Whitefly

Whiteflies only grow to be less than 1/10th of an inch long, and are usually even much smaller than that. If you could see them easily, they would look similar to a moth with a yellow body and four white wings covered in a white wax. They aren't, even though their name would suggest otherwise, a fly. They are closely related to mealybugs and aphids, often being mistaken for mealybugs.

 

Whiteflies live on the undersides of leaves, hiding and feeding where detection is more unlikely. However, if the leaf is disturbed, a cloud of them will stir up and fly around before returning to the leaf.

 

As infestations begin, the females will move to new leaves and lay eggs in a semicircular pattern on the underside of the new leaf. The new whiteflies will emerge within days and can become full grown within a month. Additionally, females can lay about 400 eggs over a two-month period. Because of these traits, whiteflies can establish a large population rapidly during warm weather, with year-round populations maintaining indoors or in greenhouses.

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To learn even more about them and how to keep them from harming your plants, check out our blog post