Lace Bug Control: How to Get Rid of Lace Bugs

This page is a general control guide for lace bugs. Using the products and methods suggested, you will get control of lace bug infestations. Follow this guide and use the recommended products and tips for the effective elimination of lace bugs in trees, shrubs, and other landscaped areas in your yard.

The lace bug is a damaging and rampant pest throughout the United States that belongs to the insect family Tingidae. Most lace bug species will infest a specific plant host without moving to other types of shrubbery in your yard. This can be seen with the elm lace bugs, which will infest American elm plant species, or the oak lace bugs, which only infest oak plants.

This pest is commonly found on azaleas, rhododendrons, sycamores, broad-leaved evergreens, and many other types of trees and shrubs in your backyard. Though these pests are small in size, they can produce a large amount of damage within a short time frame due to their ability to increase the population. Another factor that makes lace bugs an intimidating pest is their ability to reach sexual maturity in as little as 30 days.

Lace bugs' adult and larvae stages can go undetected until severe damage to desired foliage is presented. Refer to the steps and products listed throughout this DIY guide to prevent and eliminate numerous lace bug species from emerging within your ornamental trees, shrubs, and foliage.

Identification

Before proceeding with treatment, you must be sure that the type of pest infestation you have is lace bugs. Careless identification can lead to using the wrong or ineffective insecticides, which can be a waste of your time and finances. While there are several species of lace bugs across the United States, they share some distinguishing traits.

• Lace bugs are small insects that measure up to 1/8 to 1/4 inches long.
• Depending on the species, lace bugs are usually white. They can range from dark brown to dark black with white pigmentation.
• Adult lace bugs have transparent wings extending past their abdomen when not used. Across their wings, there is a netlike pattern dotted with brown and black spots.
• In the nymph stage, they are wingless and have flat oval bodies. If freshly hatched, the nymphs appear translucent and then change to a light yellow or green coloration. As lace bugs mature, they will become darker, particularly on the abdomen.
• As nymphs, lace bugs will have several pointed spines across their bodies that stick out in all directions.

Use the image and description above to help you properly identify lace bugs. If you are unsure of the pest inhabiting your ornamental foliage, contact us with a photo or a sample of the pest in a ziplock bag.

Inspection

Once you have confirmed lace bugs on your property, you can proceed with the next treatment phase, which is inspection. During this phase, you will locate the areas where lace bugs are infesting and observe the conditions allowing them to thrive. This information will help you determine where to apply insecticide applications.

Where to Inspect

Adult lace bugs will overwinter in the crevices of bark, branch notches, and other hidden surfaces of their host plants during the winter. They will emerge from hiding when plant leaves develop in the spring. Throughout spring, lace bugs mate and feed on the undersides of leaves near the mid-vein.

Depending on the species, lace bugs are plant-specific hosts that will infest the underside of leaves of various ornamental foliage in your lawn, garden, indoor houseplants, shrubs, trees, and other broad-leaved plants.

What to Look For

Lace bugs have five stages of development: the egg, first-stage nymph, second-stage nymph, third-stage nymph, and then adult. These stages of growth occur within the first 30 days after hatching. Eggs of lace bugs are generally laid along the center of the underside of leaves and covered with dark brown excrement that hardens into a semi-hard protective covering. Their eggs will appear numerous and have a football shape that is transparent or cream-colored.

At each growth stage, the lace bugs will shed their exoskeleton, and these skins will remain attached to the lower part of the infested plant leaves. When they reach full maturity, the lace bugs insert their narrow stylets (pierce-sucking mouthpart) into the plant tissue to feed. Feeding injury from lace bugs is not as obvious as other insect species, as holes are never left. Usually, in mid-May to early June, you will begin to see small silver, white, or yellow spots creating a bleached appearance across the leaf's surface.

Treatment

When handling or applying any type of pesticide products, you will need to wear the appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) that protect your hands, mouth, eyes, face, feet, and skin.

The key to removing lace bugs is to apply a liquid residual insecticide containing acephate, bifenthrin, malathion, or cyfluthrin at the beginning of the year and in the summer. We recommend using Supreme IT as this product is a liquid insecticide made with the active ingredient bifenthrin 7.9%, which lasts up to 90 days after application.

Step 1: Water Pressure Application

Both adult and nymph stages of lace bugs are found on the underside of plant leaves. For this reason, you will want to apply a low to medium water pressure to your foliage to wash off any eggs or disturb breeding activity.

Shrubbery that is low to the ground and small in height should be applied with low water pressure. Foliage that is thick in density and tall in height may be applied with medium water pressure. Test a small portion of your plant with water pressure to avoid damaging plant leaves and stems.

Spray more than once a week with an inch of irrigation to avoid overwatering ornamental foliage and landscape.

Step 2: Apply Supreme IT

Determine how much Supreme IT to use by calculating the square footage of your treatment area. To find this, measure the length and width of the treatment area in feet and multiply (length X width = square footage).

To treat lace bugs, use 0.125 to 0.25 oz. of Supreme IT per gallon of water per 1,000 sq. ft.

We recommend using a hose-end sprayer to reach tall foliage heights and large-scale areas. To prepare this spray solution, pour the measured amount of Supreme IT into the hose-end sprayer, then attach it to the end of the garden hose. Once attached, spray until the appropriate amount of water is mixed with the solution. Once evenly mixed, treat the top and bottom of foliage leaves until they are wet but not to the point of run-off.

To avoid plant damage, refer to the product label and plant species being infested before insecticide application. Supreme IT may be applied to lawns, the trunks of woody ornamentals, trees, shrubs, ground cover, bedding plants, foliage plants, flowers, and non-bearing fruit and nut trees.

Prevention

After successfully eliminating lace bugs from your yard, you will want to ensure these pests do not return. We suggest some preventative measures to keep lace bugs away from your ornamental foliage, trees, and shrubbery.

• Keep your plants well-watered with an inch of irrigation no more than once a week. This will help strengthen your plants and remove any potential lace bug eggs and breeding activity.
• Properly prune foliage of dead or decaying leaves and stems.
• Rake your lawn and areas surrounding ornamental foliage of dead leaves and branches to remove food sources and habitat.
• Replace soil at the beginning of the fall season and cover plants with appropriate covering to prevent overwintering.
• Continue to spray insecticides like Supreme IT every 90 days or at the beginning of each season. Apply 1 fl. oz. of Supreme IT per 1 gallon of water per 1,000 sq. ft. of ornamentals and exterior foundations of your home. Lace bugs and their larvae tend to feed on the bottom of plant leaves but may move to the top of plant surfaces if not treated with pesticides. For this reason, spray the top and bottom of plant leaves.

Key Takeaways

What are Lace Bugs?

• Lace bugs are common pests found on various ornamental and broad-leaved foliage in yards. Unlike other insect pests, lace bugs feed on plant tissue's juices (chlorophyll), leaving discoloration and wilting on plant leaves.

How to Get Rid of Lace Bugs

• Lace bugs and nymphs thrive in large clusters along the underside of plant leaves. For this reason, we recommend using low to medium spray water pressure to remove eggs and actively growing lace bugs. Once this has been performed, you may spray with a liquid insecticide that is approved to treat your plant species. We recommend using Supreme IT, as this product is formulated as a liquid and can treat lawns, trees, shrubs, and other types of foliage.

Preventing Lace Bug Reinfestation

• Carefully examine the underside of plant leaves or the ground beneath them for shed skin and other signs of lace bug activities. Spray Supreme IT at the beginning of each season to control and cease lace bug activities. Maintain your foliage by pruning, raking, and replacing the soil to remove food and habitat sources.