About the Pink Hibiscus Mealybug

• Pink hibiscus mealybug (PHM) has been discovered in gardens and nurseries in Hawaii, California, Texas, Louisiana, Georgia and Florida, and is a threat to other states that may provide the right climate and food sources.
  
  PHM feeds on hibiscus and other plants by sucking on plant juices. During this process, its saliva, which is toxic, is injected into the plant, leading to deformed leaves and shoots, and stunted growth. If the infestation is severe enough, death may occur. In a hibiscus infected with pink mealybug, you may also notice "bunchy top," whereby the leaves appear to be bunched up and unopened. Your hibiscus will have areas covered with a white, waxy substance, and a sooty, black mold will develop where the honeydew of the mealybugs was secreted from the pests.
  
  According to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, the adult female pink hibiscus mealybug is an oval-shaped creature that has a pinkish to red, hard scaly coating. Adult males are winged, with pinkish bodies. Each is about 3 mm long. The eggs of the PHM are pink to red, and adult females can produce in excess of 10 generations per year, in colonies of over 500 eggs.
  
  

Control of Mealy Bugs on Hibiscus Plants

• To control pink mealybugs on hibiscus, your best bet is to use biological controls. There are small wasp-type insects, Anagyrus kamali, and one species of ladybeetle, Cryptolaemus montrouzieri, that prey on PHM. These are the best-known ways to kill pink hibiscus mealybugs, and to keep them from overtaking entire plants and areas. The ladybeetle and the wasp are already plentiful in some areas where pink hibiscus mealybug is spreading, and you can purchase the ladybeetle yourself to release in your yard.
  
  While controlling PHM biologically with predatory insects is ideal, it may take some time to work, but if the infestation is mild to moderate, beneficial insects can remedy the situation. The use of chemical pesticides on PHM is not recommended by home gardeners, because most pesticides available at retail garden centers will kill all insects, including beneficial wasps and ladybeetles, and will most likely not be able to penetrate the protective coating on the hibiscus mealybug.
  
  The University of Florida says that insecticidal soaps or oils that are readily available at retail garden centers and nurseries may be used with some success on plants before beneficial insects have been released in your area. If you choose to do this, don't use the soap or oil on all of your infested plants. You need one plant left that you can release ladybeetles or wasps on so they can establish themselves.
  
  

What to do With Damaged and Infested Plants

• If you think you have a tropical hibiscus with a mealybug problem, do not cut or trim that plant. Pink hibiscus mealybug spreads through the wind and with the movement of infested plant material. Instead, call your local university cooperative extension, or your state's agricultural department for help. Allow inspectors to thoroughly inspect your yard for signs of PHM.
  
  If you have already cut damaged plant parts, double bag them in plastic garbage bags and put them out for trash pick up, not yard waste pick up.