Aphids - description, types, what they eat, life cycle, photo. Traditional methods of fighting aphids Aphids are formed

Leaf aphids of any species, green or black, feed on plant tissues, mainly young shoots, and eat leaf and flower buds.

The harm it causes is colossal, first of all, because leaf aphids reproduce very quickly, forming huge colonies in a matter of days and producing about 50 colonies per season.

In addition to the general weakening of the plant: deformation of leaves and entire branches, loss of peduncles, buds, ovaries and fruits, aphids secrete sticky secretions that clog the stomata of the leaves, or a fungus settles on them. When biting leaves, aphids can spread viral diseases.

Aphids can completely destroy young plants that have one or two growing points.

The damage from aphids is aggravated by the fact that they are not at all selective in plants; they devour everything: garden flowers, seedlings and mature vegetables, fruit trees, shrubs and herbs.

She has special preferences, for example, plums, cherries, roses; currants are one of the first to be affected by aphids. Here, different species of aphids have their own taste preferences; black aphids prefer fruits - currants, apple trees, plums, green aphids - roses, chrysanthemums and other flowers. However, this is not a general rule; sometimes it seems that aphids eat everything!

Where do aphids come from on plants?

A fertilized female aphid lays eggs on branches and bark of trees, in the root zone, usually in secluded and hard-to-reach places. The eggs overwinter quietly in clutches, or they are kept until spring by ants, and then dispersed among any of the most attractive plants.

In the warmth, the eggs rapidly develop into adult wingless females, capable of reproducing without fertilization - they produce the main hordes of enemies of our crop.

By the end of June, and in warm weather by the end of May, a new form of adult insects appears in the aphid colony - flying females. They are the reason for the widespread spread of pests. They are called disperser aphids, their task is clear and understandable - to cover as large an area as possible and lay the next generations of eggs. If we take into account the help of the wind, then the spread of pests is several tens of kilometers from the place of departure. After mating, females lay overwintering eggs and a new cycle begins in the spring.

You may have noticed a phenomenon where aphids either disappear on their own or are found again on plants - these are dioecious aphids, in the first half of the season they actively reproduce on some plants, and with the appearance of winged females they move to another group of plants, at the end of summer - early autumn, they return to the first bushes.

Ants also contribute to the spread of aphids - they feed on the sweet syrup that aphids secrete (honeydew). Ants, like proper farmers, grow aphids, take care of their eggs, protect them from other insects and are constantly near the food source, trying to increase the plantations.

Prevention of aphids

Need I repeat the platitude that preventing an aphid infestation is easier than fighting it? However, any gardener will say that he has noticed how aphids progress on some plants, while on others they are rather sluggish and few in number.

The point is in the condition of the plants themselves, if they are healthy, the trees and shrubs are whitened, there are no aphids on them or there are very few of them.

Starting in the fall, remove leaf litter from the garden area and mow down the weeds in the tree trunks. During this time, cut out the tops and root shoots on which the eggs can overwinter.

Contain or destroy anthills during the spring and summer. Complete destruction of anthills, as a rule, is not justified, since in cold, windy or rainy summers, ants remain almost the only pollinators of plants (for bees and bumblebees, non-flying weather sets in).

To protect trees from ants, you need to destroy anthills located in close proximity to fruit bushes and trees. Then, to prevent the ants from making a new path, a strip of dry wood ash should be poured around the trunks - it will protect the approaches to the trees, like a Chinese border. If rain washes away the ash, you need to renew the topping.

Whitewash against aphids

It is necessary to bleach the trunks of fruit crops not in the spring, as is customary for most gardeners, but in the fall, preventing the laying of pest eggs and destroying spores of pathogenic fungi.

First you need to clean the trunks of lichens, mosses and loose bark with a brush - for old trees with a metal brush, for younger trees - with stiff bristles. Wash all damage to the bark and cracks with iron sulfate and cover with garden varnish.

For whitewashing with 20% lime mortar you need to take:

2 kg of slaked lime and dilute in 10 liters of water or
Dilute 1-1.5 kg of quicklime in 10 liters of water

In addition, there is another recipe for whitewashing: dilute 2.5 kg of lime, 1 kg of clay and 0.3 kg of copper sulfate in 10 liters of water.

In garden centers you can purchase ready-made whitewash based on lime and adhesives.

When whitewashing tree trunks, in addition to direct toxic contact, you seal the already laid eggs of aphids or their possible hiding places. But in the spring, whitewashing needs to be repeated.

You may argue that aphids are flying insects and can settle on trees even with whitened trunks. However, the most dangerous time for plants is the opening of young leaves, flowers, and the formation of buds, and this is early spring. By the time the aphids develop females capable of flight, the trees protected by whitewashing have time to flourish, the leaves open and harden, becoming too tough for the aphids.

