Advice

and what ca I use close to harvest?

Neem oil can be used

Is this what they look like

here's what you need to know.

Thankfully, it is not hard to learn how to kill aphids. These nasty, little creatures actually suck all the moisture out of plants so that the plant will stop growing and just wither away. Check your plants’ leaves, and if you spot some tiny greenish-gray insects, take immediate action to kill them. Aphids can completely destroy a garden in 48 hours.

An Organic method of controlling aphids on your plants is to use an insecticidal soap. Gardening stores have a special insecticidal soap that you can dilute with water and spray onto your plants. The best time to do it is in the evening after the heat has cooled down for the day. Some people make their own organic insecticidal soap, but you have to be careful about not using too strong a soap or it can be toxic to the plants.


Homemade soap usually involves mixing together a tablespoon of dish-washing detergent with a quart of warm water and two teaspoons of cayenne pepper. Just pour the liquid into a spray bottle and spray the plant leaves. Remember to do the tops and the underneath part of the leaves because this is where the aphids like to hide.


Unfortunately, if you have a problem with aphids, you either already have a problem with ants or you will shortly. Aphids give off a sweet liquid which attracts ants. An indoor and outdoor remedy for many insects is to dust your plants with diatomaceous earth. This is available at many organic gardening stores. It not only works to rid plants of insects but can also be consumed by dogs, cats, cattle, etc. to get rid of internal parasites, fleas, ticks, and many other insects.


Kill them Now!

Because diatomaceous earth (crystallized algae) works by mechanical rather than chemical means (it crushes the insect and deprives it of fluid), you can treat vegetable plants right up to the day of harvest with no negative results. In fact, this product has been approved by the FDA for human consumption. For those of you who don’t mind using man-made chemicals, there are many different kinds of insecticides which can get rid of aphids. Just make sure to check with the seller to get advice about safe usage and follow the instructions exactly as they are on the package.


Here are some other thoughts;




Spray with water. A strong spray of water is an effective way to dislodge aphids from your plants. Most dislodged aphids will be unable to return to the plant. The Bug Blaster is a hose attachment that works great for this or a spray bottle.

Home remedy for aphids. You can kill aphids by spraying, especially under the leaves, with a solution of 2 tsp mild dish or laundry soap to a bottle of luke warm water. The soap washes off the aphid’s protective waxy coating and causes dehydration. You can also mix three parts luke warm water to one part vegetable or horticultural oil and a couple drops of dish soap. This mixture can be sprayed on to clog the respiratory spiracles of aphids. Spray once a week taking turns between solutions. If using these solutions on food plants, be sure to wash them before eating.

You can use Doktor Doom

It can be used up to 2 days before harvest

If you don't mind it it's great stuff I use to use it. I used the yellow ones, set them off leave for a few hours come back it's done.

o how did they get in my garden in the first place?Is it common and preventable?Maybe I need to keep some lady bugs around?

and what stuff that you use, are you talking about the soap or that bug stuff in the green can doctor dome?

I would use the soap stuff. If you only have a few plants in pots you can take them outside and hose them down. If you have a week left and want to do it quick and easy use Dr Doom.

They all get in the same way most of the time, on your clothes, pant legs and shoes. Pets carry them in also, do you have many house plants?.

Here is a government tite I pulled this off the have a PDF file you can pull down. Don't wait to kill them get at it!!!

http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/cps-spc/pubs/pest/_pnotes/aphid-pucerons/index-eng.php

Aphids - What are they?

Aphids are small, soft-bodied, pear-shaped insects that have long antennae and a characteristic pair of cornicles (short tubes) extending on either side of their abdomen. Their translucent bodies are most usually green, red, brown, yellow or white.
Aphids are common garden pests. These tiny creatures are represented by hundreds of species and almost as many colours.
Aphids have an unusual lifecycle. In the spring, hibernated eggs hatch into females that give birth to 10 or more live female young per day. This allows a colony of aphids to grow very quickly, especially indoors. In the fall the males are born and the fertilized females produce eggs for hibernating outdoors. These shiny black eggs are tucked into the crevices of bark and bud scales. Winged adults are produced only when the colony must migrate, such as when the colony is overcrowded or the climate is unfavourable.
What can they do?

Although aphid damage is most noticeable on ornamental, fruit and shade trees, they can also infest flower and vegetable gardens. You will find aphid colonies on the underside of leaves, the tips of branches or anywhere there is new growth. An initial infestation of aphids is usually localized, but can spread quickly if allowed to develop unchecked. Aphids damage plants by sucking the sap from leaves, twigs, stems or roots and can sometimes transmit plant virus diseases in the process.
Leaves attacked by aphids have spotty yellow discolourations, usually on the undersides. The leaves may later dry out and wilt or curl. Some species of aphids cause plants to form galls--swellings of plant tissues that are globe or spindle-shaped. The galls, which often turn brown, contain many aphids in all stages of development.
When aphids moult, they cast off their skins which look like small white flakes.
Many aphid species produce large amounts of "honeydew"--a sweet sap that makes leaves shiny and sticky, accumulating on anything found under infected trees or plants. Because of its sweetness, aphid honeydew attracts other pests such as ants, flies and wasps. The honeydew can also predispose an affected plant to develop black sooty mould, making the leaves appear dirty and grey.
All of these factors contribute to making the aphid a pest. To keep damage to a minimum, it is important to control an aphid infestation in the early stages.
How can I manage them?

