Oh cr*p... It's mealy bugs. :-( First of all... put the tree in quarantine as quickly as possible, away from your other plants! I would try to wash away the bugs (and "cotton") with water. You probably need to do it several times the following days. Check the tree thoroughly for bugs every day until none can be found.

Thank you, Martin.

I washed it with dishwashing liquid and running water, lightly rubbing with my fingers and a cotton swab. I bathed that baby like it was my first born child with cooties.

All of that cottony fuzz washed right off. I used a magnifying glass to see if I notice any bugs and zero ... I don't see a thing (before or after the bath).

I've isolated & placed her in direct sunlight. My question is, should I uproot the plant to examine the roots and possibly change the soil?

Thanks again.

For 2 days, I had this plant next to a potted Schefflera someone recently gave me. I just checked the Schefflera and there they are ... Scale! and who knows what else. Washing this baby, too!

The white fuzzy stuff is mealy bugs-use insecticidial soap from big box store; using regular hand soap or dish detergent can burn your foilage. Use every 2-3 weeks for 2 months to kill all the eggs that can hatch out after the first application. Scale is another story.....

Good new! It seems the "bath" I gave this plant was sufficient. There has been no recurrence of mealy bug. The foliage is growing as usual with no damage.

I do have something to say about this. It look's like you may have a correct diagnosis, although I have noticed something about Adeniums, Gardenias, and possibly Plumerias. Often times where new growth develops, there is a crystalline type substance there. I don't know what it is, but it could easily be mistaken for Mealy Bugs or Honeydew.

I'll try for a better pic.

Does anyone know what this stuff is?

Rob

With flash.

Rob

Hmm! Could it be mealy that didn't "set up house" because there are no blooms? I certainly hope not, but it's something to consider. On mine, it seemed they were very concentrated on the nectar of the flowers.

In any event, what is standard protocol for pest control on Adeniums? Is a systemic ever used? I've had great results with Bonide systemic and use it on all my potted non edibles. in terms of insecticidal soaps, I've always made my own. They work great for spider mites and such.

On a lighter note, the only pest I've ever noticed on Plumeria is this guy...the newly hatched caterpillar of the giant Sphinx Moth. They seem to go hand-in-hand with Plumeria in my neck of the woods.

Maria Elena Those bugs to eat you out of plant real quick :-)

Marica,

Are you referring to the Sphinx caterpillar? They certainly will!

We have a tremendous amount of Plumeria here and they only seem to go after that particular plant. in fact, this caterpillar and the Plumeria seem to go hand-in-hand. I watch them live out their entire life cycle right here in the garden.

They eat all of the soft leaves and flowers on the Plumeria. The big fattened caterpillars fall to the ground and crawl into a corner to form a chrysalis. When the Giant Sphynx Moth emerges, it lays its eggs right at the food source. Before you know it the eggs have hatched and new baby caterpillars are eating the plant again. It's an entire ecological life cycle.

As long as they don't bother me, I won't bother them. If they touch one of my Adeniums and other flowers, there will be hell to pay!

Here's a picture of the underbelly of the Giant Sphinx Moth on my window screen. It flies so fast, at first I thought it was a bat.

- Maria Elena

I forgot you are in the tropics. Odd that they only go after the Plumeria.

Yup, they creep along the fencing of the garden from the front yard to the side yard to the backyard eating all the Plumeria. Then they are gone for a little while. That's when we enjoy an abundance of white blooms all over the yards.

I guess one can see it as natural pruning of the thick foliage, then we just chop down the bare twigs. The stalks grow over eight feet in one season here.

Yes every time I cut back my forest it always comes back. That is why my flower are on my deck so nothing eats them. Wild animals