whiteflies in phoenix arizona

I am infested with whiteflies for about the 3rd year now.  I live in Phoenix, AZ.  The problem persists during the summer months (we see the most activity), and during the winter it appears they are gone.  Do they go dormant – where do they go???

Thanking you in advance for your help.

Whiteflies have long been a problem pest over the years because products like Sevin and Malathion don’t work well on controlling local infestations. Due to the poor performance of these active ingredients, many garden variety pests have a reputation as being “impossible” to get rid of once you get them. This is far from the truth. With the right mix of active ingredients and the right treatment regime, most any garden insect can be both controlled and eliminated. In this case, the products listed in our WHITE FLY CONTROL article are what you need to start applying and if you stay with the program, you’ll be able to get rid of whiteflies for good.

Get enough BIFEN, SPREADER STICKER and NYLAR to apply treatments every two weeks for two months. At the end of two months, the problem should be under control and the growing season for this year coming to an end. Plan on spraying once a month next season and this should keep any new ones from starting a colony. Since there is probably a white fly infestation somewhere on a nearby property, your plants will be at risk during the summer months. Keep them whitefly free by treating monthly. If you can get through the summer with monthly applications protecting you long enough from re infestation, you may try waiting a little longer in between sprays the following year. But I would say the longest you should ever wait would be two months. Given the local weather pattern in Phoenix, I don’t think the chemical application can last much beyond two months so you’d be vulnerable if you try to space treatments any further apart.