Physical Control

• Repair screens and weather-stripping around doors and windows to keep winged adults away from houseplant.
• Inspect new houseplants before bringing them into your home. If necessary, isolate and treat them with one of the methods listed below.
• As a preventative measure, avoid nourishing garden and houseplants with high- nitrogen fertilizers.
• Monitor house and garden plants frequently during the growing season. As the flight of winged colonizers cannot be predicted, examine plants weekly to determine if you need to take action against a new infestation. Examine the bud area and underside of new leaves for clusters or colonies of small aphids. Once colonies are found on a plant, this means that aphid numbers can increase quickly if not action is taken.
• Examine the bud area and underside of new leaves for clusters or colonies of small aphids. These colonies indicate the aphids have infested the plants, and their numbers will increase quickly. On small plants, crush the colony by hand or prune the plant to remove the colony. In some cases, this may provide adequate control. Pruning and destroying infested leaves or plant sections may also help prevent plant diseases from spreading and reduce the development of new colonies.
• Spray dormant oil on fruit trees in the spring to kill hibernating eggs. Dormant oils are thick oils used primarily on fruit trees to control hibernating mites, scales and other insects. Dormant oils are available at garden supply stores.
• To control infestations in the home garden, spray the underside of plants with strong jets of water to reduce aphid populations. Monitor plants and repeat as needed (this can be every few days).
• As aphids like the colour yellow, place pans of water and yellow food colouring close to observed infestations to attract and drown them. This method is useful in vegetable gardens.
• In outdoor gardens, place yellow double-sided tape around the rims of pots and along garden edges of raised beds to trap aphids.
• Lay heavy aluminum foil on the ground along rows of plants to repel aphids.
• Certain plants may protect other susceptible plants from infestation. They excrete an odour or oil that is unattractive to aphids and may repel them from the area.

Predators

Try to attract the natural enemies of aphids by planting a variety of flowering plants. Small-flowered plants like sweet alyssum, yarrow and herbs in the carrot family are often visited by insect species that prey on aphids lit the lady beetle, the lacewing and syrphid flies. Parasitic wasps are also attracted to these flowers.
Some natural predators or parasites can be purchased from specialized suppliers and certain garden and greenhouse supply stores. Follow instructions carefully if purchasing these biological control products.
Products

Aphid infestations may also be treated with insecticides. There are many active ingredients registered for domestic class use on aphids. A partial list includes allethrin, malathion, pyrethrin, permethrin, mineral oil, lime sulphur, insecticidal soap and natural gum resins. Gum resins are not applied directly against aphids, but rather aim to control the ants that protect the aphids.
Insecticidal soap sprays, requiring direct contact with the insects, may also be effective and leave no residual effect.
Tall heavily infested trees may be difficult to threat without special equipment. For infestations severe enough to threaten the health of a tree, you may want to consider the services of a licensed pest control operator.

Good call on the neem, it will leave residue behind for up to a week, it's bitter. Very good for your plants as a spray. (always use a few drops of liquid detergent with it to act as a dispersant) It is great stuff and even great for your skin, good as an insect repellent too.

how did you know I was using neem?

I'm psychic LMAO... you get rid of them bugs yet?

themrs said:

is there any advice i can get from anyone growing for a long time?anything you wished someone would of told you during your first few years of growing?

We grow in soil.all foxfarm products.1000wtts for flowering.

Click to expand...

best advice ever...........

Trash the soil and go soiless.... For real>>> best advice in the world....

PHXfire "Trash the soil and go soiless.... For real>>> best advice in the world.... "

And you would base this wisdom on what?

First of all We did soiless,soil way better....and no we tried the lady bug thing and most of them were dead...so next step neem...we might have more than one incest =( total bummer...this growing crap is hard work!

Hahahaha yeah it's a full-time job!! But prolly the most rewarding.

It is hard work and just when you think you have it, shit hits the fan. When I was growing with chemicals I could count on losing 2 months every year to some sort of mess. Since I have gone back to dirt I have not had any problems. Me thinks it's the worm castings.

When I use Neem I put the bottle in hot water for 10 min. turns it back to liquid so it is easy to work with. I put 7 ml in a 1 Liter spray bottle of warm water (keeps the neem separated) and a 3 drops of liquid dish soap, it acts as the dispersant in the water. Shake often.

No hits on the other post? To tell you the truth I have never heard of anyone getting aphids before.

Ok thanks all the lady bugs died...most of them never even woke up! We are pissed about that.Im doing the Neem oil once I put the kids down for a nap.It seems like we have the temp set so that the bugs don't reproduce so fast...they are only on one plant,then we have tons of nats but they don't hurt right?well any way I will be doing Neem this afternoon!I will let everyone know how its goes...

yes for sure! I wont give up!

Nats can become a problem if left to there own. The best way to get rid of them is to let the soil dry out more before you water again. The little buggers love damp soil, another thing you can do is have a small fan blowing across the tops of the pots, helps dry out the top layer faster.

You can put yellow sticky strips up, you can get them at wall mart or any big-box store.

You can also use vinegar in a small narrow necked bottle with no top on it, set beside the plants and they fly in and drown.

Ok Im about to go in with the neem...I seen everything I should do to the neem,warm water,soap ect.....anything else real fast before I go in?