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One of the challenges growers sometimes face when growing cannabis is keeping pests from making themselves at home on your plants. If a pest outbreak occurs it can cause your plant not to reach their full potential. The plant's growth and vigour can be stunted resulting in lowered yields. Although pests are less common in hydroponics, they can still show up in any setup where cannabis plants are being cultivated.

 

Most common types of pests

Pests that can effect your cannabis plants include whiteflies, spider mites, aphids, fungus gnats, thrips, leaf miners, caterpillars and snails. There are many more types of pests but these are the most common pests that affect cannabis crops.

  

Whitefly

The whitefly is a common growers nemesis. Growers often spot these whiteflies flying around before they notice the damage on the leaves. These moth like insects suck the sap from the leaves to weaken the plants. Although these insects are very common, they are not among the most lethal. 

Symptoms

The first symptom is very clear, if you shake the plants and see flies flying off it, you've got them. You can also see how your leaves are yellowed by chlorosis due to their sucking of the saps, the honeydew that these insects secrete, or even a white powder on the underside of the leaves. 

How to Get Rid of Whitefly

You can use yellow strips to attract the flies, or spray with Neem oil or potassium soap. These solutions must be applied every five or six days until the flies are eradicated. Another option is Ecobuz Pest Pro bio insecticide. 

  

Spider Mites

Spider mites are one of the most common pests associated with cannabis. These tiny arachnids live on the underside of leaves where they puncture the leaf surface to suck out the plant's juices. Due to their small size they can be difficult to spot with the naked eye but infested leaves usually show tiny specks on their top surface. Spider mites also spin little webs around your plants, so if you notice anything that looks like mini cobwebs on your plant, it is a good indication that you have a spider mite problem. 

Symptoms

White spots on leaves are the mark left behind when the red spider mite sucks the sap. You may also see black or yellow spots on both sides of the leaves. 

How to Get Rid of Spider Mites

Your growing space should be well cleaned and ventilated. The red spider mite thrives in dry areas and will reproduce very quickly in temperatures over 27 degrees. Keep the temperature below 25 degrees, and relative humidity at 55-60%.

On the market there are different products to combat red spider mites. Neem oil, potassium soap and pyrethrum oil are very good choices. Another option is Ecobuz Pest Pro bio insecticide which includes a beneficial fungi, occurring naturally and commonly in soils.  

Spider mites quickly build up resistance to most products so it is recommended to use multiple methods against a spider mite infestation.

  

Aphids

These are another fast-spreading plague, both in terms of reproduction and their capacity to jump from one plant to another. Aphids are soft bodied insects and can appear white, green, yellow, black and red depending on which life stage they are in. Like the red spider mite, they feed on the leaf sap. 

Aphids can also be winged. If you see tiny black flies around your plants you may be seeing these winged aphids. More prevalent in the spring, time is of the essence once detected as aphids reproduce rapidly and have a ravenous appetite. 

Symptoms

Dry, yellow leaves, colonies under leaves or stems, and a kind of honeydew that they secrete are some of the symptoms that should alert you. On top of this, the honeydew also attracts ants therefore spotting a lot of ants could be a warning sign too. 

How to Get Rid of Aphids

Always change your clothes before coming into the grow space, to prevent bringing in aphids from outside. Once this pest is detected there are several options: they can be removed manually, spraying them off with a power sprayer or by crushing them, as they hardly move. You can also introduce predators like lacewing larvae, which feed on them. You can also spray the plants with pyrethrum two or three times, with breaks of five to ten days.

    

Fungus Gnats

Fungus gnats are tiny flying insects, which look like tiny mosquitoes, often seen buzzing around the soil. Their larva grows in wet soil and they often appear when the topsoil remains wet for too long between watering. Fungus gnats can be a nuisance in the soil your cannabis plants grow in. This is because their larvae offspring will damage your plant's roots which cause problems for your plants.

The main diet of fungus gnats is fungus and decaying matter, the cannabis roots get caught in the crossfire as larvae will happily gnaw on root hairs and young tender roots of cannabis plants. The damage caused by this leads to slowed growth and leaf problems. A bad infestation can even kill a cannabis plant. 

The adult fungus gnats don't do much hurt to your plants, they are mostly just annoying. Even though they are not a huge threat to your plants, their presence indicates that your cannabis soil has been infested with their maggot offspring. It's these fungus gnat larvae that cause the real problems.

