Mealybugs or scale
Cottony white tufts or small, waxy brown bumps tucked into the leaf joints are mealybugs or scale.
Diagnosis
Mealybugs or scale
What's happening
Both are soft-bodied sap-suckers that latch onto stems and the spots where leaves meet the vine. Mealybugs look like little blobs of cotton; scale looks like flat or domed brown bumps that don't move. They feed slowly on the plant's sap, weakening it and leaving behind sticky honeydew that can turn black with sooty mold.
How to fix it
Isolate the plant. Dab each visible bug directly with a cotton swab dipped in rubbing alcohol to kill it on contact, then wash the whole plant down with insecticidal soap, getting into every leaf joint and stem crevice where they hide. Repeat the soap treatment every 5–7 days for several weeks, checking the undersides and nodes each time, because a few survivors will quickly rebuild the colony.
What fixes it
- Insecticidal soap — Insecticidal soap dissolves the protective coating on mealybugs and scale; reapply weekly into every leaf joint until they're gone.
If that doesn't fix it
This is general guidance based on common symptoms; individual plants vary.
Read the full English Ivy care guide →
Reviewed June 2026 · how we check this