Mastodawn

[EDIT: got the help I needed. TYSM Fediverse! ❤️]

Plea for diagnosis.
Please help!

What are these black bumps on my fig's leaves?
Looks lime some kind of a beetle but they stay put in the same spot so maybe not?

Is there a way to get rid of them without poisoning the fruits?

I'm in zone 10a.
Boosts appreciated. 🙏

CC @runderful_ryan

#gardening #pests #fig

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Eugene Parnell 6d ago

@fedipete @runderful_ryan they are some kind of scale insect. The ants hanging around are an indicator because they like to eat the honeydew (waste) that the scale bugs create. You can spray the leaves with insecticidal soap (buy it premade or make some from Castile soap and water). You can also use a neem oil emulsion. The idea is that since they breathe through their skin the liquid clings to them and suffocates them. That often works but doesn't always. But it's a good start

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fedipete 6d ago

@eugeneparnell

If I use Castile soap, would you happen to know the soap to water ratio I should use?
Or is Neem oil better (I have both).

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Centaurea

@fedipete @eugeneparnell I always take ~3 knife scratches for roughly 200ml of water. The ratio doesn't have to be perfect (:
And I would always go soap frist and leave Neem as tool I can escalate to.
If the plant is outdoors however I would try aiming the hose at them first. And wait for the benefical insects to come (despite advertisements soap and neem kill them too!). If the plant is otherwise healthy some suckers won't do much harm, except if there are known insect-borne diseases around.