Q. I have basil growing in a window pot that I grew from seed. It has been healthy all summer until the last several weeks. It has tiny bugs (I guess) all over it, tan in color. They look like tiny grains of tan rice. I put the pot with the basil in the bathtub and gave it a good shower, rubbing as many of the critters off with my fingers as I could. That was about 3 weeks ago and the basil has been bug-free till now. I have the pot back in the shower, but what are these things and how can I prevent it from happening again? I used bagged potting soil for this plant. Having these bugs in my kitchen is starting to get to me. Marianne Comstock – Port Orchard, WA
A. Your description sounds like thrips. These insects have piercing/rasping mouthparts used to feed on their host plants’ sap. In commercial greenhouse production thrips can be vectors for viral diseases. I ran across them once in a commercial greenhouse and my impression was that they are difficult to control in this environment. The adults have wings and are about 1/8 of an inch. There are many species of thrips some of which are tan as you describe and longer than wide and could be described as a grain of rice as you have. You had a pretty good infestation if they were that visible. Your shower method probably removed many of the insects but probably not all. The young larvae are small and can hide in the joints of the plant. Insecticidal soap or a neem-based soap would be a good solution for your situation. Weekly inspections and sprays will be necessary until you have controlled them. Neem can influence the larvae development disrupting their molting and ability to mature (and therefore reproduce). Neem in a saponified formula can also control the adults. Insecticidal soap alone doesn’t have any growth regulating capabilities. Of course contact of the insects skin with the soap is essential to control. I may also suggest you consider removing the plant and starting again with clean material. In addition, unless you are providing additional lighting basil plants can languish during our winters even in the brightest windows. If you have any other plants in the house I would monitor them to be sure the thrips haven’t spread to other plants.