Improvement of berry bushes

To prevent berry bushes from being affected by aphids, proper agricultural practices must be carried out:

Do not overfeed them with nitrogen - nitrogen-rich fertilizer makes plant sap sweeter and more attractive to aphids. It is especially dangerous to apply nitrogen fertilizers in the second half of summer.
Add more ash - the need for potassium in fruit crops is very high. Potassium strengthens plant cell walls and increases the overall resistance of plants to stressful situations, such as cold. Aphids are only able to bite through the thin, delicate epidermis; they cannot gnaw through leaves with thick skin.
Do not overfeed the trees, but use fertilizers containing not only nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus, but also microelements (boron, zinc, molybdenum, iron).
Strictly monitor the acidity of the soil - plants absorb nutrients only at the optimal soil pH for them.
Replenish consumed calcium in a timely manner. Apply lime on soils rich in humus or peat bogs (1-2 kg of fluff per 3-4 year old currant bush for digging), and on sandy and sandy loam soils - dolomite flour. Let us recall the approximate application rates of dolomite flour (less on light soils, more on heavy soils):
- acidic soils (pH< 4,5) 500-600 г/кв. м
- medium acidic (pH 4.5-5.5) 450-500 g/sq. m
- slightly acidic (pH 5.5-5.8) 350-450 g/sq. m

Fighting aphids

Watering with boiling water

You can water currants and gooseberries with boiling water when there is still snow on the site, and in the trunk circles of the fruit bush the snow has thawed (about 70 cm in diameter). Those. the snow on the branches has already melted, but the buds are still dormant and have not swelled!

Heat water to a boil, pour into a watering can with a sprinkler attachment. Then immediately water the bushes along the branches and the soil around the bushes. It takes about one watering can for a small bush. When pouring boiling water into a cold metal watering can, the water temperature drops to about 80 degrees; when watering the branches, its temperature drops to 70 degrees.

This technique allows you to destroy not only aphid eggs preserved on the shoots, but powdery mildew spores and mite clutches.

You can add 3 drops of iodine per 10 liters of water to the water for other diseases. It is important not to keep the watering can strictly in one place when watering, i.e. you need to scald, and not rinse the branches in boiling water!

Ash dusting

In the spring, before the leaves fully bloom (you can at the stage of bud opening), wet the branches with water and dust the moisture with sifted wood ash.

Soap and ash solution for aphids

Pour 300 g of ash (2 cups) into a bucket with 10 liters of boiling water, add 50 g of laundry soap shavings and leave to steep overnight. Pour the solution into the sprayer through triple gauze so as not to clog the sprayer with grains of ash. Treat all branches during bud break, at the stage of young leaves (salad greens).

Treatment against aphids with soap and Domestos

For 10 liters of water, take 100 g of tar or black laundry soap, add 5 drops (with a pipette) of Domestos (or any preparation containing chlorinol). You can spray on bare branches even at the moment when the leaves have already blossomed. 10-15 minutes after treatment, wash off the leaves with clean water from a hose. The procedure can be repeated after a couple of days.

Ammonia

Another proven way to combat aphids is ammonia. Two tablespoons per bucket of water, add 1 tbsp. a spoonful of liquid soap. Helps almost instantly. No need to rinse off.

Dog shampoo against aphids

Flea shampoo for dogs and cats contains active ingredients of the pyrethroid class, they are toxic to aphids, i.e. the composition of the solution will be the same as, for example, a solution of the insecticide Iskra. The only difference is that the shampoo contains surfactants, i.e. adhesives. It is quite difficult to calculate the dose of shampoo (the concentrations of the active substance are different).

The safe dosage for plants is approximately 1 tbsp. spoon per bucket of water (10 l). Higher concentrations may cause leaf burn!

Preparations for aphids

There are many drugs against aphids, the question is how effective they are. You need to understand that systemic drugs (solutions or tablets stuck into the ground) act from the inside - when plants are absorbed by the roots.

Enteric-contact drugs will help only if the leaves and branches are thoroughly moistened. When aphids collect a colony, the leaves become shriveled, curled up, and the solution does not reach them. In this case, before spraying with aphids, you need to cut off the tops of shoots with deformed leaves. This is possible on currant or gooseberry bushes.

On large trees and tall bushes, it is technically impossible to pick out aphids manually or cut off nests, so the success of the enterprise depends on how well you carry out the spraying.

Aphid spraying time:

along the branches until the leaves open
before flowering in the beginning of budding phase
after flowering during ovary growth
30 days before harvesting fruits and berries

In general, there are three classes of insecticides that work against aphids: pyrethroids, organophosphates, and neonicotinoids.

It is best to use systemic neonicotinoid drugs:

(thiamethoxam) or Confidor (imidacloprid) - they can be watered and sprayed. They help with a bang. The problem with these drugs is that they are incredibly expensive for the average gardener: for example, for the summer of 2016, a 4 g bag of actara costs about 100 rubles - this is for 5 liters of water. If there are a lot of aphids in the garden and few trees and shrubs, treatment is very expensive. Watering is advisable only on vegetables (cucumbers and tomatoes); on trees “from the inside” (with watering) the efficiency is low.
Tanrek is also a neonicotinoid, the active ingredient is the same as that of confidor - imidacloprid, but the cost is lower, more affordable and very effective against aphids. Consumption of 3 ml per 10 liters of water - 5 liters per tree.
Spark Gold - also the active ingredient imidacloprid, for spraying 5 ml/10 l of water.
Other analogues of Tanrek and Confidor: Biotlin Bau and Biotlin, Zubr, Imidor, Kalash, Commander, Confidelin, Korado, Monsoon, Prestige, Respect, Taboo, Tsvetolyuks Bau. The principle of operation is the same, the prices are different, choose any.

