Help identify problem please

[calipurps]

So I am trying to figure out if this damage is coming from spider mites or slugs/snails I have 4 outdoor plants I was gifted from a friend he said they might have spider mites after he gave them to me so that could be problem but i couldn’t see anything on the leaves maybe slugs or snails at night ?

 

[calipurps]

View media item 1548863

 

[calipurps]

58BE0A80-86C8-423C-9E5A-1800A774E856.jpeg

• calipurps
• May 18, 2018

 

[Big Sur]

Slugs/snails generally eat leaves and leave slime trails. I had one of my Maui plants nearly killed by a slug the other day I used Deadline, and he was dead the next morning. That looks like random bug eating in the photo there. To find if they have mites, pick a leaf and look at the underside of the leaf with a 20x or 30x hand held lens. Spider mites will be easy to find and see at that magnification. They move fast, and are roundish and translucent. Spider mites are indicated if you get white spots on the leaves, or what looks like dust on them. Broad mites are a lot smaller and harder to see. They typically cluster along the leaf veins, also on the undersides of the leaves. Broad mites are indicated if the leaves curl at the edges. Mites generally do not drill holes in leaves though. So it is likely something other than mites or snails. My guess would be small caterpillars or inch worms.

 

[calipurps]

Slugs/snails generally eat leaves and leave slime trails. I had one of my Maui plants nearly killed by a slug the other day I used Deadline, and he was dead the next morning. That looks like random bug eating in the photo there. To find if they have mites, pick a leaf and look at the underside of the leaf with a 20x or 30x hand held lens. Spider mites will be easy to find and see at that magnification. They move fast, and are roundish and translucent. Spider mites are indicated if you get white spots on the leaves, or what looks like dust on them. Broad mites are a lot smaller and harder to see. They typically cluster along the leaf veins, also on the undersides of the leaves. Broad mites are indicated if the leaves curl at the edges. Mites generally do not drill holes in leaves though. So it is likely something other than mites or snails. My guess would be small caterpillars or inch worms.

Thanks what should I use maybe

 

[Big Sur]

Something like Thuricide (sold as BT Garden Dust) I guess? It is safe for veggies and organic. Its a bacteria that kills worms and catepillars that eat the leaves. You can also use carbaryl (sold as Sevin), but that is not organic. If you use sevin wait 14 days before harvesting anything, and use it before your plants flower.