Insecticide For Clover Mites

If you think clover mite season ended in autumn, you’re wrong.  These microscopic nuisance bugs are around all year-long. While their numbers can spike in the fall, their greatest presence may be in late winter and early spring.  Natural clover mite predators can certainly help to keep populations down during the cooler months, but when temperatures begin to rise, they tend to get overwhelmed by them.

Insecticide For Clover Mites

Clover Mites (also known as red clover mites) are oval-shaped, eight-legged, red-colored mites that are about as small as a pinhead. While they are bright red and small and look similar to chiggers and similar blood-sucking mites, Clover Mites are actually not blood feeders at all and are harmless to humans. However, they are damaging to plants.

They are named clover mites because they primarily feed on clover but are also known to eat other lawn grasses, various trees, ornamental plants, and shrubs. Because of their small size, they do not cause much damage individually but can turn grasses or leaves a silvery color because of the sap sucked up from the plants.

Because they are so tiny, their small size makes it easy for them to enter into homes. Fortunately, they eventually die out in homes because there usually isn’t plant life for them to eat nor do they feed on blood.

If you have clover mites and want to get rid of them, our professional DIY treatment guide can help you to get rid of a clover mite infestation yourself. Follow the step-by-step instructions below, which were put together by our lawn care experts, and you will be guaranteed to wipe out the population quickly and affordably.

Identification

Before you can carry out a control program, you need to identify and make sure the pest you are dealing with are clover mites. Misidentification can lead to using the wrong treatment methods, costing you time and money.

• Clover Mites can be tricky to identify because they are so tiny, about 1/30th of an inch long. Observe them closely and you will notice little patterns on the bugs, but from afar they look like little specks.
• They are eight-legged but you will find it difficult to count the legs on them because of their size. Clover Mites have much longer forelegs than their other legs, which helps to set them apart from other bug species.
• Clover Mites are actually not insects but are arachnids from the spider family. They are also confused with similar-looking pests like Chiggers. What differentiates them from Chiggers are their long front legs, which are often mistaken for antennas.
• The best giveaway that they are clover mites is if they don’t bite you or your pets like chiggers or other bloodsucking tiny bugs do. They only like to eat plants.

Use our description and image above to help you to identify clover mites on your lawn. If you are having trouble identifying, you can send a closeup photo of the bug to our email address and we will help you to identify the bug properly and offer you control products to eliminate the problem.

Inspection

Once you have determined that you are dealing with clover mites, you can then proceed with an inspection. This will help you to figure out where they are concentrated so you know where to focus your treatment applications.

Where to Inspect

Walk through your lawn and observe lawn damage. Also, check around indoors if you have indoor plants as they can usually be found around potted plants as well.

Clover mites are known to invade homes in large numbers and can be a particularly troublesome pest during the colder weather months when they try to venture on indoors for warmth and shelter. Check around your home’s perimeter for entry points such as doors, windows, vents, and any cracks and crevices in the wall.

When clover mites are smashed, they leave an annoying red stain. You can discourage them from coming into the home by clearing away turfgrass from around the foundation of your home.

What to look for

You should be looking for the clover mites themselves, which may be difficult because they are so small. Look for little tiny specks of reddish bugs hanging around grass and plants in your yard. Clover mites can often be found in very large populations in the grass next to foundations of buildings or anywhere they can find a safe place to hide, like walls, windows, and tree trunks.

If you don’t see the clover mites themselves, you should look for areas where you see red stains that could be left on your rugs, furniture, curtains or other such areas to tip off where they have been active.

Treatment

Once you have completed the inspection, you should then prep your lawn for chemical treatment. Before applying chemicals, we recommend putting on personal protective equipment to keep yourself safe during application.

To treat clover mites, you will need to gauge first how serious of an infestation you have. The level of severity can be low where you just have seen them outside, moderate severity where you are seeing them crawling on your home exterior, and high severity where they are actually found indoors.

Treat both indoors and outdoors by using Pyrid Insecticide Aerosol and a broadcast insecticide such as Supreme IT. For the Supreme IT, mix the concentrate with water in a handheld sprayer apply as a barrier treatment around the perimeter of your home to keep them from traveling inside the home.

If Clover mites have already found a way into your home, don’t panic; use Pyrid Aerosol. This fast-acting spray delivers a quick knockdown, killing Clover Mites with contact as you spray. Use as a space spray as well as on cracks and crevices where Clover Mites are hiding.

Step 1 – Spray Reclaim IT around Yard and Perimeter

Supreme IT is a broad-spectrum insecticide that is labeled for treating clover mites. It also has a long residual effect that continues to kill for up to 90 days after application.

To apply Supreme IT, simply mix water in a hand pump or hose-end sprayer then add Supreme IT at a rate of 0.25 to 0.5 oz. per gallon to cover 1,000 sq. ft. To accomplish uniform control when applying to dense grass foliage, use volumes of up to 10 gallons per 1.000 sq. ft. Measure the square footage of your lawn to determine how much Reclaim IT you need to cover the entire area. Shake well and pump your sprayer.

Spray the Supreme IT mixture to the top and bottom of plant leaves by using a fan spray setting to get nice uniform coverage.

Next, you should spray a perimeter treatment of Supreme around the outside of your home and structure to create a barrier that will keep clover mites out. Spray around doors and windows, around the foundation going up 4 to 6 feet then spray any other possible points of entry.

Step 2 – Spray Indoors With Pyrid Aerosol

Pyrid Aerosol is a synthetic pyrethroid insecticide that delivers a quick knockdown of problem pests. The product also comes with a straw applicator tip so you can spray the product into cracks and crevices and get good penetration right where the clover mites may be hiding.

Simply shake the can before use and apply the product where you have seen clover mites or where you suspect clover mite activity. Apply the product from a distance of 24 inches to get even coverage. Do not apply more than 10 seconds of spray per room until the product completely dissipates.

Use the crack and crevice tip to spray directly into cracks, holes and other small openings where clover mites may be. Keep all pets and people out of the treated areas until the product dries.

Insecticide For Clover Mites

Clover mites are a type of tiny, plant-eating insect that can cause major damage to lawns and other areas where clover is grown. These mites do not bite humans or animals, but they do feed on grasses and other plants, which can be devastating to crops if left untreated. They tend to prefer warmer temperatures and higher humidity levels, so they are most common in the southern United States. Clover mites are about 1/16th of an inch long with eight legs and a tan color.

Clover Mite Control Methods

There are several methods you can use to control these pests:

Insecticides – Insecticides are one of the most effective ways to control clover mites. When applied correctly, insecticides will kill all stages of this pest in about 24 hours. Be sure to follow label directions carefully when using any type of insecticide.

Quarantine – If you suspect that your property has been invaded by clover mites, quarantine it immediately! This means keeping all people out of the area until treatment has been completed (usually two weeks). It also means no pets or livestock, because they could carry eggs or larvae back into your home after being outside during this time period.

List Of Insecticide For Clover Mites