The organophosphorus compounds Actellik (pirimiphos-methyl) and Karbofos, as well as their analogs - Antiklesch, Alatar, Fufanon, etc. also help against aphids, but recently there has been increasing resistance to these drugs, so they are less preferable.

Of the permethrins available and effective to us, Kinmiks, .

Bio-preparations for aphids

The drugs and Akarin are very popular in gardening. The advantages of their use are obvious - the active substance does not penetrate through the cell membranes into the fruits and leaves, i.e. does not accumulate in plants. The preparations are non-toxic to bees already 4 hours after the sprayed leaves dry.

Green aphids feed on the sap of young shoots and leaves

We remove pests from beds and gardens

Important! Scientists say there are about 450 species of leaf aphids in the northern hemisphere, which can cause significant damage to agriculture, horticulture and forestry. And in a small summer cottage, if nothing is done, it will simply destroy everything.

We analyze the situation

Why and where does it appear?

Leaf aphids pierce the soft flesh of the plant with their proboscis and the neighbor sap from it. She is not interested in old rough leaves - only buds and young leaves. Based on this, the farmer’s task is to protect these parts of the plant.

How to get to the site

In most cases, aphids are brought into the area by ants. They do this not by accident, but with an absolutely specific purpose - to feed on the sweet syrup that aphids leave behind, consuming plant sap. This means that the fight against aphids begins with an attempt to separate aphids and ants in the area.

Volunteer helpers

Ladybug eats aphids

The outside world is brilliantly harmonious and you need to be able to use it. It is known that aphids have their own natural enemies; it is necessary to create favorable conditions for their reproduction. For example, aphids and ladybugs will not get along in the same area.

Spraying means

Soap solution + ash

A composition is prepared from 300 g of ordinary laundry soap and 10 liters of water. There is a more modern interpretation of this recipe: 125 ml of liquid soap per 10 liters of water.

Herbal infusions

Onion. Onion peels and 35 g of chopped onion are poured into 1 liter of water and infused for 5 hours. Then 3-5 g of laundry soap is added. The composition is filtered and brought to a volume of 1 liter with water.
Chamomile. Add the dry stem and inflorescences of chamomile to 1 liter of water. The composition is infused for 12 hours, then filtered and a little soap (4-5 g) is added. This concentrate is diluted before spraying at the rate of 1 part infusion to 3 parts water.
Garlic. 200 g of garlic are crushed. This paste is diluted with 1 liter of water and infused under the lid for 5 days. Before spraying, prepare a composition of 25 ml of garlic concentrate + 10 liters of water.
Marigold. For half a bucket of crushed marigolds (stems + flowers), there is half a bucket of water. Infusion time – 48 hours. Strain, add 40 g of soap, dilute in 10 liters of water.
Peppery. Fresh capsicum is suitable - 1 kg or 300 g dry. Amount of water – 10 l. Before spraying, the infusion is diluted at the rate of 1:10.

Attention! Previously, tobacco tincture was very popular, but today it is out of fashion. It is believed that nicotine is present in tobacco leaves; it is transferred to the water infusion, and through it is absorbed by the leaves of vegetable and garden crops. As a result, this harmful substance enters the fruits and then into the human body.

Fighting house aphids

Unfortunately, small black, yellow or green insects also inhabit our homes. She takes a fancy to domestic flowers, causing them serious damage. Another unpleasant surprise is that some species of aphids inhabit only one plant, the so-called host. And there are those that apply to any indoor flowers indiscriminately.

Attention! Aphids are insects whose body length can be from 0.5 to 2 mm. She has a soft body. There are winged and wingless species. There are about 4 thousand species of aphids in the world. Of these, more than 1 thousand live on the European continent.

Aphids reproduce very quickly - in this case, the plant will at least be sick for a long time after spraying

We use improvised means

Milk-iodine solution. For 1 liter of fresh, preferably skim milk, there are 25-30 drops of iodine. Green pets are treated with this composition every 10 days.
Vodka. It is a well-known “cure-all remedy.” Usage – it couldn’t be easier. Place a spray bottle on the bottle and treat the plants. Experts say that the effect is beyond praise. The only negative is that it is a little expensive when compared with other folk remedies.
Coca Cola. This is an American option for getting rid of aphids on house plants. You need to act by analogy with vodka. Place a spray bottle on the drink bottle and spray the plant. The effectiveness is explained by the presence of orthophosphoric acid in the composition, which is destructive to the nasty small “midges”.
Cream + essential oil. For 1 glass of fresh cream there are 15 drops of lavender (tea tree, cedar) essential oil. The composition is diluted with 2 liters of water. Spraying must be done every other day. The result will not be long in coming.
Sunflower oil + water. Press 1 glass of sunflower oil into 8 liters of water and stir well. The product is suitable for washing trunks and spraying leaves. Fans of the method claim that it is enough to apply this aphid remedy 2-3 times during the warm season.

