Did some checking to understand them myself in case they show up in my yard.

You are already doing what you can but in case it begins to get expensive, then it seems that you could also control them with some dishwashing liquid and water solution. This will help remove their wax protection as well as suffocate them.

Lady bugs are also natural predators of these bugs.

I would try to keep the plants if you can, especially on the plants that currently only have a few.

Another option is to cut down the passion vine and get rid of that entire stalk(s). I have actually controlled some pest issues on passion vine before by only allowing the vine to grow later in the season, when it was past the time for those pests to be on their larval feeding or egg-laying timeframe.

In this respect, it's possible they latched on to your plants as a host because the vine itself was already growing and available from having been overwintered indoors and not losing any leaves or growth, compared to possible growing naturally outdoors at a certain time when this might have been able to pass by undetected.

This post was edited by gardenper on Fri, Apr 25, 14 at 19:56

Thanks, gardenper! I inspected today and saw a couple of minuscule bugs: I followed your suggestion and cut the big vine back to the ground.

Separately, I wanted to mention to anyone dealing w/ similar challenges, that I still saw some sticky fuzz on the top of the soil. In other words, my experience is that neem & then Malathion, applied multiple times with 2-3 week gaps between each, has not yet been 100% effective. It is possible that one should spray more frequently or that, no matter what, vigilance is required.

Best of luck to any with similar problems!

Let us know how it goes in a few weeks, if the mealy bug problem was removed or if it comes back (including to your other plants since now this one has been cut back)

Do ladybugs work in your area? They adore a good lunch of mealy bugs. And you would not have to spray them also they don't like it wet if you are over wintering indoors a daily mist might help from what I hear.

This post was edited by elysianfields on Mon, May 26, 14 at 12:43

Thanks, elysianfields. Now that it's warmer, I've had a lady bug or two come by, but I haven't every purchased any (I'm container gardening in the middle of a city & feel like they'll just fly away instantly.)

gardenper, I think cutting down the vines after all the chemicals worked. I'm staying vigilant, but haven't seen any bugs since I last posted. The other plants, too, are so far, bug free! However, I saw a mass on a new plant, but after wiping it away 10 days ago, it seems ok.

thanks again!