What does armored scale look like on a plant?

What does armored scale look like on a plant?

Armored scale is a parasitic insect that looks like a small hard dot on the branches, twigs, or near the leaves of your plants. If you pick it off, it will have a shell type appearance. This small innocent looking insect can be deadly to your plant and needs to be treated especially in spring before the eggs hatch and begin to crawl. Unfortunately, scale can happen on certain houseplants (my Gardenia became infested this winter) and I picked off what scales I could find and then treated with an organic spray. I let the pesticide sit for 24 hours and then gave the plant a shower (twice) looking for any scales, aphids, or eggs I may have missed.

If a plant becomes infested with scale (or any other insect or pest), the plant will usually show signs such:

plant starts to die unexpectedly
sticky substance on the leaves
spider webs
underside of leaves will have clusters of small eggs and may be sticky
leaves turning yellow and falling off
leaves turning yellow and brown
clusters of white-colored granules

I am devasted that my beautiful Gardenia which is about to bloom is struggling with surviving because it has been infested twice with scales, aphids, and spider mites. I am a gardener and I get bugs.When a plant dies because I did not prevent the infestation, I feel bad. My husband (and sons) think I am a bit nutty but I take it personally.

Do not put it off if you see your plant struggling or signs of bugs. If you do not have any organic pesticides like Neem Oil, you can try a shower with Dawn or Ivory dish soap which many times can effectively kill most pests. You can Google more about armored scale for the scientific names and any more information on controlling and eradicating this pest. Thanks for stopping by