Attention! The intensity and frequency of the fight with any folk remedy depends on the stage of infection. If you pay attention to the problem in time, the pest can be removed mechanically - simply wipe the plant with a gloved hand. A solution of laundry soap can be used as a preventative measure.

Seed propagation in the garden strawberries we are used to, unfortunately, leads to the appearance of less productive plants and weaker bushes. But another type of these sweet berries, alpine strawberries, can be successfully grown from seeds. Let's learn about the main advantages and disadvantages of this crop, consider the main varieties and features of agricultural technology. The information presented in this article will help you decide whether it is worth allocating a place for it in the berry garden.

Often, when we see a beautiful flower, we instinctively bend down to smell its fragrance. All fragrant flowers can be divided into two large groups: nocturnal (pollinated by moths) and daytime, whose pollinators are mainly bees. Both groups of plants are important for the florist and designer, because we often walk around the garden during the day and relax in our favorite corners when evening comes. We are never overwhelmed by the scent of our favorite fragrant flowers.

Many gardeners consider pumpkin to be the queen of garden beds. And not only because of its size, variety of shapes and colors, but also for its excellent taste, healthy qualities and rich harvest. Pumpkin contains a large amount of carotene, iron, various vitamins and minerals. Thanks to the possibility of long-term storage, this vegetable supports our health all year round. If you decide to plant a pumpkin on your plot, you will be interested in learning how to get the largest possible harvest.

Scotch eggs - incredibly delicious! Try to prepare this dish at home, there is nothing difficult in preparation. Scotch eggs are a hard-boiled egg wrapped in minced meat, breaded in flour, egg and breadcrumbs and deep-fried. For frying, you will need a frying pan with a high side, and if you have a deep fryer, then that’s just great - even less hassle. You will also need oil for frying so as not to smoke in the kitchen. Choose farm eggs for this recipe.

One of the most amazing large-flowered tubs of Dominican Cubanola fully justifies its status as a tropical miracle. Warm-loving, slow-growing, with huge and in many ways unique bells of flowers, Cubanola is a fragrant star with a complex character. It requires special conditions in the rooms. But for those who are looking for exclusive plants for their interior, a better (and more chocolatey) candidate for the role of indoor giant cannot be found.

Chickpea curry with meat is a hearty hot dish for lunch or dinner, inspired by Indian cuisine. This curry is quick to prepare but requires some prep. The chickpeas must first be soaked in plenty of cold water for several hours, preferably overnight; the water can be changed several times. It is also better to leave the meat in the marinade overnight so that it turns out juicy and tender. Then you should boil the chickpeas until tender and then prepare the curry according to the recipe.

Rhubarb cannot be found in every garden plot. It's a pity. This plant is a storehouse of vitamins and can be widely used in cooking. What is not prepared from rhubarb: soups and cabbage soup, salads, delicious jam, kvass, compotes and juices, candied fruits and marmalade, and even wine. But that's not all! The large green or red rosette of leaves of the plant, reminiscent of burdock, acts as a beautiful background for annuals. It is not surprising that rhubarb can also be seen in flower beds.

Today, the trend is to experiment with unusual combinations and non-standard colors in the garden. For example, plants with black inflorescences have become very fashionable. All black flowers are original and specific, and it is important for them to be able to select suitable partners and location. Therefore, this article will not only introduce you to an assortment of plants with slate-black inflorescences, but will also teach you the intricacies of using such mystical plants in garden design.

3 delicious sandwiches - a cucumber sandwich, a chicken sandwich, a cabbage and meat sandwich - a great idea for a quick snack or for an outdoor picnic. Just fresh vegetables, juicy chicken and cream cheese and a little seasoning. There are no onions in these sandwiches; if you wish, you can add onions marinated in balsamic vinegar to any of the sandwiches; this will not spoil the taste. Having quickly prepared snacks, all that remains is to pack a picnic basket and head to the nearest green lawn.

Depending on the varietal group, the age of seedlings suitable for planting in open ground is: for early tomatoes - 45-50 days, average ripening - 55-60 and late ripening - at least 70 days. When planting tomato seedlings at a younger age, the period of its adaptation to new conditions is significantly extended. But success in obtaining a high-quality tomato harvest also depends on carefully following the basic rules for planting seedlings in open ground.

Unpretentious “background” plants of sansevieria do not seem boring to those who value minimalism. They are better suited than other indoor decorative foliage stars for collections that require minimal care. Stable decorativeness and extreme hardiness in only one species of sansevieria are also combined with compactness and very rapid growth - rosette sansevieria Hana. The squat rosettes of their tough leaves create striking clusters and patterns.

One of the brightest months of the garden calendar pleasantly surprises with the balanced distribution of favorable and unfavorable days for working with plants according to the lunar calendar. Vegetable gardening in June can be done throughout the entire month, while the unfavorable periods are very short and still allow you to do useful work. There will be optimal days for sowing and planting, for pruning, for a pond, and even for construction work.

