Its kind of hard to tell exactly what they are. Do they only crawl and not fly. Looks like some sort of gnat to me. Any new plant that comes home with me gets a good spray down with Neem oil or any good insecticidal soap to rid it of any hitchhikers. Whatever they are its highly doubtful they are beneficial so I would go ahead and treat the tree just in case.

mike

Citrus flower thrips. Yes, they're detrimental. Treat accordingly.

Patty S.

Here is a link that might be useful: UC IPM: Citrus Thrips

Is it safe to just spray on the flowers directly as they're just starting to open up and i can already see the little buggers crawling around? Or is that going to damage my budding fruits?

Thanks, Cenesia

Sorry, I meant to say that I have a bottle of insecticidal soap i bought from the local nursery (says it's safe for organic gardening) that I was going to use to spray the thrips with, so I was asking if it's safe to spray this directly on the flower buds even those that are just starting to open and I can already see them crawling around in? Is spraying so going to damage my budding fruits?

Thanks, Cenesia

I would think black citrus aphid; treat as you would any aphid, like roses; but also look for ants near the base of your tree. almost always when you see citrus aphid you have ants; control the ants and you won`t get aphids.

Cenesia, you can certainly use insecticidal soap, you'll just have to thoroughly soak the flowers, getting well into the flower, and you'll need to probably treat 2 to 3 times, about a week apart to make sure they're gone. This is the time NOW to treat - when can see the thrips, before they really do damage. They can cause misshapen fruit, but the fruit will still taste just fine, only look a little weird. See the link for thrip management. The UC IPM site is very helpful, as is UC's Home Orchard site, I would bookmark both sites.

Patty S.

Here is a link that might be useful: UC IPM: Thrip Management

Wow, you guys must have your Mr. Magoo glasses on 'cause I can only see little specks on those flowers. But if I were to guess what these might be just from your description, I'd immediately say thrips. Thrips are most likely to found on the flowers and most likely to be described as ' crawling around in' those flowers.

Thanks to all who have responded. I guess at this point, what I'm not sure is if it's safe to spray directly onto the blossoming flowers because these buggers are all over inside the flowers that are just opening up, or have been opening up. If I do this, will it compromise them from fruiting?

Thanks all!

Sometime you must sacrafice the flowers and fruit in order to keep your plants bug free.

If left unchecked, you will be disappointed with what they'll do anyway.

Remember that thrips can spread like wild fire to just about every other plant you have if not controlled and very hard to rid.

Good luck.

Mike

Thanks for the well wishes! This morning I sprayed some of the buds with insecticidal soap and when I came home I noticed some of the buds have become brownish. Pictures attached. :( Does this mean that they're pretty much a goner? Is this because of my spraying or because of the thrips? Also, does this mean they're not salvageable (i.e. they won't become fruits?)

Thanks again,
Cenesia

http://s1247.photobucket.com/user/cenesia/media/yarmouth_plants/Meyer%20Lemon/2.png.html

http://s1247.photobucket.com/user/cenesia/media/yarmouth_plants/Meyer%20Lemon/1.png.html