Hi All,

I have a Chinese elm tree that lives inside and it has a spider mite infestation. Someone recommended Avid Insecticide/Miticide to get rid of the mites, but since it is such a harsh chemical, I'm saving it as a last resort.

I started using a water + antibacterial soap spray instead. I spray it 3 times per week, coating every leaf front+back and the trunk.

Has anyone treated mites this way before and how soon did the problem resolve? Just wondering how long I am going to have to keep doing this, or if I should give up and go with the Miticide.

Thanks for any info!

You will have to use the soap and water for a few weeks. What you also can do, is to give the tree a daily shower in the badroom, and flush the leaves and stems clean.
After there gone, shower the tree's weekly in winter. If the soil gets to wet, then but a plastic bag around it tie it down the stem.
Remember, cleaning the area around the pot too, as they can fall off when moving the tree. And onces placed back they can crawl back up.
Also plants surrounding the infested tree's you should keep an eye on, or even flush them clean weekly.

Because it is winter now, it not a good idea to place it directly outside, but next year you can keep it outdoors, then the wintercold/rain would have killed them.
Indoor the tree is already weak, dry air, and likely to get infested faster and might die from the combined factors.

Never used Miticide, so can't advice you with that.

There is a progression of things to do. I would start with the cheapest, least chemical and progress upwards until something works.

1. Put it outside if the weather gets at all warm and turn the hose on it, fairly heavy spray setting. Do this repeatedly. You can do the same in the shower, but water only comes downward.


2. Use a detergent/soap mixture to spray it. Do this in the bathtub, so you don't get soap spray all over the windows and floor.
   
   
3. Something natural like Neem oil, a pretty effective biological agent.
   
   
4. Something much less natural chemical with lots and lots of syllables in the name. What you use depends on what is available in the local stores.

Most of these will probably have to be repeated until spring time comes and it can go outside.