Aphids are some of the most destructive insects you can end up fighting in the garden, or even in pots on the balcony. Next, everything you need to know to avoid them… and a few others like them.
Both garden and potted plants are often exposed to the attacks of many harmful insects, some of them so small that they make their presence felt only when the invasion is already important. Here is some practical information about them.
What are aphids?
It’s hard to fight an enemy you don’t know well, so what are aphids? Well, aphids are small insects that invade a wide range of plant types, from crops to shrubs, including roses, garden plants and potted plants.
Also known as plant fleas, these insects are hemipterans; in common terms, they have a “tube” with which they perforate the surface of the plant and suck the nutrients inside.
The Aphididae family includes dozens of subfamilies, and the number of aphids on the globe is huge, but in Romania there are several species more common: Myzus persicae, Hyalopterus pruni, Aphis gossypii, Aphis pomi, Macrosiphum avenae, Sitobion avenae, Metopolophium dirhod .
How do I recognize aphids?
For good plant care it is important to recognize the aphid attack as early as possible. These lice can have different colors; they can be red, green or brown. A single insect is difficult to observe, as it measures around 1–1.5 mm, but living in groups, they become much more obvious.
What are the most affected plants?
A common feature of these flea species is that they are not very pretentious: they equally infest almost any garden plant. Affected crops include legumes (beans, peas, beets, crucifers, rainbows), sunflower, potato, tomatoes, but also fruit trees (peach, apple) or shrubs (the shock is often severely affected).
What is the impact of aphids on plants?
The control of aphids is essential not only for a good production / harvest, but also for the actual life of the plants, because when the plant is strongly infested, it ends up dying.
Although you do not see how each insect acts, but rather observe their effects, beetles use their horns to pierce the cells of leaves and stems and to extract sap. Thus, the plants fail to grow freely, because they lose a good part of their own resources.
Whether it is lice of roses or parasites that colonize other plants, you will notice that the insects are organized in large groups in the area of large vessels carrying sap. The affected leaves are stained, wrinkled, blackened and twisted, and the plants dry out. Thus, a small, seemingly harmless louse ends up causing great damage.
This parasite not only affects the life cycle of plants by depriving them of nutrients, but creates a favorable environment for the development of other diseases. Aphids secrete a sugary substance, which is conducive to the development of other organisms: fungi of the genus Alternaria, for example. But you will notice that the development of aphids will force you to invest in anti-ant solution, the latter being also attracted by the sugar substance.
Even if there was no need for an ant solution or other interventions, things would not be better anyway, for a very simple reason: the sticky substance that settles on the surface of the leaves inhibits gas exchange, which affects the process of photosynthesis. Thus, the plant becomes the subject of an attack on several fronts.
Fighting plant fleas
Fighting plant fleas is a priority for any gardener, be he an amateur. I just saw how much damage such an insect can cause. Before discussing an insecticide for aphids, let’s consider some natural solutions.
Use the force of water
If the infestation is fresh you can use the force of a well-aimed jet of water. Of course, the alternative is suitable in case of room flower lice, water treatment being useless in the case of outdoor gardens, where the level of contamination is much higher. But for your potted plants, a regular shower is welcome.
Soap water
Another variant of natural insecticide for flowers is the soapy water solution. There are several recipes in this case.
One of them recommends the use of homemade soap, given on a grater, which is then dissolved in hot water: 6 tablespoons of soap to 2 liters of water.
Another is more complicated and recommends making the mixture of 5 tablespoons of baking soda, 5 tablespoons of liquid soap or dish detergent, 5 tablespoons of paprika and a cleaned and crushed garlic clove. All this is put in a 5 liter water bottle and left to soak for at least 24 hours.
Spraying in this case is done once every 2–3 days, repeatedly, until the disappearance of harmful insects and their larvae. But the recipe is especially recommended for houseplant pests, because the soap solution also kills beneficial insects, such as ladybugs, which are the natural enemies of aphids.
essential oils
No, you don’t need to treat your unwanted guests with the most expensive essential oils on the market; but you will find in Plafar’s offer such extracts, at very affordable prices, only good for the balcony or for the garden,
On the list of organic insecticides for vegetables and flowers you will find thyme, pepper, garlic and rosemary oil. You can put 4–5 drops of each in a spray bottle full of water and use the mixture to put the beetles on the run.
Green plants will fight
Have you ever thought that you can protect your crops or garden using other green plants, not at all liked by aphids?
A flea-free garden can be obtained by properly cultivating varieties of plants from which aphids flee, or which they love so much that they will infest them exclusively.
Looking carefully for information about flowers, I discovered, for example, that thyme and lavender bushes planted near crops keep aphids at bay. If you have these pests on roses, a very effective solution is to surround the rose cuttings with bushes of these aromatic plants.