Symptoms

The fungus gnat larvae will cause these problems in your plants:

• Seedlings are weak for no clear reason, sometimes stems weaken and seedling can even fall over and die. This is also known as "damping off".
• If the infestation gets out of control, the adult plant will start looking unhealthy and show symptoms such as wilting, yellowing, drooping and spots.
• Leaves may show signs of nutrient deficiency which seem unrelated to pH, nutrients, or any other nutrient problem.
• Slowed growth or halted growth.
• Reduced yields in the flowering stage.

How to get rid of Fungus Gnats

Fungus gnats are easy to get rid of once you know what to do. If you have detected this pest on your cannabis crop, these are some of the things you can do to get rid of them:

• You can use yellow strips to attract and trap adult fungus gnats. This will help bring down their numbers.
• Products that contain B.thuringiensis (Bt) or Bacilus thurgiensis Israelensis (Bti), bacteria that live in the soil and are used as biological alternatives to conventional pesticides.
• You can also use Neem oil or sprinkle Diatomaceous earth on the top layer of the soil. Thus will kill
• Placing a fan to blow over the top of the growing medium will help to dry out the top layer, and helps prevent the fungus gnats from being able to fly around and lay more eggs in the soil.
• Before you apply any treatment you will want to dry out your soil. You can do this by simply not watering your plants for a few days. 
• To help prevent this from happening again, try not to over water your plants. Always allow the first inch or two of the soil to dry out before you water. Until the fungus gnats are completely eradicated, let your soil dry out more than normal between watering.

  

Leaf Miners

Leaf miners are a pest that actually lives inside the tissue of the leaf. They mine through the leaves eating the best parts and leaving a trail of destruction behind them. These long, winding lines are a clear sign of leaf miners. 

A leaf miner is not an actual species of bug but is actually a term used to describe any kind of larvae that lives and tunnels through leaves. 

Symptoms

The main symptom of the presence of leaf miners is their signature long, winding spots or markings on the leaves.

How to Get Rid of Leaf Miners

The first thing you can do is remove the infected leaves. This won't get rid of the problem but it will reduce their numbers. If you don't want to remove the leaves you can try to crush the larvae by pressing your fingers together where you see a trail.

You can also use neem oil as this is a very effective treatment against many types of bugs. You can use a sprayer to spray all the leaves evenly. 

   

Thrips

These tiny insects are a real headache, they move very fast, so you need to act quickly to prevent damage. Thrips can come in various forms from worm nymphs to dark or golden winged insects, depending on the stage of life and area you live. 

Symptoms

A sign that there is a thrips plague is if you see silver markings on the surface of the leaves, sometimes accompanied by dots, which are droppings. These spots are bigger and more irregularly shapes than those made by spider mites. If left for too long the affected leaves may start dying Another sign is brittle leaves, as the thrips suck the chlorophyll up until they are full.

How to Get Rid of Thrips

Spraying with potassium soap or Neem oil will be useful to eradicate this pest, as long as the flowering process has not yet begun.

 

Caterpillars

Caterpillars need vegetation to form their chrysalis. When caterpillars appear on your cannabis plants it is important to act as soon as possible. They eat at a tremendous rate and can ruin your grow in the blink of an eye.

Symptoms

Signs that you may have caterpillars are, spotting tiny eggs, yellow or translucent in appearance and some tiny black droppings on your leaves. You might also see teeth marks on your leaves or holes in the leaves. You could even find rotten buds, as caterpillars are able to penetrate inside.

How to Get Rid of Caterpillars

Once detected, caterpillars can be removed by hand. The ideal approach is to combine this with an insecticide made from an infusion of pepper and garlic. Another option is to introduce wasps of the genus Trichogramma, the spined soldier bug, or a biological treatment containing Bacillus thuringiensis. When the plant begins to dry it must be turned over and thoroughly checked to verify that there is nothing left, as the pupae could stay in the room and return to attack the next crop.

  

Snails and Slugs

Snails are not the most common pest cannabis growers have to deal with but when they do show up they can cause problems. 

Symptoms

A sure sign that you have snails or slugs in your cannabis garden is a trail of slime on your leaves and new holes often have jagged edges around where your unwelcome guest has been feasting on the leaves. Snails and slugs are most likely to attack your plants during the night.

