# Safe aphid cure



## TWall

If you can reach them with a hose you can try physically spraying them off followed up with a spray of insecticidal soap. The soap spray just "drowns" the aphids and will not leave a toxic residue.

Tom


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## criscojohn

Watch the soap spray, though. If it's hot and sunny, it might burn the plants. Best to wait for evening or a cloudy day. Hope this helps,
Chris


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## Claudia80

I had already tried spraying with soapy water and it didnt seem to phase them in the least bit, they just continued to spread to other stems. I think im going to need to find an insecticide and since its cold enough here that the bees arnt flying and I cut the flowers off for seeds that it should be alright. I just wanted to find something safer for them.


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## max2

Can you buy predatory insects like Lacewings?
I'm sure they are available in the US. Nil residue and it works.


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## toekneepea

max2 said:


> Can you buy predatory insects like Lacewings?
> I'm sure they are available in the US. Nil residue and it works.


Aren't Ladybugs predatory - especially towards aphids?

TP


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## Countryboy

An old fashioned insecticide spray for aphids is to soak black walnut hulls in water, and then spray the dark water on the aphids.


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## dmpower

Countryboy said:


> An old fashioned insecticide spray for aphids is to soak black walnut hulls in water, and then spray the dark water on the aphids.


Make sure you wear gloves for this one! Maybe even double gloves. These hulls will color everything they touch a nice shade of black!


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## max2

" Aren't Ladybugs predatory - especially towards aphids?"
they are as well.


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## Claudia80

The black walnut spray would be easiest for me since there is a tree nearby! We have a lot of ladybugs but they have gone dormant already due to the cold. I also really dont want to try buying bugs for a few potted plants. I'm moving them into the garden in the spring.


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## mvan

Beneficials like ladybugs and Mantids are great, but buying them rarely solves the problem. The ones you buy almost always end up leaving (or dying). If the conditions in the garden were able to support them, they would already be there.

I think a better strategy is to plant things that attract them by providing food and shelter. Some that come to mind are yarrow, dill, cilantro...
I know there are plenty of others, just can't think of them right now.....

Of course, this is a longer term solution, and you probably want the problem solved now....


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## BEES4U

Consider: Green Light Horticultural Oil spray.
Locate and destroy the ants that are taking care of the aphids.
Ernie


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## jjt42

Hi - 

I run a non-certified organic vegetable farm. A couple of strategies we use:

1. Unless they get to a certain threshold where they seem to be harming the plant, we just tolerate them. Not sure where you are in GA, but if you're getting any of this arctic air that most of the east coast is getting, it will slow them down quite a bit. A blast of water might be all you need to take care of most of them and prevent a population explosion. 

2. If you can't tolerate them, soap-sprays are the usual go-to, but I actually find neem oil sprays to be much more effective. It's certified for organic use (comes from a tropical tree source I believe), but I'm not sure if it's been tested around bees. But since it's an oil based substance, it's best to spray in the morning anyway before it's too hot out (hot sunlight can interact with the oil and damage the plant), so your bees won't be flying yet anyway. I've used neem quite a bit through the years, and have been impressed with the rapid knock-down. Plus, it has some fungicidal qualities as a bonus, which will help with downy mildew that might still be a problem in your area if it's not too cold. 

3. If you really need them gone and want to pull out the big guns, a pyrethum-based spray is what you need. Still considered "organic" (derived from chrysanthemum flowers) and safe around humans, but it WILL kill your bees and pretty much any other bug it comes in direct contact with. This is the only organic pesticide I've ever seen that will knock-down bugs instantly. I only use it as a last-resort, if I'm going to lose a crop. It's expensive stuff.

You can get both the neem and pyrethum sprays (under the brand name Pyganic) from: http://www.7springsfarm.com/catalog.html. Very good customer service, and the best prices you'll find. PLus they don't mark up their shipping.

I agree with the other comments about beneficials- lady bugs and praying manti are the usual aphid-killing bugs that the companies like to push, but studies have shown that controlled releases of both of these have little impact (about 90% fly away upon release). Plus it's too late anyway to release them unless you're way far south. Planting beneficial-attracting plants, however, is a good long-term strategy for helping control pest populations. 

I have never heard of the black walnut remedy, but I don't doubt that it works! One caution I would have about trying it though is that black walnut trees are actually toxic to a lot of plants (particularly in the nightshade family). I'm not sure what effect spraying an oil derived from them would have on some of your plants. 

Hope this helps. Aphids can be a persistant nuisance in the cooler weather. But try the neem oil before you resort to anything more toxic.


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## Claudia80

Thanks so much for the replies. I cut the tops off where the aphids were collecting and also misted the plants before a hard freeze and I havent seen any more aphids come back yet. I'm going to keep all strategies in mind for when they come back this spring  Thank you for all the help!
On a side note... sedum really is impossible to kill! Two weeks before it got cold here I was given one root ball of autumn joy. Most of the stems were broken so I cut them all off, stuck them in a pot of good soil, and wished them luck. All but one of the stems has rooted and has new growth even in this freezing weather! I havent figured out if I should bring the baby plants into the garage to keep them out of the heavy freezes but if I do that they wont get much sun so im still debating that, they seem to be doing fine outside.


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## jjt42

Sedum is quite hardy- down to zone 5 (-10 F) at least depending on the variety. So I wouldn't worry about coddling them too much. If you were really worried, you could always just bring them into your garage in the evening, and set them back outside during the day. Or you could wrap them in burlap or something in the evenings. But personally, I wouldn't worry about them.

Glad to hear the aphids are gone!


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