Pests & diseases › Thrips
Thrips
Tiny slender insects that rasp leaves and suck sap. Silvery streaks and tiny black flecks (frass).
Symptoms
- Silvery streaks or stippling on leaves
- Tiny black flecks of frass
- Distorted growing tips
- Carry tomato spotted wilt virus — secondary damage worse than direct
Lifecycle
Multiple generations per year. Worst spring through fall.
What to do
- Blue sticky traps
- Predatory mites (Amblyseius cucumeris)
- Insecticidal soap
- Neem oil
If it's bad
- Spinosad-based products
Stop it coming back
- Remove nearby grass and weeds (thrip reservoirs)
- Reflective mulches confuse them
- Inspect new plants
Crops it goes for
Plan the plot, track every sowing, cook the harvest
Sowing reminders and harvest forecasts for your own frost dates, the Seed Tin, Scan Centre for any label or packet, and the Potty Mouth Garden Club. Free to start.