Tiny clover mites wreak havoc on homes


Your questions for this column can be mailed to Ron Becker at 428 W. Liberty St., Wooster 44691. It is your questions that make this article interesting, so don't hesitate to send them in. Q. As I was cleaning my windows, I noticed several of them had what appeared to be nests of some sort stuck in the track for the screen. The nests were made of what looked like dried out pine needles. I never saw any bugs or eggs. What were they? Chris in Wooster. A. Not having seen these "nests" or knowing their size or shape, my best guess is that they were the result of one of the bagworms. Bagworm larvae build a "house" around themselves as they mature and then use the same bag to pupate in. The common bagworm can create a spindle shaped bag that is 1-2 inches in length, camouflaged with bits of debris from the plants it eats, which may be pine, spruce, juniper, sycamore, apple, maple, elm or a number of other trees. The common bagworm can cause significant damage to these trees. The grass bagworm, on the other hand, is considered to cause little damage to its primary host which is grass. The nest or bag built by the grass bagworm is fairly straight and about 1 inch in length with bits of grass being its main decoration. Both bagworms are known to attach their bags to upright structures such as trees, fences and houses. Q. I've got these teeny, tiny little bugs that look like dots crawling around on my basement floor. I sprayed them once, but they keep coming back! What are they and how do I get rid of them? A. Luckily with this one you sent in a sample, and tiny they are! What you have are called clover mites. They are tiny members of the spider family (arachnids) that are about 1/30th of an inch long (smaller than a pin head). Sometimes they invade homes in enormous numbers, in early spring and late autumn, overrunning floors, walls, drapes, window sills and furniture, even occasionally getting into beds and clothing. As far as controlling them, there are several options. To discourage them from coming into your house in the first place remove all the grass and weeds from around the house foundation, leaving a bare strip 18 to 24 inches wide, especially on the south, southwest and east sides of the house. Mites will not cross bare, loose soil as readily as grassy surfaces touching the foundation. You can cover this area with pea gravel or plant it to a number of flowers or shrubs that are unattractive to the mites. Also be sure to seal cracks and gaps or other points of entry with caulking compound, putty and weather stripping around foundations, windows and doors. For those that are in the house already you can sweep them up, but make sure to empty, throw out or burn the disposable sweeper bag because the mites can escape from there if you don't. Chemically, you can spray a barrier around the outside of the house during the mite invasion period, spraying the foundation, exterior walls up to the bottom of the first-floor windows, and a strip 10 to 20 feet wide from the foundation out into the grass. There are also chemicals that are labeled to be sprayed inside the house in cracks or crevices where the mites might enter. If you do spray inside the house, make sure the pesticide you are using is labeled for it! More information on specific chemicals to use for controlling clover mites is available in our Home, Yard and Garden fact sheet -HYG 2095. Ron Becker is a program assistant in Agriculture & Integrated Pest Management at the OSU Extension, Wayne County.

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