Question
I need serious help.  I'll start at the beginning. I *think* it started with a new dwarf banana plant, bringing in bugs that were a fly (maybe fungus knats, characteristics- crazy flying away from soil when watered, little grey crawling bugs in bottom of plant dish, less water, less crawling bugs.)  it spread to other plants slowly, 3 years later, after slowly being destroyed, my favorite tree died, her roots were pretty well gone.  before she died i also noticed that along with the little grey dish bugs as they got stronger, little tiny specks with hardly noticable webs appeared on the leaves. looked like spider mites happened to come along too maybe?  the other plants in the house had the grey dish bugs,  and slowly started getting more webs.  and more webs.  then we moved and i got rid of all my plants, to my terrible dismay, but i thought i'd start anew.  now, to my horrible misfortune, apparently these webby bugs (spider mites?) hopped on my bamboo and wooden furniture and came with us.  i noticed this when i brought new plants in, the webs started on them, and the grey dish bugs!  i this the same bug?  anyhow, no more plants in the house again, but the worst of it is the webby bugs are living in our wooden furniture and in everything!  i never really see the bugs, but i see the small webs hopping from books to pinecones to everything. the webs are fine, and i think sticky-ish as they collect dust, mostly they keep to certain areas, maybe where drafts are?  they are not spider webs for sure, and maybe they like not just plants but plant based matter too?  what do i do?  i can't find any answers anywhere.  i hope you have some.
thank you,
helen

Answer
Hi Helen,

You have described at least three different types of insect pests, so I am not sure what we are dealing with here.

Fungus gnat larvae (eggs and infants) live in the soil, develop wings, and then fly out of the soil when disturbed. They only survive where there is decaying organic matter (wet soil) for them to feed on.

The gray crawling bugs could be anything that was brought in with soil that came with the plant or with soil that you added or came in from outside the house. They do not feed on plants or plant roots.

You described the webby bugs as spider mites but later stated that they are not spider mites. Your description is too vague for me to tell if they are or not. Perhaps they are mealybugs that look like tiny bits of webby cotton. Perhaps you could email some photos to me at [email protected] so I can properly ID them.

Few plant pests will survive for very long if there are no available live plants for them to feed on.

Please let me know if any of this is unclear or if you have any additional questions.
   
Regards,
Will Creed, Interior Landscaper
Horticultural Help, NYC

You can E-mail me directly at: [email protected]

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