Plant plague
Fighting aphids: Which (home) remedies drive away the pests?
Aphids attack ornamental and crop plants and suck the life out of young shoots
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Spring is blooming and with it numerous garden and house plants – a paradise for aphids, but a real nightmare for young leaves and shoots. Find out how to successfully combat the pests here.
Did you know that there are 3,000 different species of aphids worldwide? Of these, only 850 live in Central Europe – but that’s still enough to cause fear and terror in local gardens and plants. Aphids stop at no plant, as they primarily target the plant sap, which they feed on and excrete in the form of a sticky-sweet honeydew. This in turn attracts other insects such as ants, wasps or honeybees, which are after the honeydew. Under optimal conditions, aphids can multiply extremely quickly and cause great damage to the affected plant. And this can happen from the beginning of spring right through to autumn – if you don’t successfully combat the pests.
This is how you can recognize a possible infestation
They are only a few millimeters long and have a small proboscis with which they suck out the plant sap. There are black and green, red and yellow, brown and white aphids, some of them can even fly – but most species have no wings. They reproduce asexually, the technical term for this is parthenogenesis and translated means: after the males and females have mated, the female lays fertilized eggs from which only females hatch – which in turn give birth to living offspring without fertilization by a male. And these young animals are also exclusively female and have offspring without being fertilized. Each female gives birth to up to five young in just one day, which live for a few weeks.
Even a layperson can recognize the infestation when they are crowded together in colonies on a plant. Aphids prefer fresh shoots and leaves, so they are usually found on the undersides of the leaves or near the base of the leaves. Aside from literally sucking the plant dry, they cause significantly greater damage to the plant by transmitting viral diseases. For this reason, you need to act quickly, and not just when you see the aphids. Look for the following signs on your plants that could indicate an infestation: curled, dried or discolored leaves, stunted growth or the aforementioned colonies on the undersides of the leaves and shoots of the plant.
Fighting aphids: with biological aids
Yellow trap
This is a Glue trapwhich is non-toxic and completely odorless. The yellow surface is glued on both sides and contains a special attractant color that winged aphids magically attracts them – so that they stick to it and die. The trap is suitable for sticking or hanging.
Aphid sticks
This rod are for Balcony and house plants They contain the active ingredient flupyradifuron and are simply placed in the soil to combat or prevent aphids. However, use the dosage sparingly, as they are not a fertilizer.
Plant protection spray
The one with the apt name Neudosan AF New Aphid Free This excellent spray is designed to effectively combat pests without harming beneficial insects such as ladybirds, lacewings or parasitic wasps. It can inside and outside and was rated “very good” by Ökotest.
A ladybug can eat up to 150 aphids in just one day
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Fighting aphids: with natural enemies
Like any other pest, aphids have natural enemies. These include ladybug, Hoverflies, lacewings, parasitic wasps, larval flies, predatory bugs, ground beetles and soft-bodied beetles. Only very few of them can be successfully bred – except for Ladybug or their larvae. They are extremely effective in the fight against aphids: after all, a beetle eats up to 150 aphids a day, and a larva can even manage 800.
Alternatively, you can also use Parasitic wasps try: The insects are tiny but extremely effective. As soon as they hatch, they lay their eggs in the aphids. The good thing about the insects is: if there are no more aphids or eggs, the parasitic wasps automatically disappear. If you have a garden, you can of course also build an insect hotel in which many beneficial insects feel at home.
The best home remedies against aphids
- Garlic: If a plant is only slightly infected, one clove is enough. Stick it into the soil without the peel near the stem so that only half of it is visible. If the infestation is more severe, you must spray the plant with a garlic decoction that you can make yourself using three peeled cloves and a liter of water. Let the mixture steep for two weeks before spraying it on the leaves and base of the stem.
- Oregano: The tasty herb is also not good for aphids. To do this, make a decoction by boiling ten grams of dried oregano with one liter of water and letting it cool down – before filtering the mixture through a sieve and diluting it again with water (the ratio is 1:3). You can then add another spray bottle to mist the affected plant with the brew.
- Milk and tea: Other ingredients that you should always have in the house are milk and tea: either mix some milk with water in a ratio of 1:2 and spray it on the affected plant, or use black tea: boil 500 milliliters of water and let two tea bags steep in it for 15 minutes. As soon as the water has cooled, spray it on the plant as described. The tannins in it kill the aphids.
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