It’s been 95F past couple of days and California is dry as can be. Still these aphids show up. I bet the ants are harboring them but how are they surviving in this heat? I’ve never seen this before!
1 Like
When you posted the picture of your corns, I was going to say, mine last year (not growing any this year) were loaded with aphids at that stage. Yours looked very clean.
I did see some aphids on my Asian pear couple of days back. Sprayed with soap and neem oil and that took care of it (for now). I see way too many ants in the garden. I should probably start researching about ant traps.
They were especially bad on my fruit trees earlier this year. I saw a few on new rose buds yesterday. Tanglefoot worked better than expected on the trees.
I am aphid-free this year, for no reason I can see. Last year I had a lot of trouble getting the aphids off the lettuce. This year, they never showed up.
They aren’t on my corn so far even though it’s right next to my okra. I have sprayed the okra twice before with neem but they keep coming back.
Ants are everywhere in my yard. Can’t tanglefoot my vegetables! 
1 Like
Did you try Diatomaceous Earth? I had ok results with the finer varieties of it (Safer brand). (OSH/Autozone) varieties are a bit too coarse for ants.
2 Likes
I’m experimenting with bleach followed by concentrated soap spray from dollar store (leaves a bit of sticky residue that can be sprayed off later). covid supplies 
1 Like
The hotter and drier it gets the faster insects evaporate moisture. This makes aphids able to suck and eat plant juices much better than when its 80 and humid. The hotter and drier it gets in general the better pests will do and will reproduce faster.
Do you warm up the neem before you spray it and do you have cold pressed neem and natural soap and spray with warm water? You may need to spray the neem every 3-5 days for a hot minute but you could definitely add some hot pepper to that mixture and make it last longer and irritate them more. I added a hot pepper mixture and have sprayed it on a few plants to protect from jbs and that has worked well.
They’re all over my yardlong beans, really got into my semi-succulent oyster leaf plants. Really have to spray and rinse aggressively. Super gross.