Here's a pic, they are quite pervassive on a couple of my apple trees. I've sprayed with End All and soaps, and with water. They get into the underside curls of new trees and are quite hard to hit with spray. Regardless, they seem to pop up again within a few days. thanks
those would be aphids. soaps and other contact spray are exactly that, contact sprays, you have to hit the bugs to kill them. try spraying the undersides of the leaves or, use the spray periodically to reduce the numbers and put up with a few aphids here and there.
thanks, I've been doing my best to get under the leaves, lifting them up with one hand and spraying with the other. I also just squeeze the life out of the little buggers, I think that is the most effective way. Last year I bought some ladybugs and they did a fine job indeed, but I've hesitated to buy them again this year because they are quite expensive. Wrong decision I think...
the lady bugs have been kind of pricey this year, my local supplier sells them in a bag that has a count of 3 to 5000 individuals and the container sells for about 50 bucks retail.
yes, that's what I paid last year. I suppose I'll do the same again, they really did the trick before. I was a bit suprised, because I thought that once they ate all the aphids and flew away, the aphids would reappear. But I never had an aphid problem again until this spring.
My recipe for aphidcide: 1 tsp tabasco sauce 1 tsp canola oil 1/2 tsp liquid dishwashing soap 1 litre of water Mix together in spray bottle and mist undersides of infected leaves in the evening. Important to do so on cloudy days or in the evening because direct sunlight on this mixture on the leaves can be damaging. It works great for me! I keep the aphids successfully away from my pepper plants with this.
actually liquid dishwasher soap works better than plain dishwashing liquid. 1 tsp per gallon of water
Most dishwashing detergents contain harsh toxins and carcinogens. I would not recommend the use of them in the garden, especially if it is a food garden.
Bad luck this year. $50 in ladybugs and they flew off faster than you can snap your fingers. I even watched them take off. I saw them on some leaves chomping on some bugs with tons more aphids there to be taken care of, but the ladybugs just weren't interested. I guess they got full and decided to have their dessert somewhere else. Pretty disappointing. s
I have so many ladybugs that they live inside the house when it gets cold. They came with the house! Ihave no idea how they got here but they are here to stay. My garden has very few aphids, but tons of glossy coated beetles that eat everything. I wil get a pic of the beetles, maybe someone knows how to kill them. Leeta
If you want to keep ladybirds around then you have to provide them with their favorite plants to both indulge in romance and of course to overwinter. Umbelliferae are one of the favorites. fennel, parsley, angelica dill etc. Its vital that you don't remove the dead stems from the plants in autumn as that is where all the good lovin will be happening followed by a long nap.
OK we are talking liquid talking baby shampoo or liquid dish soap -- the same stuff we eat off, bath in daily (most of us), and trust with our most prized possessions. Yes, I know some cleaners and detergents are indeed hazardous stuff, but I would like to see what specific toxins and carcinogens in dish soaps/shampoos are being questioned. Considering one of the most damaging and corrosive substance known to man is used by us daily = water ... and I'll still recommend watering your wilted plants. liquid dish soap and baby shampoo does works well for aphids as will as some other insects, but it must be applied quite often. It does contains phosphates but I don't think you'll be over feeding your plants with it.
