You've probably seen their damage, even on your indoor plants: snaking, pale lines across your leaves. These are caused by leafminers, or tiny bugs that burrow between the layers of leaves, chewing out the soft, juicy interior.
Leafminers are an annoying problem, but they are more cosmetic than anything else. It's true they cause damage, but it's usually not critical damage. They can, however, can cause serious or fatal damage to seedlings.
Leafminers are the larvae of flies from the Agromyzidae family. These very inconspicuous tiny flies are about 1/10" long and are black or black and yellow. Their larvae are about 1/8" and pale green or see-through.
Control of leafminers is difficult because they are shielded within the leaf itself, so it's hard to directly apply any control measure to the maggots themselves. The best control is to remove affected leaves at the first sign and reduce the population. In general, leafminer larvae are active for between 1 and 3 weeks. There are typically about three generations per year.
In more serious infestations where chemical control is necessary, use neem oil and coast the leaves thoroughly.
