Euonymus Scales

• The euonymus scale can destroy wintercreeper plants. The scale is armored with a plate covering its back. Females appear as brown or gray, teardrop-shaped insects that grow to about 1/16 of an inch long, while the smaller white males appear thinner, like pieces of rice. Yellow or pinkish spots on a wintercreeper's leaves commonly signal the presence of euonymus scales, and as the infestation progresses, the plant fails to grow. Leaves begin to drop off the wintercreeper if the scales remain, eventually killing the plant.
  
  Chilocorus kuwanae, a type of beetle and a natural predator of the scales, biologically reduces the scale population on infested wintercreepers. Trimming infested branches can prevent spreading, and some commercial pesticides, such as dimethoate and buprofezin, kill young scales.
  
  

Mealybugs

• Mealybugs, small, leaf-shaped gray-white soft scales, attack a wintercreeper on the leaves and branches or underneath the soil, at the root level. Signs of a mealybug infestation include white fluffy spots on the plant -- the insect's nests -- and sticky, clear residue on the leaves. A wintercreeper with mealybugs has slowed or stopped growth and a disfigured stem, and a large infestation may cause the plant to rot or develop another disease.
  
  Pruning the heavily infested parts of a wintercreeper can control mealybugs, and repeated application of a pesticide -- such as pyrethrin -- curbs an infestation.
  
  

Thrips

• Thrips, small and thin winged insects, puncture the stems and leaves of a wintercreeper to feed. Various species of thrips exist, and colors include white and black. A wintercreeper with thrips has discolored or misshapen leaves, but the insects leave little other evidence of their presence other than tiny black spots of excrement on damaged sites. A large-scale thrip infestation can kill a wintercreeper.
  
  Sticky traps and careful pruning manage an adult thrip population. Pesticide means of control for a heavy infestation include pyrethrin and neem oil, but because the insects fly, elimination is difficult.
  
  

Aphids

• Aphids, tiny soft insects with piercing mouths, feed on the vital fluids of a wintercreeper. Aphids come in various colors, depending on the species, and include green and red. Aphid damage to a wintercreeper harms the plant's growth, leaves and appearance, and the insects leave a sticky residue that can turn into black mold on the plant.
  
  Pruning an infested area of the wintercreeper can stop the insects from spreading. Insecticide soap or neem oil may reduce an aphid population if applied repeatedly.