Another idea, if you are wondering how to get rid of sticky fleas on roses, is the practice of planting onions and garlic near them: their strong aroma seems to put the aphids on the run. And if you’re not happy with the combination, you can plant mustard and watercress — they are real traps for aphids, who prefer them.
Attract ladybugs in the garden
Are you looking for a flea solution that is natural, ecological and beautiful? Ladybugs are the right answer, they are a strong natural enemy against aphids. And after all, why use for aphids, a toxic insecticide that contaminates your soil, when you can call on the help of nature?
Ladybugs love aromatic crops, so they fill the garden with parsley, dill, mint, coriander and cumin; especially during flowering, they turn into magnets for ladybugs. Lemon, a well-known plant, is also useful in the garden.
Radishes, cabbage, watercress and marigolds are food sources for peppers; thyme, mint and oregano provide an effective shelter against birds, natural enemies of ladybugs. Water sources — shallow trays with pebbles inside — are equally important. And if you are not satisfied with the number of ladybugs that populate your garden, you can use the option to buy them or you can create a hotel for ladybugs with minimal investment.
Baking soda in lice
Many people wonder: is sodium bicarbonate really an insecticide? Well, it seems that this, in various combinations, can be an effective treatment.
The baking soda solution for plants is prepared quickly, cheaply and easily. A tablespoon of baking soda, an aspirin pill, a teaspoon of liquid soap and a tablespoon of oil, mixed in a container with 4 liters of water — that’s all.
Very well known is the spraying of tomatoes with baking soda, an action that seems to remove pests very effectively. Also, washing tomato seeds with a dilute solution of bicarbonate water seems to increase productivity by up to 25%.
Baking soda for potted flowers is one of the most effective spraying solutions, but we recommend caution: the amount of soil being so small, it is possible that repeated applications will cause the soil to alkalize. You can use it, preferably for spraying plant parts of plants.
Baking soda in gardening
Because we started talking about baking soda, we take a break from aphids to tell you how many “magical” effects it has when it comes to gardening. For example, if you sprinkle a little baking soda on the roots of the tomatoes, they will become sweeter.
It seems that spraying bicarbonate solution (one tablespoon to 1 liter of water) on the aerial parts of the flower can speed up flowering.
Baking soda sprinkled between layers or in the corners of the garden is said to keep snails and slugs at bay.
Woolly lice
Woolly lice — this is a species that gives nightmares to professional or amateur gardeners. The species can be identified by observing a whitish down on plants and a sticky deposit on leaves.
A woolly louse is a not at all capricious species, which infects many house or garden plants. It is responsible for the sticky leaves of lemons, but it affects all plants with glossy, fleshy leaves — and more.
Unfortunately, it is unlikely to get rid of this “tenant” without using a flea insecticide. The good part is that a carefully chosen and properly administered solution is also effective against the testicular louse species that also infests houseplants.
Insecticides against aphids
Many people ask for treatment for rose fleas, but the reality is that an aphid solution works just as effectively regardless of the infected plant.
Mospilan for flowers is considered to be one of the most effective broad-spectrum systemic insecticides; its effectiveness lasts up to 3 weeks, so two applications should be enough for potted and garden plants. Its action is not affected by the ambient temperature. A very important advantage is the short break between applying the treatment and harvesting, which practically allows you to use Mospilan when you need it, without delaying and risking the aggravation of the infestation.
Whenever you are asked for treatments for roses and shrubs or trees, Calypso is a variant recognized as being very effective.
Calypso insecticide for roses acts systemically on a wide range of pests; Important advantages of this choice are weather resistance and lack of temperature impact from the time of treatment. Moreover, 1–2 treatments per season are enough to keep things under control.
How to prepare the Calypso solution varies depending on the species of plant treated; you will find clear instructions in the leaflet so that you can adapt.
Are these treatments also effective against fleas?
It is a natural question if you can use such a solution for fleas in the yard. But if we refer to the “ordinary” fleas, those that usually live on animals, the answer is no.
The Romparasect 5% product is very well tolerated and very useful in controlling these hematophagous external parasites. The product is a concentrated solution with acaricidal and insecticidal effect based on Cypermethrin and Permethrin, synthetic pyrethroids with efficient and intense action: 200–500 times stronger than organochlorines and organophosphorics.
The solution is used for professional disinsection of shelters, pens and tools. For the correct application of the product, it is recommended to use a good quality atomizer, so that Romparasect is finely sprayed. The dose is 2 ml / liter of water, the administration being mandatory to repeat after 14 days. For maximum efficiency, mechanical cleaning of the area before application is required.
Try, as much as possible, to use the most natural solutions in the garden, especially if it is about plants for consumption. Do not lose sight of the fact that the insecticide solutions used have a large remnant in the soil; The infiltrating rainwater contributes to their spread over a larger area, so that what you use to treat your roses can spread to the layers of vegetables.
