In this episode of Digging in with gardenstead, tune in for Katie’s chat with soil and plant expert Aaron Deacon of BIOS Nutrients. This week, we’re digging in — as it were — into houseplant pests, why they happen, what to do when you spot ‘em on your plants and how to keep them from coming back.
Katie and Aaron cover the ins and outs of a few of the pests with whom you may be all too familiar — aphids, fungus gnats, spider mites and the oh-so-dreaded thrips.
This week's topic inspired by our community
We were inspired by our very own community members to focus on these particular critters. We get a ton of questions related to these pests in our Facebook groups each and every week. Pests are a problem out there in Plant Land, and we want to help our plant people deal with them.
A podcast all about houseplant pests? Yes!
In the episode, Aaron takes us through how to identify a pest problem, what to do when you discover you have a problem, and how to prevent future pest issues. Katie and he also spend some time talking about how to discern the difference between pests, bacterial infections, fungal disease and viral issues with plants.
Tips and advice to help your indoor plants
Happily, Aaron gives terrific (and very calm) advice for dealing with all of the above. He also shares his best tip for dealing with health issues with your plants — an integrated pest management system is the key to success. Aaron he takes us through just what that means in the podcast, and gives us hope at the same time.
So let’s dig in, shall we? You can stream the episode below, or catch up with us via YouTube or Spotify.
Show notes:
If you’re looking for more helpful houseplant care advice from Aaron (trust us, it’s worth your time), we heartily recommend following him on Instagram: @biosnutrients.
On the show, Katie and Aaron chat about:
- Aaron’s previous appearance on gardenstead’s YouTube channel (the Healthy Soil Classroom series)
- how Aaron got into the healthy soil business and how he came to be a bit of a houseplant expert
- the products Aaron has created to help plant lovers: BIOS All Natural Plant Fertilizer, Plant Probiotic and Yucca Extract
- how Aaron acquired the nickname ‘The Blue-Eyed Scientist’ (and here Aaron gives credit to a very funny Instagrammer who goes by @thebeardedplantaholic)
- why pests happen to houseplants in the first place
- how to tell if your plant has a pest issue
- what to do if you spot aphids, spider mites, fungus gnats or thrips on your houseplant
- how to prevent future pest problems
- how healthy soil is the foundation of a pest prevention strategy
- the difference between good bacteria and bad bacteria and disease, and how to maintain a good balance of bacteria in soil
- what a fungal disease looks like on plants and how to prevent it (we were strangely fascinated by the yellow stinkhorn fungus Aaron mentions)
- what it means when soil goes anaerobic
- how to tell the difference between a pest problem and viral disease on houseplants
- Aaron’s number one tip for dealing with houseplant pests
We hope this episode of our podcast helps you. If there’s a pest we haven’t covered that you need help with, our fabulous community may have the answers you seek.
And, we’re planning to invite Aaron back in the not-too-distant future to talk more about pests (perhaps mealy bugs and scales next time!).
