I have a 3 year old Shleffera Amate that was going great until this summer. There are little tiny bugs in the soul that become little winged flea-type insects. Stems are going yellow and dying. There is honeydew on the broken stem sections. I'm not sure it's scale, but I'm not sure it isn't. I've been controlling it with neem oil and insecticidal soap, but haven't been able to stop it. Any thoughts or suggestions?
Edit: It's also rapidly and happily been sending out new growth as it's been outside over the summer. I'd ideally like to snip the top so it will branch and griw into a big tree over time. I've never pruned it. Ideally I'd like to propagate it as well but I don't want to cut the plant if it's too weak.