yellowing leaves and sooty mold are the main problems it causes.
Nematodes: Their size makes them often invisible to the first glance, yet they can be very damaging to plant roots, stems and leaves, weakening and drying them out easily.
aphids: black, green, yellow or orange, aphids are one of the most common pests on plants. They are easily visible among young shoots, leaves and buds among other things because they are produced so easily that we can find hundreds of them in a short time. In addition, the sugar they give off is a great attraction for ants, so you must stop the plague before they also destroy your plant.
Spiders: If you have yellow, green or orange spider mites, your plants could suffer from chlorosis and defoliation. As spiders that they are, these parasites weave a web that will hinder the chlorophyll function and phytosanitary treatments.