Have you ever seen white foam on your plants? Find out what it is and how to eliminate it
On occasion, you may find a strange white foam on your plants - especially on early spring mornings. And you may have wondered - as you wash the foam away with the hose - where this foam comes from.
The creature responsible for this "inconvenience" is a common insect which, however, very few gardeners ever get to see "in the flesh". So, what is this insect and how do you get rid of it? Well, keep reading to find out:
What insect is responsible for producing the foam on your plants?
This foam-producing insect is commonly called the "meadow froghopper" or the "meadow spittlebug" or simply "spittlebug" and its scientific name is Philaneus spumarium. Spittlebugs belong to the insect order Rhynchota Homoptera, and adult spittlebugs are small moths of about 5 mm in length and range in color from light brown to black. During the summer, the females lay their eggs on the bark of trees and these hatch in the spring.
The spittlebug larvae then migrate to herbaceous plants and feed on their sap, protecting themselves from predators by producing a foam made up from the waste products in their intestines. Once they reach adulthood, the above-described life-cycle repeats.
Are spittlebugs harmful for your plants?
Spittlebug larvae are not harmful for your plants, unless there is an unusual increase in their numbers. In large enough numbers, however, the amount of sap ingested by spittlebugs and the amount of foam they produce, can affect the plant negatively.
Adult spittlebugs, on the other hand, are carriers of Xylella fastidiosa, a very harmful disease for plants which can be spread by these creatures. Additionally, the foam can also potentially carry harmful pathogens. As such, it is recommended that you eliminate spittlebugs - adults or larvae - whenever you detect them.
How to eliminate spittlebugs from your plants
As mentioned above, the quickest way to remove spittlebugs from your plants is to "blast" them away with a strong jet of water (which will make the larvae fall off the plants and will wash away the foam). Additionally, you can reduce the number of hosts that spittlebugs can live on: regularly remove weeds from your garden and clear away any "wild" vegetation surrounding your potted plants.
In the case of a serious infestation you can prepare a DIY remedy to eliminate spittlebugs: mix 500 ml of water with 100 grams of chopped chillies, 6 cloves of garlic and 10 ml of liquid Marseille soap and spray this solution on the infested plants (after having first washed away any foam).
Following these tips, your plants will remain foam-free!
