Are Whiteflies Dangerous to My Home?

If you’ve just started your gardening journey, you’d want to know if whiteflies are dangerous to your home. Whiteflies are pests that belong to the Aleyrodidae family. They’re harmless-looking insects that are polyphagous because they feed on a wide variety of plants. These pests may appear like they’re white in color because of the layer of white powder that keeps their bodies, as well as their two pairs of wings, covered. There are two whitefly species that affect crops – the glasshouse whitefly (Trialeurodes vaporariorum) or the tobacco whitefly (Bemisia tabaci). The tobacco whitefly has wings that are joined to their body while the glasshouse whitefly has wings that are parallel to the leaf’s surface. In terms of the quantity of waxy powder on the body, the glass whitefly’s adult and pupa have more waxy powder than the tobacco whitefly.

What Whiteflies Can Do

Direct Damage

As mentioned, whiteflies can cause direct damage to the plants as they feed on them. In case you’re wondering, whiteflies suck the sap from the plants and leave patches of discoloration on some parts of the leaves. As they feed on certain parts of the leaf, whiteflies release toxic substances into the plant’s phloem or the plant’s living tissue. It’s only a matter of time when these substances will begin to spread throughout all parts of the plant. Once this happens, the plant suffers certain metabolic imbalances that can cause it to weaken.

Indirect Damage

Whiteflies also cause indirect damage by enabling sooty mold to form on the leaves of the plants. The fungi that make up this mold limits the plant’s photosynthetic capacity because the mold acts as a screen. 

Whiteflies Are a Danger to Your Plants – Not to Your Home

Needless to say, their ability to cause serious damage to plants can potentially lead to loss of production for the majority of crops. Although they may cause breathing issues when inhaled through the nose or mouth, this won’t be anything serious that’s worth panicking over. However, if you want to get rid of these pests, contact O’Hara Pest Control today.