THRIPS CONTROL

How To Get Rid of Thrips

Thrips control starts with understanding how these fast-moving, elusive pests feed, reproduce, and spread. Their small size, ability to hide deep within flowers and leaf folds, and rapid reproduction make them one of the more challenging garden and greenhouse pests to manage. The most reliable strategies follow an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) framework — combining consistent monitoring, cultural practices, physical controls, and targeted botanical treatments to suppress populations before they cause serious damage. GardeningZone carries a focused selection of IPM-aligned hard goods to help you manage thrips at every stage.

What Are Thrips?

Thrips are tiny, slender insects typically measuring just one to two millimeters in length. They have narrow, elongated bodies with distinctively fringed wings that allow them to travel short distances, and they come in a range of colors including yellow, brown, and black depending on the species and life stage. Despite their small size, thrips are highly destructive and pose a serious threat to a wide range of garden and greenhouse plants.Thrips feed by piercing plant tissue and extracting cell contents, leaving behind characteristic silvery stippling, streaking, or bronzing on leaves. They also feed on flowers and fruits, causing discoloration, scarring, and deformities that reduce both plant health and the quality of edible crops. Adding to the concern, thrips are capable of transmitting plant viruses as they move from plant to plant, making them potential disease vectors as well as direct feeders. Populations can build extremely quickly under warm conditions, and their habit of sheltering deep inside flower petals, leaf folds, and growing tips makes them difficult to detect and reach with treatments.

Signs of a Thrips Infestation

Thrips damage is often noticed before the insects themselves are spotted, as the pests are quick-moving and tend to hide in protected plant structures. Scout your plants regularly, paying close attention to new growth, flower buds, and the undersides of leaves. Key warning signs include:

• Silver, white, or bronze stippling or streaking on leaf surfaces
• Distorted, curled, or scarred leaves and flowers
• Discoloration or deformity of flower petals and fruit
• Black or dark brown fecal deposits on leaves (a telltale sign)
• Tiny, fast-moving insects visible when flowers or growing tips are disturbed
• General decline in plant vigor, particularly on new growth

The IPM Approach: What It Means for Thrips Control

IPM is a decision-making process, not a single product. The goal is to use the least disruptive, most targeted tools first, escalating only when monitoring indicates it is necessary. Because thrips shelter in protected plant structures and have multiple life stages — including a pupal stage spent in the soil — a layered approach that addresses both the plant and the growing medium is most effective.

1. Monitoring & Early DetectionConsistent scouting is the cornerstone of any IPM program, and with thrips it is especially important because populations can explode quickly once established. Blue and yellow sticky traps are highly effective monitoring tools — thrips are strongly attracted to blue in particular, making sticky traps one of the best early-warning systems available.
   Seabright Thrip & Leafminer Sticky Traps — Place near susceptible plants and at canopy level at the start of the growing season. Check weekly. A rise in trap catches signals that adult populations are active and treatment should begin before the next generation establishes on your plants.
2. Physical / Mechanical ControlPhysical controls disrupt thrips populations without chemical inputs and are most effective as part of a layered approach.
   Diatomaceous Earth (DE) — Food-grade DE damages the exoskeletons of thrips and other soft-bodied insects on contact, causing dehydration. Apply as a dust to soil surfaces around affected plants to target the pupal stage, which thrips spend in the top layer of soil before emerging as adults. Also effective as a foliar dust on leaf surfaces. Non-toxic to people and pets when used as directed.
   
3. Soft Chemical / Botanical ControlsWhen monitoring indicates a moderate to heavy infestation, targeted low-impact botanical treatments are the next IPM step. Because thrips hide in tight spaces and have multiple life stages, thorough coverage and repeated applications are important for effective control.
   - Insecticidal Soap disrupts the cell membranes of thrips on contact. Most effective against nymphs and adults on exposed plant surfaces. Apply thoroughly, reaching into leaf folds, flower buds, and growing tips where thrips shelter. Repeat applications every 5–7 days are recommended as new generations emerge.
   - Neem Oil works as both a contact spray and a systemic deterrent. The active compound azadirachtin interferes with thrips feeding, molting, and reproduction, disrupting the population across multiple life stages. Most effective when applied at the first sign of infestation and repeated on a regular schedule. Both the Harris Cold Pressed Neem Oil and NATRIA Neem Oil RTU are suitable options.
   - Horticultural Oil smothers thrips and their eggs on contact by blocking their breathing pores. The Monterey Horticultural Oil RTU is an easy ready-to-use option for thorough coverage on foliage and stems.
   - AzaSol WSP Botanical Insecticide is a water-soluble azadirachtin formulation that works systemically when applied as a foliar spray or soil drench, disrupting thrips feeding and development from within the plant. One of the strongest botanical options available for persistent or recurring thrips infestations, particularly in greenhouse environments where populations can cycle continuously.
   - Monterey Fruit Tree Plus is a combination botanical spray formulated for use on fruit trees and edible crops, effective against thrips along with a broad range of other common pest insects.

The Soil Connection: Don't Overlook the Pupal Stage

One reason thrips are so persistent is that they drop to the soil to pupate before emerging as adults. Treatments applied only to plant surfaces will knock back feeding populations but leave pupae in the soil free to emerge and restart the cycle. Incorporating diatomaceous earth into the top layer of soil around affected plants, and applying AzaSol as a soil drench, helps target this hidden life stage and breaks the cycle more effectively.