Horticultural Soap Question: Am overrun with aphids, can I leave surplus mix in the tank for a couple weeks to use again or do I need to clean it out after each use? Will soap clog up the works if I leave it in?
And- do aphids, say in Maryland, taper off in the summer? I can’t remember but they are BAD now. Thanks
Last year I was overrun with aphids and thought they would never stop. I just added about a tablespoon of liquid hand soap to about a gallon of water. After about a week I rinsed the sprayer out and started over again. My small 1 gal sprayer handled the soap well. This year I have a few aphids popping up but nothing like last year. I’m down to a quart size pump up sprayer. I did notice that when I sprayed one day there was a few remaining the next day. The second spraying usually got rid of them. When the temps got into the 90s I had to start rinsing the leaves off after about an hour to prevent burning the leaves. Bill
With temps here in mid-80’s I was hoping to avoid rinsing the soap off afterward if I sprayed toward end of day when trees are not in hot, direct sun. Does that sound right?
If I remember correctly from last year I didn’t have to rinse until we started getting into the 90s. My current temp is 88 and I’m planning to do some spraying this afternoon without rinsing. If I see any damage in a day or two then I will start rinsing. I have two sprayers one with soap water and the other with just water for rinsing. Worked well last season.
Thanks @Auburn. My cheapo backpack just konked out so will search thread here for higher quality sprayer.
Hambone, next year spray oil or soap right after bloom and keep monitoring. They can get truly horrible if you let them get away, but if you are on top of them they are not super bad. I have my first bloom this year today, its on part of one tree. Part of one tree is the goal, I have had them completely covering dozens of trees and they are a real pain then. If you don’t take care of them they will not only make a mess, they get this dew on the fruit which causes it to be even more prone to rot. Basically they can wipe out your plum crop.
Scott,
Do your trees ever get the Curly Leaf Aphids?Those are tough ones to eliminate once the leaves start scrunching in.
I sprayed oil first,when seeing color,before popcorn stage and then used a home made soap spray.They still ravaged a lot of new growth. Brady
You mean rosy apple aphids? I get those but I generally ignore them as the ladybugs usually get them under control. The exception is on young or weak trees, they may need some control.
I have many ladybugs on my green plum aphids now, the rosy apple aphids helped build up their population. I still had to do a soap spray tonight as the green plums were getting out of control in one spot, but I may be able to avoid any more sprays.
I looked up Rosy Apple Aphids and they have a reddish brown body.Those aren’t the ones on my trees.
The damage they do looks somewhat similar,but the insects are very small and light green. Brady
Yuck! I don’t get any curling aphids on plums. I get black cherry aphid which curls cherry, and I get rosy apple aphid.
On my cherries, I find they heavily rely on ants moving them so tanglefoot around the trunk eliminates the problem. I now tanglefoot my cherries every spring, and have not had any problem whatsoever with the black cherry aphid.
If you decide to spray them, use a 2-hand method - use one hand to unfurl the leaves a bit, and hit them point blank with the spray wand in the other hand. It takes a lot longer to spray as you are going leaf by leaf, but it will take care of them. Note you will get your hands all soapy in the process. In a way it helps as you can slip fingers and open up the leaf easily. It takes some practice to get a fast rhythm going, don’t give up too soon.
Anybody had success attracting ladybugs by planting something they like?
I like to let plants go to seed. Lettuce, Celery, cauliflower, and Swiss Chard all produce tons of flowers. All those flowers (especially varieties with small flowers) encourage beneficial insects. Up at my farm everything is covered in ladybug larvae, and at home the syrphid flies are keeping aphids in control.
