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Grape hyacinth (Muscari armeniacum) is often the first bulb-type flower to show its blossoms in your garden in spring. The flowers look like clusters of little pearls, blue and white. They usually carry a mild fragrance. When the grape hyacinth blooming season comes to an end, you need to care for the bulbs to protect and preserve them so that they can bloom again the following year. Read on for information about Muscari care after blooming.
Armenian grape hyacinths (Muscari armeniacum) are stunning spring-blooming bulbs that add vibrant pops of color to the garden with their beautiful blue-purple blossoms. However, these delicate flowers are susceptible to thrips, which can quickly damage the blooms and stunt plant growth when left unchecked. If you’ve noticed signs of thrips damage on your grape hyacinths, taking prompt action is key to saving your plants. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll cover how to identify and control thrips in Armenian grape hyacinths using both chemical and non-chemical methods.
What are Thrips?
Thrips are tiny slender insects that are often difficult to spot with the naked eye due to their small size of 1-2mm in length. They can vary in color from yellowish to dark blackish-brown. Thrips have fringed wings and quickly move between plants feeding on leaves flowers, buds, and other tender tissues.
These pests use needle-like mouthparts to pierce plant cells and suck out the contents, leaving behind telltale signs of silver or bronze stippling, distorted growth, and flowers that fail to open properly. Left uncontrolled, thrips can weaken and stunt plants, reduce flowering, and spread viral diseases.
Signs of Thrips Damage on Grape Hyacinths
Carefully inspect your grape hyacinth foliage and flowers to check for evidence of thrips infestation. Watch for these common signs:
- Silvery speckled patches or dark dots on leaves and petals
- Flowers that fail to open or have streaked discoloration
- Curled, deformed, or wrinkled leaves and buds
- Black dots of fecal matter on leaves and stems
- Stunted plants with reduced flowering
If flowering is reduced and you notice any leaf or flower distortion, use a magnifying glass to look for the tiny winged thrips that may be hiding in crevices or on the undersides of leaves. Acting quickly to control thrips can prevent lasting damage to grape hyacinth plants
How to Get Rid of Thrips on Grape Hyacinths
When thrips are detected on grape hyacinths, integrated pest management using multiple control tactics works best. Here are some effective methods:
Remove and Destroy Infested Plant Parts
Prune off any leaves, flowers, or stems showing severe thrips damage. Seal them in a plastic bag and throw in the trash to prevent spread. Removing heavily infested plant tissues can eliminate a major source of the pest population.
Use Beneficial Insects
Natural predators like minute pirate bugs, lacewings, and predatory mites will prey on thrips and help keep their numbers in check. Attract these beneficials to your garden by planting pollen and nectar sources like daisies, cilantro, and asters. You can also purchase some of these predators to release near infested plants.
Apply Neem Oil
Neem oil is an organic insecticide that disrupts the life cycle and feeding habits of many common garden pests, including thrips. Mix neem oil according to label directions and spray on grape hyacinth foliage. Apply weekly to control infestations. The oil’s residual activity helps deter additional feeding.
Use Insecticidal Soap
Insecticidal soaps containing potassium salts of fatty acids can be an effective option for controlling thrips organically. Spray the plants thoroughly, especially leaf undersides, as the soap disrupts cell membranes on contact and kills juvenile and adult thrips. Multiple applications are needed to tackle heavy infestations.
Apply Spinosad
Spinosad is a natural insecticide derived from the fermentation of a soil microbe. When ingested, it affects the nervous system of thrips causing paralysis and death usually within 1-2 days. Spray spinosad in the evenings when pollinators are less active. It has very little toxicity to beneficial insects when dried.
Use Sticky Traps
Yellow and blue sticky traps can be used to monitor thrips activity and populations. The traps attract adult thrips which become stuck on the gluy surface. Position traps just above the plant canopy to catch the flying pests. Check and replace traps weekly to gauge treatment effectiveness.
Cultural Practices That Help Deter Thrips
Alongside targeted treatments, certain cultural practices can make the garden environment less hospitable to thrips and reduce their damage potential:
- Avoid excess nitrogen fertilization which promotes soft, sappy growth that is vulnerable to feeding
- Use drip irrigation and avoid overhead watering to keep foliage dry
- Cover new transplants with floating row cover to exclude thrips
- Use reflective mulches like aluminum foil to deter landing and egg-laying
- Rotate spring flowering bulbs to different areas each season to disrupt pest cycles
When to Take Action Against Thrips
Be vigilant about checking for thrips in early spring around the time grape hyacinths begin to emerge and flower. Catching infestations while they are still small gives the best chance of protecting the plants with less intensive management. Don’t wait until you see widespread symptoms, as the damage may already be done. Implementing thrips control as soon as they are detected using a combination of methods will provide the most effective and long-lasting results.
With diligent monitoring, prompt treatment, and good cultural care, you can enjoy thriving grape hyacinths unmarred by the pesky, piercing feeding damage of thrips. The small time investment needed to control these insects is well worth having vibrant, prolific flowers lighting up your spring garden.
What to Do with Muscari Bulbs after Flowering
You may wonder what to do with Muscari bulbs after flowering is over and the plant stems are cut back. Generally, all you have to do is apply a little manure over them in autumn, then a layer of mulch to keep the weeds down. Water them when the weather is dry. In some cases, Muscari care after blooming may include digging up the bulbs. If the plants show signs of overcrowding that limits their blooming, you can dig them up. Do this very carefully to avoid damaging any of the bulbs. Once you have the bulbs out of the ground, separate them and plant some of them in other parts of the garden.
Post Bloom Grape Hyacinth Care
You really don’t want seeds to set on those grape hyacinth after flowering. The plant doesn’t need seeds and setting seeds depletes its energy supply. So that means grape hyacinth after flowering needs a trim. As soon as the flowers fade, trim them back with pruners or garden scissors. Remove the small flowers from the stem by running your fingers from just beneath the flower cluster to the tip of the blossom. However, leave the flower stem and do not cut it. It will provide nourishment for the bulb as long as it is green. For the same reasons, leave the foliage in place. This allows the leaves to continue to collect energy from the sun to feed the bulb for next year’s blooms. After grape hyacinth blooming season is at an end, the foliage eventually turns yellow and dies back. This happens about a month and a half after first blooming. At this point, the best post bloom grape hyacinth care requires that you clip back the stems to the ground.
Get Rid Of Thrips FAST! How To Treat + Prevent Thrips On Plants ❌
FAQ
What instantly kills thrips?
What is the best control for thrips?
Will vinegar kill grape hyacinths?
How do you kill grape hyacinths?
You can also use a propane weed torch and burn off the greens. This method will require several years for complete success but eventually the plants will die. Removing grape hyacinths manually is a bit of a chore but works better than herbicide use.
How to prevent thrips from taking over a plant?
Making use of your vacuum is a smart way to prevent thrips from taking over. The critters are so lightweight that gusts of wind transport them from plant to plant. Therefore, it is relatively easy to remove them with a vacuum cleaner that will suction them into a disposable dust bag.
How long does it take to get rid of grape hyacinth?
Complete elimination may take years. The first step to get rid of grape hyacinth is to remove seed scapes after the flower petals have fallen. Although it takes at least four years for the little seedlings to form flowers, the seeds will eventually restart the hyacinth take over.
What are thrips on a tomato plant?
Thrips on a tomato plant. Like aphids and spider mites, thrips ( Thysanoptera) are tiny insects that feed on plant sap and are often found congregating in large groups on the underside of leaves, as well as plant flowers and stems. There are over 7000 different species of thrips, including onion thrips and western flower thrips.