Anyone know the best way to rid my plants of aphids...that doesn't require poison?
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Here is a sure fire way to get rid of aphids on your new growth: Place some plain flour in a the toe of an old piece of panty hose and dust the little buggers. The flour sticks to their wet bodies, clogs their pores and they either die on the spot or fall off immediately and then die. Aphid infestations are a cyclical thing.Twenty minutes or so after treatment, you will be able to hose off the remaining aphid bodies and you should be aphid free until the next infestation hits. Flour is cheap, biodegradable and non-toxic to your roses or the environment.
It sounds to me as though it's time to call in the ladybugs! Ladybugs are aphid predators, but they won't harm your plants. You can probably contact a local garden center and find out how to purchase them. Be sure to get ladybugs that are native to your part of the country, so you don't introduce a harmful species.
Good luck!
three things in order of least to most harmful
1) spray them with a really hard blast of water from the hose
2) spray them with orange oil or limonene
3) spray a tiny little light mist of Raid House & Garden over the top of the plant.
Try water with some hot pepper flakes or Tabasco mixed in. Spray.
add liquid soap to a spray bottle of water.
This will kill aphids
Simply washing them off the plants with a gentle spray of water can work.
Using soap, dish soap, or insectacidal soap, will kill the aphids (and many other small bugs) without poison. Simply put a spoonful of soap in about a quart of water and spray it on the pests. The soap dries them out.
Some plants, like chives and onions and marigolds, repell the aphids (and some other bugs) before they get on your plants. Try searching for "companion planting".
Ladybugs. Aphids are a staple of thier diet.
Cat
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I have had good luck in the past taking dried or crushed red pepper, turning it to a fine powder in a coffee bean grinder, and putting it in a spray bottle with water and a bit of liquid dish detergent. It may not kill them, but they will usually find somewhere else to be. It will require repeated applications when used outdoors as rain or even dew will wash it off.
I knew someone that would make a mixture of dish soap and water and spray it on the plants with a spray bottle. Unfortunately I don't know the ratio that he used. I don't imagine you'd use a lot of soap, maybe a teaspoon per quart.
* Squashing a few aphids around the infested plants releases a chemical signal that makes the other aphids drop from the plants and leave.
* To foil aphids: flatten a square of aluminum foil around the base of plants to bounce light on the undersides of leaves. This also helps the plants in giving them more light.
* Try a barrier of powdered charcoal, calcium dust or bonemeal to keep them away from your plants.
* Stinging Nettle Spray: Aphids & Thrips - Cover 1 quart nettles with water, cover and ferment for 3 weeks. Mix 1 part nettle tea with 7 parts water. Spray.
* Spread out a barrier of tansy around the base of the plant to stop those ants.
* Use a spray made from a tea of tomato or potato leaves and water.
* Chop 12 or so tomato leaves and 1 chopped onion in 1/2 cup of of 70% isopropyl alcohol for a few minutes. Apply the mixture directly on aphids with a cue tip or paintbrush.
* A forceful spray of water is often enough to knock the aphids off the plant and may discourage the ants, well sometimes.
* Put a bright yellow plastic pan in a strategic spot in the garden. Fill it a third of the way full with water. Aphids are drawn to the yellow color, land on the water, sink and drown.
* A soap spray can be used to strip them of their protective wax coating, dehydrating them. Mix 1 tablespoon of Castile soap to 1 gallon of water, spray.
* Garlic oil spray can kill aphids and other soft bodied pests.
* A dusting of diatomaceous earth is lethal to aphids. Wear a mask when using DE.
* Teas made from elderberry or rhubarb leaves can act as a deterrent. Oxalic acid is the compound present in these plants that makes a spray effective. It is poisonous.
* Place banana peels at the base of infested plant. The peels give them a shot of potassium too!
* Also See: Treatments: Horseradish, elderberry and yarrow tea.
* For wooly aphids on apple trees: grow the trailing type nasturtiums training them to wrap up and around the tree trunk to ward off these pests. Very attractive too! Note: nasturtiums will specifically attract the black aphid while repelling others.
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