MITES BITE
By Breeder Steve of the Spice of Life Seed Company

    Spider mites bite! You must get rid of them, or at least try to keep their numbers down. They are like little mosquitoes that suck the lifeblood from your plants.
    Once mites get into your garden, they are nearly impossible to get out. Their persistence is incredible. They breed quickly and can develop resistance to certain sprays. Almost every grower has heard of and used many home remedies, as well as the commercially available alternatives.
 

Prevention

    The key to a mite-free garden is prevention. Just don't let them in. The problem, as a friend recently pointed out, is that every garden on the West Coast is under siege. The vegetation that surrounds our dwellings supports an everpresent threat of invasion.
    Having clean clothes and shoes is important, as pests may enter the grow space on you, your friends, and your pets. Bring only clean tools and sterilized growing medium into your growroom.
Remember that if you have houseplants they may be supporting a population of mites as well.

Ventilation

    Ventilation fans are essential for healthy plant growth as well as discouraging the mites. A hot growroom with poor ventilation is a breeding ground for mites, especially if the place gets dry. I once saw an attic garden that was full of plants but had no ventilation. The gardener also claimed to be too tired after work to carry water into his attic regularly, so the plants were bone dry and covered with tents. A terrible sight indeed.
    Vapour barriers and finely screened vents for intake and exhaust fans are essential to avoid sucking in bugs from the outside.
    The best growrooms are cool, well ventilated rooms. Mite growth slows dramatically at lower temperatures. At higher temperatures they become very active and mobile. A garden started in a frozen climate is safe provided that the mites don't tag along in a bag of compost.

Webs & Eggs

    Spidermites spin webs which facilitate movement among the plant's branches and neighbouring plant's branches for the shortlegged demons. Wipe off any signs of webs immediately and repeatedly.
If you have mites you will know it by the very small white dots on top of your leaves. If you look closely underneath the leaf you will see the little white eggs clinging to the underside and most likely the little white or reddish brown spidermites walking around or sucking the sweet juice of your plant, reducing the quantity and quality of your harvest.

Predator Mites 

    Once you've got mites bad the best solution is to tear down, clean up, and start again with a renewed interest in prevention. However, if they persist and you shudder at the prospect of starting all over again then you should introduce predator mites.
    Formally known as Phytoseilus Persimillis, predator mites will eat the evil spidermites and their eggs, given the proper cool temperatures. They may even wipe the mites out entirely and then starve to death themselves. Note that the predators may not be as effective if the mite population is too high when they are introduced.

Spray Solutions

    Any one of a number of spray solutions may be used to knock down their population to a level where the predators will be able to take over, but wait a few days after spraying before introducing the predators or the residual miticide will also harm them. A new spray is being touted as killing spidermites but not the predator mites.
    I strongly recommend that you spray nothing on your buds except the mildest home remedies such as a small amount of Listerine and Sunlight dishsoap dissolved in water and sprayed or scrubbed onto the plants. A few cigarette butts soaked in a litre of water, filtered and than sprayed is the favourite miticide of one crazy Dutchman I know.
    Pokon is the most popular commercially available mite spray on the market today. It is fairly safe in composition and has the advantage of being in a nifty new aerosol can that can be sprayed upside down, very convenient for spraying the bottoms of leaves. The active ingredient is from a natural source and not harmful to humans, but follow the instructions with any pesticide! I say again, do not spray buds!

Silicon Dioxide

    A great natural way to kill the little devils is with Silicone Dioxide, also known as diotomecious earth. It sounds nasty but it is merely fine sand with very sharp edges, mined from fossilized material, ground pumice. Its razorlike edges slice the carapace or shell of the mites' bodies and then they dehydrate.
    In the stores look for Insecolo, it's a white dust that attracts the bugs, they eat it and then get sliced inside and out. The dust is harmless to plants and animals (ourselves included) but very destructive to small crawling insects such as mites. Sprinkle this on the leaves and the soil, the mites will die a hideous death, and you will rejoice one battle won.

Insecticidal Soaps and Sprays

    Eternal vigilance is the cost of freedom from spidermites. The real key is prevention, as going the extra mile during the construction of the grow room can save a marathon cleanup later, which usually only provides a short term remedy. Wilson's insecticidal soap does a pretty good job at cleaning them up, especially with some elbow grease and a J cloth. Never use systemic pesticides. If in doubt, find out.
    Pentac or Kelthane are sprays that may be used while the plants are in vegetative cycle. People should not be messing around with Malathion or Diazinon, and in fact it's best to avoid all chemical solutions, even Pokon. Very frightening indeed is the "ultimate mite killer" Avid. This is a dangerous and harmful product, avoid! A new organic spray that is very effective is made from orange oils, it is called SM90. I've heard very good reports about it, and use it myself.

Traps & Companions

    Traps are another possibility, something that they get stuck in, commercial or home made. Although this is only a band aid solution it can't hurt. Put two-sided tape on the walls, ceiling and floor, as well as on stalks, branches and pots.
    Companion planting is an interesting idea, however I'm not convinced of its effectiveness. I've tried garlic, marigolds, and dusty millers. The mites killed the marigolds in no time, while the dusty millers lived as did the garlic, but neither thrived as well as the mites.

Outdoors Indoors

    Spider mites are a plague on indoor gardens, while outdoors the elements and naturally occurring predators make them less of a threat. Frequent spraying of water on plants impedes the mites' progress, as do heavy gusts of wind. One grower I know of uses a compressed air blower once a week to blow any mites off of his plants.
    Plenty of wind is essential in the grow room, so put oscillating fans all over the place. For best results the plants should dance inside just as much as they would dance outside.
    Remember, growing inside is the art and science of creating nature. You must remember the four basic elements, earth, wind, fire, and water. To grow successfully these elements must be balanced. Too much or too little of any one of these will cause difficulties. A healthy plant, like a healthy person, is less likely to have problems, so make sure it (and you) have a healthy and balanced diet. Of what is up to you.
    If you have mites try not to spread them. If you don't have mites, take precautions to keep it that way, and thank your lucky stars.