The Scourge of this Summer’s Garden: Spider Mites

I first noticed the green bean plants in my backyard starting die but didn’t realize that it was a pest. I simply thought the plant was receiving too much sunlight and not enough water. As the leaves wilted on the green bean plant, I sincerely wondered if the ground might have been contaminated by some foreign chemical. On my 3rd floor deck, where I was already growing my Basil plant and my Jaloro pepper plant, I decided to plant some of the seeds harvested from first green bean plant in my backyard. About a month later the green bean plant was showing the same discoloration on the leaves. Again, I didn’t think much of it. I simply thought the green bean plant was not suited to either this climate or the soil I was using. I continued to let the green bean plant grow and the rest of the leaves slowly wilted. Then I noticed that my Jaloro plant was showing discoloration on the leaves. As a pepper plant, I knew it was designed to receive ample sunlight, and the discoloration raised the final flag. I decided to turn the leaf over, squint my eyes, and there they were, spider mites.

Can you see them? I believe the light orange spec is the living spider mite and the dark spheres is the spider mite eggs.

Not only did they infest my green bean plants and my Jaloro plant (above), they also infested my tomato plants. I discovered the tomato infestation because the leaves began to wilt and only the end of the plant was growing. Meaning, the tomato plants were fighting off the infestation by continuing to grow away from the older leaves. The basil plant, however, withstood the spider mite infestation. Next year I hope to combat this annoying pest because I now know what to look for!

• The Broadleaf Batavian Escarole Blooms
• Poor Cucumber Flower
• The Aphid Invasion of the Escarole
• Photographs of Pink Green Bean Flowers, Basil, and Smokey Bronze Fennel
• Blooming Pink Chives & the Air Conditioner
• Water droplets on green bean leaves
• Photographs of a Ladybug in the garden
• Photographs of pink chive buds
• You know it's spring when daffodils begin to bloom
• Springtime photographs of sedum telephium ‘Autumn Joy’
• Empty Planters (not for long)
• Photographs of the 2011 Indoor Germination Station
• Basil Sprouts
• Agent Orange? A chemical defoliant used on my neighbor's backyard
• Baby Potato
• YouTube Video Showing Where George Washington Grew Hemp at Mount Vernon
• YouTube Videos, Photos, and Newspaper Articles About American Farmers and Businessmen Planting Hemp Seeds at the DEA Headquarters in Arlington, Virginia
• Growing a Jaloro plant on my back deck - Part Five [The Second Harvest]
• The Scourge of this Summer's Garden: Spider Mites
• Photographs from Park(ing) Day DC 2009
• Growing a Jaloro plant on my back deck - Part Four
• Growing a Jaloro plant on my back deck - Part Three
• Growing a Jaloro plant on my back deck - Part Two
• Growing a Jaloro plant on my back deck - Part One
• seeds of change