Meat with mushrooms in a frying pan is an inexpensive hot dish that is suitable for a regular lunch and for a holiday menu. Pork will cook quickly, veal and chicken too, so this is the preferred meat for the recipe. Mushrooms - fresh champignons, in my opinion, are the best choice for homemade stew. Forest gold - boletus mushrooms, boletus and other delicacies is best prepared for the winter. Boiled rice or mashed potatoes are ideal as a side dish.

I love ornamental shrubs, especially unpretentious ones and with interesting, non-trivial foliage colors. I have various Japanese spirea, Thunberg barberries, black elderberry... And there is one special shrub, which I will talk about in this article - viburnum leaf. To fulfill my dream of a low-maintenance garden, it is perhaps ideal. At the same time, it is capable of greatly diversifying the picture in the garden, from spring to autumn.

One of the many insects that can cause significant damage to the plantations of your green wards is the common insect.

Different species are adapted to living on almost any ornamental or agricultural plant; it has the ability to reproduce quickly and easily spreads over a large area. Even indoor flowers may be at risk of contracting this disease. Aphids on plants have a detrimental effect on their growth and flowering. In addition, these pests are carriers of more than 100 species of phytoviruses and fungi, which complicate plant treatment.

Aphids are one of the oldest pests. These insects were found frozen in pieces of amber along with ants, which gives an idea of the age of their families. Over the course of evolution, different individuals adapted to new plant species. This was greatly facilitated by their incredibly complex reproductive system, which allowed them to achieve phenomenal generational variability.

Most interesting facts:

The insect aphid can reproduce both parthenogenetically, through viviparity, and sexually, laying eggs.
Each species has at least two host plant species, one of which is necessarily perennial. Overwintering occurs only on perennial plants, so that the individuals hatching from the eggs have something to eat. For peach aphids, for example, the “winter” host is the peach tree, and the number of “summer” species is about 400. How aphids determine that this particular flower will bloom next year is unknown.
Aphids in the ground can become a real natural disaster; If not controlled with insecticides, their rate of reproduction will allow them to easily destroy an entire field of beets in just a week.
Black ants, common inhabitants of our latitudes, are actively engaged in “pastoralism”: they grow aphids, help them spread and look after them, protecting them from natural enemies. The reason for this is honeydew, a sweet liquid that aphids secrete during their life processes. It is used by ants for food.

What do aphids look like on plants?

The main signs of aphids:

Curled tree leaves.
The presence of a huge number of insects similar to aphids in the recesses and on the inside of the leaf.
Sticky liquid covering leaves (honeydew).
Drying tips of leaves and death of entire leaf blades.

How do aphids reproduce?

Aphids (Aphidinae) are the most common and, from a scientific point of view, the most interesting representative of the Homoptera family. More than 1,500 species have been found and described in our country, which are divided into 10 families. The entire suborder of Aphids is characterized by polymorphism - completely different functional individuals are formed in one population.

The separation of forms and reproduction of aphids occurs as follows:

But what does aphid look like and how can you distinguish it from other pests? Externally, different species differ in size and color. The color of the integument depends on the plant on which a particular species lives. For example, the blood aphid, also called the red aphid, is reddish in color, and it lives on apple trees, infecting young buds and leaves.

External structure

The adult form (imago) is tiny translucent bugs, the body of which can be rounded-oblong, teardrop-shaped or ellipsoidal. The size varies from 2 to 7 mm. Color depends on the species and even on the life cycle. The color is formed by the distribution of hemolymph and the pigmentation of the wax coating on the integument (an excellent example is the red gall aphid). They may have various outgrowths, tubercles, specific hairs, etc.

At the anterior, narrowed end of the body there is a small head with antennae directed towards the tail end. On the antennae there are so-called rhinaria - sensory receptors, similar in function to taste, and auditory receptors. The head also contains the organs of vision, represented by two compound eyes.

In wingless virgins they can be reduced, but in winged ones, on the contrary, there are three additional simple eyes.

The mouthparts are of the gnawing-proboscis type, making it possible to create holes in the leaves and suck out cell sap.

The structure of the chest is typical for representatives of Homoptera, but in the case of aphids, the form of the life cycle is important. Wings are present only in winged virgins; in other insects they are reduced. Six thin long legs are attached to the chest. Despite their size, aphids move very slowly.

Abdomen of 9 segments, the last one is underdeveloped. It has outlets for the respiratory, digestive and reproductive systems. The reproductive apparatus is located on the outermost segment.

Internal structure

Aphids feed on cell sap. A piercing long proboscis pierces the surface of the leaf, and all available liquid is sucked out. The main things an insect needs are amino acids and minerals. The resulting glucose and sucrose leave the digestive tract along with harmful waste products - this is honeydew.

INTERESTING! The leaves and opening buds affected by aphids curl, forming tubes where they continue to live and reproduce. This is especially true for fruit and pear aphids - they even have a second name: “twisting”. It is quite easy to identify a diseased tree by such leaves.

