I made a rookie plant collector mistake the other day, and failed to properly quarantine alocasia plants I found at The Home Depot. They were just too pretty to hide away! As a result, a handful of my plants started showing signs of spider mites and I had to act quickly before they got out of hand.

Truth be told, I can't tell for certain if the mites came home on the alocasia, as there are a million and one ways that the pests can make it inside, but my recent infestation did not start until I introduced the new plants.

Since they occur naturally outside, it is possible that one of my dog...