Mealybug help

Help

I have a group of hoyas, all but two of them discounted rescues, all from a big box store, purchased maybe 6-8 weeks ago. I quarantined them, repotted them (removed as much of the old soil as positive and used my own mix), and I thought all was fine.

Tonight I found a mealybug on two of them. This is my worst fear - I’ve never had pests. Here’s what I’ve done. I don’t care if I end up killing them, but I can’t have this spread. They are reasonably well separated from my other plants.

I did this to all of the hoyas: First I took a spray bottle of undiluted rubbing alcohol and I soaked every millimeter of the stems and leaves. After that evaporated, I soaked them again with a foliar spray I make (Leca Queen’s formula) that has neem oil, peppermint extract, castile soap, etc.). Then I did a soil drench with a 1:5 mix of hydrogen peroxide and water.

This was what I could do with what I had on hand at 9 o’clock on a Sunday night. What do you recommend I do next to make sure I eliminate the problem completely? Thank you!

Posted Dec 8, 2025, 3:25 AM UTC

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