Reproduction occurs in two ways - viviparity and egg laying. Polymorphism makes it possible to perfectly adapt to changing environmental conditions and allows pests to live on the plant almost forever, repeating the life cycle again and again.

Viviparous females, when born, have in their reproductive tracts individuals already ready for independent life, which, in turn, also contain hundreds of embryos of varying degrees of development inside. Such a system allows the population to increase exponentially every day.

These pests are extremely specific: different species can only feed on the sap of certain plants. Even within a species, polymorphic forms (different forms of the same species) cannot feed on the same plant: for example, female founders can only drink the sap of the primary “winter” host.

Damage caused

Leaf destruction

In bulbous plants, as is known, the number of leaves is limited. Dying leaves decompose, causing healthy tissue to rot, especially in wet conditions. When all the leaves die, there will be no flowers or fruits. Most likely, the plant will simply die. To prevent this from happening, you need to choose the best drug against aphids!

Transfer of viruses and fungi

Aphids, traveling from plant to plant, carry hundreds of pathogens, phytoviruses and fungi. By damaging the leaves and filling all leaf pores with honeydew, it creates the most favorable conditions for the development of diseases.

IMPORTANT! If a plant is attacked by aphids, then the following diseases are possible: fucarosis, botrytosis, sooty fungus, leaf spot of bulbous plants - and this is only among fungal diseases that are treatable. When infected with viruses, the only way to combat it is to cull diseased plants!

Therefore, when fields are massively infested, it is often necessary to treat them not only with insecticides, but also with other drugs (depending on the diseases brought in). It is necessary to carefully monitor the main signs of infection.

Why are aphids dangerous for flowers?

Bulbous plants themselves are very resistant to pests that feed on cell sap. Most of these flowers belong to the monocot family, which have strong cell walls with a lot of cellulose. Many of the bulbous plants are poisonous, for example, to other types of insects, but this does not stop the aphids.

Aphids can attack both outdoor plants and indoor decorative flowers. In any case, an aphid attack leads to dire consequences.

In vegetable gardens, aphids are almost permanent residents. Very often even regular treatment with insecticides does not help. Plants wither, wither, leaves curl, buds do not open, as a result of which the harvest suffers.

Bulbous flowers are also at risk of over-infestation, especially at the very beginning of summer. You can read more about the fight against aphids in the garden!

Gardens with fruit trees, landscaped with flower beds of bulbous flowers, are a favorite habitat for aphids. Unfortunately, aphids are easily transported over long distances by air currents and first stop on trees - this is one of the many reasons why aphids appear.

For fruit aphids, bulbous flowers will be quite a suitable “summer” pasture. For a more complete introduction to methods for preventing the spread of aphids in the garden, you can read the corresponding one.

Flowers often begin to be grown much earlier than expected, in greenhouses. Beautiful hyacinths, arrows, amaryllis and daffodils grown for sale in early spring can become victims of pest attack.

A greenhouse is a kind of incubator where aphids can settle much earlier and reproduce more actively due to increased humidity and temperature. For infection, it is enough to release several winged females during ventilation, and within a week they can infect all the plants.

Control and prevention of aphids in greenhouses is an important element of early cultivation of bulbous plants; you can read about this in this article!

Ornamental bulbs grown in apartments and private houses, about which you can read in more detail, can also suffer from aphids. In this case, bulb storage conditions, planting time, watering, fertilizing and much more play a huge role.

Fortunately, removing aphids from pets is quite simple and does not require much effort, as is the case with open ground. The main thing is to notice the onset of the disease in time. You can learn about aphids in this.

Risk factors

Aphid disease occurs if the conditions of maintenance do not meet the necessary requirements for bulbous plants. In general, there are several risk factors:

Now you know how aphids appear! Therefore, be sure to read further about preventing the development of aphids and the method of combating this pest!

Seasonality of the disease

ATTENTION! Do not forget that aphids are active throughout the summer and can reproduce at any time. Preventively spray plants with solutions of natural or chemical insecticides. In gardens and greenhouses, it is better to start prevention in April, in vegetable gardens - in May.

How to protect bulbous flowers?

There are three in total:

Chemical;
Folk;
Biological.

Chemical method

Of course, the most effective remedy for aphids will be regular chemical treatment of gardens, vegetable gardens and greenhouses. There are now many insecticides available that do not accumulate in plant fruits and do not cause allergies. However, this method has many opponents who claim that the synthesized poison negatively affects the ecosystem and human health with prolonged exposure.

Each gardener has his own usual preparations for combating aphids. Both the latest developments and ancient, long-tested and reliable means are used. Read more about the use of insecticides on bulbous plants here!

Folk way

Traditional methods are the most used in Russia. Their popularity is mainly explained by the complete safety of the solutions used. Only natural insecticides are used here: tansy, garlic, onion peels, soap-alcohol solutions and much more.

pros: these solutions have absolutely no impact on the environment and still work as intended. Many gardeners prefer this proven remedy for aphids at home.

Minuses: the complexity of preparing a huge amount of solution for treatment, and the effectiveness is lower than that of insecticides, and it is necessary to process more often. An activity for hardworking and truly caring citizens.

