My two potted plants, magnum and columbus, are taking off pretty well. But something, I think aphids, are eating through them. Any tried and true solutions to this? The local nursery gave me an insecticide, but with a dog and a newborn I don’t want to keep using that and would prefer something more benign if possible. I ordered some ladybugs off Amazon which should be here soon, so any suggestions are welcome. Thanks!
Try blasting them with a spray bottle set to stream. Neem oil is safer than insecticides as well. It’s derived from the neem tree which is naturally bug resistant.
1/4 cutp canola oil, 5-6 hot peppers, 5-6 cloves of garlic, and a few drops of soap (actual soap, like dr bronners or some similar hippy brand) pureed with ~1 cup hot water in a blender (preferably one that you don’t need to use for anything else for a while or that can be washed over and over and over). let it settle for a few days and then dissolve about 1-2 table spoons of that in a quart or so of water and mist the plants. don’t use it after the cones form but until then have at. Best to use it in the early morning or early evening so the leaves have time to dry before hot sun or cold night. It’s not 100% but you really only need to slow the aphids down so the plant can really take off and out compete them. that’s the real trick, to get the plant to grow faster than the aphids can destroy it.
You can use insecticidal soap or a similar oil. The soap kills the bugs by stripping the bugs of oil causing the bugs to dry out and die. The oil suffocates the bugs. Both are non-toxic and are safe to plants. However, they require you spray very thoroughly because any bug that isn’t sprayed will survive.
they do and it helps for sure but will not control a real infestation. I have hundreds, maybe even thousands of lady bugs and they feast on aphids in the garden but there are still many many aphids. they mostly just focus on the roses and brassicas so I don’t worry too much. the ants protect the aphids. it’s kind of cool to watch a bunch of ants try to fight off a lady bug as it trundles in to munch aphids.
That sounds pretty simple, thanks! For the hot peppers, will jalapenos or habaneros work? Also, I take it that some leaf destruction is going to occur/acceptable, and as long as the plant keeps growing healthily that it’s ok?
what ever kind of hot peppers are available will work. As long as the plant is growing well and the aphids aren’t so think that your cones are gonna get covered you are fine but it’s easier for the plant to be healthy with less predation.
When you say “eating through”, are there actually holes in the leaves? The reason I ask is that aphids do their damage by piercing the leaf surface with their mouthparts and suck out the fluids, so you won’t see a whole lot of damage unless you look very closely, maybe with a hand lens. It’s really important to identify the the pest you’re trying to control before you take action to control it as your control measures may not work against the pest that’s actually creating the problem. Kinda like a golden rule we were taught in Ag school.
Safer’s insecticidal soap is effective on aphids and BT usually works well on leaf borers. Neither have negatively affected my hops or me. Just don’t use the soap on cones if you can avoid it.
Yeah, there are actually holes in the leaves. Later today I will take some pictures and post. I just kind of assumed aphids, maybe I’m completely wrong. Thanks.
The only thing missing in that recipe is the half can of beer. Isn’t that required in every home remedy for garden pests? How else does the gardener get beer while they’re working if they don’t have 1/2 a can left over. ;D
These mixtures do often work but the holes in the leaves tells me you do not have an aphid problem.
I think perhaps you are. the leaves look uniformly green and healthy just a bit tattered. this could become a problem if too much of the leaf surface is damaged the plant will be less able to manufacture energy.
