This evening as I was making the rounds with Duct Tape removing Flea Beetles from the eggplants and checking for stink bugs (I've seen two and killed one)... I noticed aphids. Hmmm.. quite a few aphids. No... make that LOTS of aphids. Ggggrrrrrr.... it's always something. Like most pests, you see a few now and then for a year or two and then Hey Presto... they take over your garden by the millions.
Duct Tape is quite effective. It made short work of the Asparagus Beetle Population Explosion of 2014. Duct Tape is managing the Flea Beetles quite nicely the second year in a row. There is a roll ready and waiting for the arrival of the Cucumber Beetles and Stick Bugs. But. How many leaves are there in my garden? If I have to clean the underside of each leaf with Duct Tape once or twice a day... Sigh.
Banana Peels repel aphids. I dug two banana peels out of the counter composter and put a strip of peel under each eggplant and tomato plant. Lemon Juice is a great repellent. We'll do that tomorrow. They are also supposed to be attracted to yellow. So this week I will be looking for cheap yellow bowls plates or cups to hold soapy water or to be smeared with Vaseline. This whole War on Bugs just never ends.
Those are definitely a lot of alternative aphid strategies. It will be interesting to hear about which ones prove most effective!
ReplyDeleteWe had earwigs one winter (Southern California), which ate the cilantro... then early spring we had aphids eating the lettuce... then the earwigs moved into the lettuce and ate all the aphids, and left the lettuce alone! Finally, peace and harmony with earwigs...
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