Biological method

The biological method is recognized by all research scientists as the most reasonable method of controlling the aphid population. Its use can be described as planting ladybird larvae or predatory wasps that eat aphids on the affected area. The fact that they have natural enemies that feed on aphids and heal entire plantations has been known for a long time, but there have always been some obstacles to the use of this method.

Firstly, response duration. It takes time to destroy a population, but in the case of aphids there is no more time: it multiplies too quickly, unlike the same wasps. The harvest suffers and the farm suffers losses.

Secondly, difficulty of implementation. Previously, it was generally not possible to buy ladybird or wasp larvae. Now there are even online stores that supply similar products. You also need to not just release the larvae into the area, but plant them on the affected plants, which is very inconvenient for the farmer.

Third, uncontrollability. It is unknown whether these purchased larvae will survive or not, whether someone else will eat them and whether they will be able to fulfill their function.

In general, this method is too unreliable even for a modern person who is aware of environmental problems. The biological method is best used as a preventive measure, and not as a remedy for aphids on plants.

Modern methods of control make it possible to easily get rid of an aphid infestation. The main thing is to notice problems in time and correctly diagnose them, assessing the level of danger for your bulbous pets.

Useful video

This video shows another most effective remedy for aphids:

In contact with

Every housewife has to deal with the problem of pests on indoor flowers. Even if she carefully fulfills the care requirements. Aphids can enter the house in various ways, for example, through an open window, cut flowers in the house. At the first symptoms, you can easily deal with uninvited guests.

What does aphid look like?

Aphids are very tiny insects. Its dimensions range from 3 to 7 mm in length. Insects pierce the leaf shoots with a special proboscis and draw out the juice from the plant. Depending on the species, they have different colors: brown, red, black, green, white, pink.

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Types of aphids on houseplants

More than 4,000 thousand species of aphids are known. Sometimes it is difficult to determine their variety.

Aphids can have winged or wingless forms. The former, thanks to their wings, infect not only one plant, but also quickly move to other specimens. The latter are characterized by mass population in a short period of time, since reproduction occurs through parthenogenesis, that is, without fertilization of the embryo.

Insects attack the ground parts of the plant and the root system. There are groups of pest colonies covered with wax fluff, which deform the crop and form galls, but there is no honeydew from them.

There are groups that secrete sweet excrement, which attracts ants. People say about such species that if ants appear, wait for aphids, and vice versa.

Insects are divided according to the type of habitat: polyphagous and monophagous aphids. One group feeds only on plants of the same type, the other is not very picky about their diet.

Let's look at the most famous types.

The insect settles on the roots of dicotyledonous plants. Beans, tobacco, beets, and cotton are most susceptible to attack by white aphids.

To stop their existence, you should change the plantings with grain crops, where the reproduction of white aphids is impossible.

White waxy pollen covers the body of the aphid. This species is one of the migratory species. They overwinter on pistachio bushes.

When spring arrives, larvae appear. They penetrate the leaf bud and actively suck the juice from the growing leaf.

During such feeding, saliva with growth substances is released. As a result, a deformed leaf shape grows and a gall forms along its edge. Aphids develop in it. As soon as the insect has grown, the galls open. Aphids migrate to wild and cultivated plants.

Subsequent generations appear on dicotyledonous plants, in their root system. Colonies grow wingless until winged females emerge and return to the pistachio bushes.

Green aphid

The insect is pale green in color. Two juice tubes stand out on the surface of the body. Green aphids are considered a threat to pears, quince, hawthorn, and apple trees.

Before winter, eggs are laid on young shoots near the bud. In the spring, the swollen buds become food for the hatched larvae. When they open, the larvae settle between the leaves. Green aphids can produce up to 17 generations per season.

Black aphid

The insect reaches a length of no more than 5 mm. In order to pierce the surfaces of leaves, there is a proboscis on the body. The insect reproduces without mating, by laying eggs. Moreover, the most aft place is chosen. The increase in offspring continues at a rapid pace.

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Other types of aphids

Yellow aphid

A primitive species can be called the yellow aphid. At the first stage, winged aphids lay eggs on coniferous trees, near the buds. Then galls are formed in which non-migratory individuals develop. During the entire season, only one generation is hatched.

Blood aphid

America is considered to be the place of origin of the bloody aphid. Insects overwinter in cracks in elm bark. Two wingless offspring reproduce here. When winged offspring are formed, they emigrate to apple trees. The red body is covered with waxy wool-like threads.

The insect is very dangerous for plants. Damages young leaves and roots. On the surface of the shoots you can notice a white coating resembling cotton wool. Aphids form growths on the roots, which subsequently crack, causing rot.

Fighting bloody aphids is difficult. For example, it has good wax protection against chemicals. It can also be found in the soil.

Therefore, in the fight against it they use a natural enemy in the form Aphelinus rider. He safely lays his eggs directly into the blood aphid. The process of aphid reproduction stops, and the fruits ripen perfectly.

Beet aphid

Euonymus is a refuge for aphids for the winter. Here, the beet aphid continues the process of updating its offspring until winged individuals appear and migrate to beans and beets.

