Brown Soft Scales

Brown soft scales are small (only a few millimeters long), oval insects that often look more like a bump, shell, or blister than a living pest. On stems or leaf undersides, they may look like tiny drops of dried sap. They usually range from tan to a yellowish brown color. Their bodies are smooth and slightly raised, dome-like, with a soft, waxy covering instead of the hard shell found on other scale insects.

 

The youngest stage, called a crawler, is the most mobile and the easiest to miss. Crawlers are tiny, pale, and flat. They move short distances before settling down to feed. Once they attach, they become much less mobile and gradually develop the rounded brown look people recognize.

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Brown soft scale damages plants by sucking sap from leaves and stems. A few individuals may not cause much harm, but populations can build quickly when conditions are favorable. Over time, feeding removes energy the plant needs for growth, leaf color, flowering, and recovery from stress.

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To learn more about brown soft scales and how to keep them away from your plants, check out our blog post