Best results are obtained when sprays are applied before the leaves are rolled, with sufficient pressure to thoroughly cover the undersides of the leaves. Koch Spider mites are not insects, but are more closely related to ticks and spiders. Mites feed by sucking fluids from the plants and generally occur in highest numbers on the undersides of leaves. Heavily infested leaves may be covered with fine, irregular webs in which mites, eggs, and shed skins are suspended appearing as dust particles. Warm, dry weather tends to favor rapid mite development and reproduction, enabling them to complete a generation in as little as 5 to 7 days.
Infestations are usually most severe in late summer and early fall.
Damage symptoms progress from stippling, yellowing, wilting, and browning, and eventually to death of the leaves or whole plant. In addition to crawling, mites can be spread by wind currents and by people or animals moving through the bed. Treatments will be ineffective unless mites are contacted. Repeated applications, spaced 7 to 10 days apart, may be required to achieve control. Field Crickets and Grasshoppers Most species of crickets and grasshoppers overwinter as eggs in the soil, hatch in May and June, and mature in August and September.