How to Get Rid of Snails and Slugs

One of the best ways to deal with snails and slugs is to create a barrier around your plants. You can do this by using a sprinkle of lime, eggshells, Diatomaceous Earth, or sawdust.

 

How to Prevent Pests in Your Garden 

Whether you are growing cannabis indoors or outdoors, there is always a chance of pests invading your garden. Prevention is always better than cure so here are some things you can do to help prevent an invasion.

  

Indoor Cannabis Grow

Securing your grow space

Building a secure grow space is important to protect your plants from any pests. A well-built grow room will create a protective barrier between pests and your cannabis plants. 

If you have dedicated a specific room to start your grow in, always make sure to thoroughly clean the space. It is also a good idea to use mylar to create a reflective wall for your grow as mylar is easy to clean and helps to seal your grow space off from the outside environment.

You can also use a grow tent, which is becoming increasingly popular and available in a wide variety of sizes. A good quality grow tent will offer you great protection from the start.

Keep things sanitised

If your grow space is properly sealed from the outside environment. Then the only other way to bring any contaminants into the space is you. Pests are great at attaching themselves to clothing. Make sure to change your clothing before entering the grow space and especially after being in contact with anyone else's grow area that has pests as they could have easily made their way home with you via your clothing. You should also keep all your equipment and tools sanitised. You can use rubbing alcohol or hydrogen peroxide to wipe them down before and after using them in your garden.

Clones vs Seeds

Growing cannabis from a seed is the best chance of keeping pests out of the garden because you are raising the plant from birth.

With clones, you may not know the type of environment it came from and whether or not there were any pests. Always be cautious with clones and check them thoroughly for any signs of pests before introducing them into your cannabis garden.

Grow medium

Most grow mediums are relatively safe when it comes to pests, especially hydroponic mediums such as clay pellets, rockwool, and other sterile mediums.

When it comes to soil you need to be more careful as they can come with an array of pests. Make sure you buy from a reputable store.

Fly strips

Sticky fly strips are a great way to detect pests in the grow room early before they get out of control. By placing these around your grow space you can check daily if any bugs appear on the strips and act quickly before an infestation occurs.

  

Outdoor Cannabis Grow

Companion planting

Companion planting is a great natural way to prevent unwanted pests. Companion planting involves surrounding your cannabis plant with plant allies to reduce the risk of pests and disease. Plus it's a great way to increase biodiversity in your garden.

When you plant companion plants amongst your cannabis garden you are essentially creating a habitat that is mutually beneficial for many of the species involved, boosting health and vitality of the system as well as protecting your cannabis plants from pests and pathogens.

Companion planting can also help attract beneficial predatory insects into the system, which can help eradicate unwanted pests. Here is a list of some great examples of companion plants:

• Melissa
• Lavender
• Coriander
• Basil
• Peppermint

Sterilise your soil

Making sure you soil is sterilised will help eliminate the risk of pests straight from the start as many pests and pathogens can be residing in your soil. 

Beneficial Insects

Beneficial insects can be introduced into the cannabis garden as a natural pest management method. These predators feed on the insects that feed on your cannabis.

Parasitic wasps can help keep caterpillar numbers down. The female wasps inject their eggs into living caterpillars. The eggs the hatch into larvae, an the larvae consume the caterpillar from the inside. Not a nice image, but this will help the health and vitality of your cannabis crop.

 

 

Some other beneficial insects involve the praying mantis for caterpillars as well as ladybugs which like to feed on spider mites.

Diatomaceous Earth

Diatomaceous Earth is made up of microscopic shards of fossils, which inflict damage on insects that come into contact with it. This can be used as a protective barrier around your cannabis plants to deter insects that dwell on ground level.

Sticky pads

Sticky pads can be placed around the cannabis plants to catch pests. If flying insects land on these pads, they will become stuck. This won't help stop the problem but it can help you identify any invaders and reduce their numbers.

     

Some Final Notes on Pest Control For Cannabis

If left untreated, pests can wreak havoc on your plants. Always make sure to inspect your plants daily to check for any signs of pests. Prevention is always better than cure so as soon as you detect a pest problem, it is best to move quickly. Before using any products, make sure the conditions in your grow environment are optimal. When spraying your plants with anything, make sure to get the undersides of the leaves too, this is where many pests like to hang out. 

 

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