Winter is here to stay in Cleveland, especially in Feb. when we are so starved for warmer temperatures and sunnier days. This is the time when you should really be paying attention to your house plants. The dry air of our winter homes is the perfect environment for plant pests to get out of control. In particular, spider mites can be a real problem on Ficus trees and other indoor tropical plants. The symptoms include: mottled leaves and spider-like webbing if the infestation is really bad. Prevent spider mites by simply misting the foliage on a regular basis if your outbreak is low. For greater control, use soapy water. I like to use dish soap (1 tbs soap/quart of water) in a spray bottle or you can use insecticidal soap or neem oil that you can obtain from garden centers. Use of a systemic insecticide is totally unnecessary, especially if you have animals in the house that might chew on a leaf now and then.