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Mealybug

Sap-feeding insects that cover themselves in white waxy fluff and shelter in leaf joints, under leaf bases and among roots. On a houseplant the white fluff in the crevices is unmistakable, and the reason infestations persist is that the sheltered positions are exactly the ones a casual wipe-down misses.

Caused by: Pseudococcidae · also called mealy bug

What brings it on

Warm indoor conditions all year. Plants with dense growth or tight leaf axils — succulents, cacti, aroids — give the best shelter and are the usual sufferers.

source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

  • Royal Horticultural Society: Mealybug

Checked 2026-08-13

Preventing it

Ordered by how much difference each measure actually makes, not by how often it is repeated.

  • Isolate new plants for several weeks and check leaf joints and the underside of the root ball. Mealybug is very often brought in rather than arriving on its own.
    source

    Sourced guidancemoderate confidence

    • Royal Horticultural Society: Mealybug — prevention

    Checked 2026-08-13

Dealing with it once it is there

  • Wipe the colonies off with a damp cloth or a cotton bud, checking every leaf joint and the underside of leaves. Repeat weekly: eggs hatch after the adults are removed, and a single pass never clears it.
    source

    Sourced guidancehigh confidence

    • Royal Horticultural Society: Mealybug — control

    Checked 2026-08-13

  • Badly infested plants are often not worth saving, particularly where root mealybug is present in the compost. Discarding one plant protects the rest of a collection.
    source

    Sourced guidancemoderate confidence

    • Royal Horticultural Society: Mealybug — control

    Checked 2026-08-13

Signs that lead here

Each of these lists the other things that produce the same sign, and how to tell them apart.

On sprays and treatments

GrowingHQ does not tell anyone what to apply, at what rate, or how often. Pesticide approvals differ by country, change without notice, and the product label is legally binding — it is also the document you are holding. What is described here is cultural and physical control, which is what a home grower can act on without a label in front of them.

Plant-specific guides

Where this is one of several causes that look alike on a particular plant, GrowingHQ publishes the differential rather than the general answer.