Continued reproduction on new crops can last up to 10 generations or more. Two forms of insects appear here, both winged and wingless.

What causes aphids to appear on indoor plants?

There are many reasons why aphids appear at home:

the soil;
accidental hit from the street, when bringing in any objects or cut bouquets;
ants are considered carriers;
a new plant that is already infected and has not passed quarantine;
while airing or walking flowers on the balcony;
dry soil and high ambient temperature.

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What harm does aphids cause to indoor plants?

The invasion of aphids on indoor plants is very dangerous, since the food for aphids is the life-giving sap of the plant, which it needs to maintain strength and growth.

The main problem is that the young shoots and buds are the first to be attacked. It is thanks to them that flowers open in all their glory. And as a result of the attack, the bush becomes deformed, loses its decorative effect, the leaves curl and fall off. Ultimately, we end up with the death of the plant.

Aphids pierce leaves, which creates additional foci for infection by viruses and bacteria.

Signs of aphid damage to plants

Signs of plant infestation by aphids:

When caring for potted flowers, you should pay attention to the lower part of the leaf, stem, and buds. If clusters of aphid colonies appear, they can be seen with the naked eye.
Leaves that have lost their juice begin to curl. Transparent sticky discharge can be seen on the surface.
The buds are underdeveloped and fall off.
The bush loses its decorative appearance, the tops of the shoots are especially deformed.

How to get rid of aphids on indoor plants?

All pest control products are good at the first stage of infection:

Chemical.
Biological. Natural enemies are attracted in the form of ladybugs, wasps, and lacewings.
Ecological. Spray the leaves, use oil products. Protect the buds from contact with non-toxic agents. Display plants that repel aphids.
Folk recipes.

Chemicals

Treating plants with poisonous agents is a standard procedure, as when spraying water, only with the addition of pesticides and insecticides.

Among the chemicals, the following drugs can be noted:

Folk remedies

If for some reason you cannot use chemicals, you can use gentle methods:

Red pepper. Pour 25 g of the main ingredient with boiling water (250 ml). Leave for 24 hours, after boiling for 60 minutes. Strain the contents and prepare a solution: 2.5 g of soap, 0.5 ml of water, 5 g of pepper tincture.
Alcohol. Dissolve soap (1 tsp) in water (0.5 ml). Add alcohol (1 tsp). Spray the upper parts of the leaves and wipe the lower surface with a brush dipped in the solution. Leave for a quarter of an hour and rinse with water to avoid burns.
Wood ash. Pour one glass of the main ingredient with water (5 liters). Add 25 g of soap and leave for 24 hours.
Orange peels. Combine warm water in an amount of 1.5 ml with orange or lemon peels (150 g). After 3 days the tincture is ready.
Spruce. Combine 1 ml of water and 250 g of spruce branches. Keep in a dark place for 7 days. Dilute the infusion with water in a ratio of 1:7.
Celandine. Cut a fresh bush during flowering, 200 g, add water (0.5 ml). After 1-1.5 days the solution is ready for use.
Dandelion. Cut 200 g of fresh plant, pour 5 liters of warm water. After 2 hours you can spray the flowers.
Nettle. Cut the grass before flowering 250 g, add 2.5 liters of water. Spray every other day.
Bulb onions. Pour 15 g of onion with water (1 l). After 7 hours you can use it.
Garlic. Crush 10 g of garlic and add 0.5 liters of water. After a day, the solution is ready.
Yarrow. Pour boiling water over 40 g of herb and boil for half an hour. Add water to the original 0.5 liter mark and leave for 1 hour. Add 2 g of soap to the solution before use.
Tobacco. Take 20 g of tobacco for 0.5 liters of water and leave for 24 hours. Before processing, add 2 g of soap.
Tomato tops. Fresh raw materials 800 g, add water and boil for half an hour. Add 8 g of soap before spraying.

How to properly treat plants?

Rules for treating plants against aphids:

Treatment with drugs will be effective if they are applied to all infected areas. But since aphids roll up the leaves, this is very difficult to do. Some gardeners dip the shoots directly into the solution if the plant is compact enough.
You can use a plastic bag. Spray the aerosol and close the bag for a day. In this case, 100% death of all pests.
When processing large specimens, prepare a ladder.
Optimal rate: for every sq. cm should get up to 50 drops. It is worth paying attention to the sprayer so that its spread is large.
You need to change them from time to time, as they are addictive.
Spray preparations with an oil base strictly on the leaves and trunk, but not on the buds and flowers. From such a hit they stick together and fall off.

Prevention

The plant can be protected from pests if you follow the following precautions:

Indoor flowers love care; weak, sick specimens require special attention.
Send new flowers to quarantine.
Keep the environment warm and dry, favorable conditions for aphids.
Remove faded and dry leaves.
Do not overfeed the flowers.
Choose a planting location with diffused light.
Get rid of ants.

Conclusion

Flowers in the house require care. If you fulfill all the requirements for caring for plants, aphids are not scary for them. But in case of infection, use any of the listed methods to combat aphids.