Is this pest or just normal? Portulacaria afra

[Dogestoevsky]

They are persistent; outbreaks often happen after treatment since a portion of the mealybugs population lives below the soil. This is why others recommend a systemic + spot treatment. I’m still finding holdouts 2 YEARS after contamination from some Home Depot p. Afra Lilliput. I have a thread on this IIRC, “p Afra vs the mealybugs.” Good recommendation for a systemic brand there, but it doesn’t work immediately. If you really want to avoid systemics, you’ll need scheduled cleanings with rubbing alcohol (after testing for damage), with awareness that they will keep coming back again and again until you winnow down their population.

 

[Dogestoevsky]

Oh and by the way — in my experience almost all ports react poorly to dawn dish soap. Scarring and scabbing and leaf burn. Stick to OTC rubbing alcohol, making sure to spot test. It’s only $2 for a quart of the stuff…