Even at the end of winter, gardeners begin preparing for work in their dachas. They prepare containers, soil and seeds, actively fight pests and force seedlings. Aphids on peppers are a real problem that many gardeners face. Even the most little bug. A gardener can save crops from pests only when he knows exactly how to fight them.
Signs of aphids
That Aphids have appeared on the pepper, the following signs will indicate:
Insect activity can lead to the following adverse consequences:
- If you do not fight the pest, the plant dies.
- The seedlings survive transplantation poorly, and adaptation after it goes very poorly.
- Plant productivity decreases.
- The growth of seedlings slows down.
The pest's attacks do not go unnoticed. Seedlings do not restore well proper development and growth. It is for this reason that it is recommended to combat aphids in a timely manner, otherwise they may move to healthy plants.
What causes aphids to appear?
Before you start pest control, you should find out the exact reason for its appearance. The insect feeds on plant sap. Everyone knows that pepper fruits and seedlings are saturated with water. This is what attracts pests to young seedlings.
The appearance of aphids on pepper leaves is explained by their life cycle. Insect eggs overwinter under tree bark or fallen leaves. When warm spring days arrive, female aphids hatch, and subsequently colonies of pests form from them.
Ants play a very important role in the spread of aphids. They feed on honeydew, that is, the waste products of these pests. In return, the ants help individual individuals move to another area.
If you don’t fight pepper pests, you may not get a harvest at all. Even before the ovary appears, the insect will destroy all the seedlings. Such problems will be prevented by the optimal set of aphid control agents.
What to do to get rid of aphids
You can fight aphids on peppers by different means . They are divided into three groups:
- Chemicals.
- Folk recipes.
- Biological drugs.
If aphids attacked pepper seedlings, then it is very difficult to destroy. The difficulty is that it is undesirable to spray chemicals indoors. It is because of this that to protect seedlings, summer residents use preparations made according to folk recipes. They do not destroy aphid eggs, but only help eliminate adult aphids. The seedlings are treated with them several times. This is necessary to achieve the desired result.
Choice of the most suitable method Pest control is selected depending on the location where the seeds grow. If seedlings sprout in a greenhouse or house, then it is preferable to use organic and biological preparations. But for the street you can also use chemicals.
Seedlings sprouting in an apartment - how to deal with aphids and what to do
Seedlings are treated from aphids indoors without the use of insecticides.
If a lot of bugs have accumulated on the pepper leaves, it is better to cut them off and burn them. This will help you quickly remove large numbers of pests and eliminate aphids remaining on other leaves.
Traditional recipes for pest control:
How to protect seedlings outdoors
While insecticidal preparations are highly effective in controlling aphids on pepper seedlings, it is not advisable to use them indoors due to their high toxicity. To destroy the pest outdoors You can use the following tools:
Plants should be processed in the evening and in calm weather. Do not use the drug in the rain.
Aphids on peppers in a greenhouse - how to fight
Peppers that germinate in a greenhouse must be given Special attention. To process them you can use chemical and traditional methods struggle, which are described above, and biological methods can also be used.
Pepper beds attract insects and birds, which eat aphids. To do this, pepper is left for insects to eat or they are planted with a pungent odor. The following insects eat aphids:
- Hoverflies.
- Ground beetles.
- Lacewings.
- Ladybugs.
- Earwigs.
If these insects live on your site, they will soon destroy the aphids in your greenhouse. But this option is only possible if the beds are small. They will not be able to cope with a large territory.
These insects are attracted to the garden bed by the aroma of lavender, basil, mint, marigold, and coriander. These plants are able to repel aphids with their pungent odor. They need to be planted close to the pepper beds in small groups or individually.
Small birds also actively consume aphids: linnets, titmice, wrens, sparrows. To attract a bird to your site, make a birdhouse for it or install a feeder with a drinker and food.
During the period of fruit formation and ripening, chemicals should not be used.
Prevention
The set of preventive measures includes:
How to get rid of aphids on pepper seedlings? Gardener's Diary
Aphids start and reproduce on the stems of seedlings and the back of the leaves. The most sensitive to the effects of aphids are young shoots that are deprived of the opportunity to fully develop.
As a result:
Seedlings slow down in growth;
- young leaves turn yellow and fall off.
This affects the rooting of sprouts when planting them in the garden, which, in turn, may well affect the quality and volume of the harvest.
Pest control methods
If you need to get rid of aphids that have appeared on pepper seedlings without resorting to insecticides, you can use the following folk “recipes”.
✔ Recipe No. 1 Cleaning the sheet
Using a soap solution, you need to wash the foliage of the seedlings. In order to prepare a soap solution, you need to take 1 liter of water and 5 grams. crushed regular soap.
Having completely dissolved the soap, you can wipe the leaves. As a rule, to completely get rid of aphids and larvae, you will need to carry out such procedures for several days.
✔ Recipe No. 2 Spraying
It is necessary to spray the sprouts with a solution of wood ash. To get this product, you need to mix 10 liters of water and 1 cup of ash.
After the mixture has been infused for 24 hours, it should be thoroughly stirred and strained, adding 1 tbsp to the prepared solution. spoon liquid soap. It is recommended to carry out spraying of seedlings with this product every morning.
✔ Recipe No. 3 Tobacco dust
Using a solution of ash and tobacco dust, you need to spray the pepper seedlings. To prepare this product you will need:
1 liter of water;
25 gr. wood ash;
25 gr. tobacco dust.
The mixed components can be left to infuse for 3-4 days. And then, stirring, straining and adding the same amount of liquid soap as in the previous recipe, spray the leaves and stems of young peppers.
✔ Recipe No. 4 Pine infusion
An effective remedy not only at home, but also in the garden. Prepared from pine needles. You should take 250 gr. fresh pine or spruce needles and, having crushed them, infused in 1 liter of water for one week. It is advisable to place the container with the infusion in dark place. To use you need to take about 40 grams. such a solution, diluting it with water (1 liter of water per 30-50 grams of infusion).
Decoctions and decoctions used in the fight against aphids are effective. By repeatedly using decoctions of garlic, rhubarb, and yarrow, you can quickly get rid of harmful insects.
On the market of all kinds of insecticidal preparations, quickly decomposing ones (Keltan, Karbofos) have proven themselves well. Prepare a solution based on 10 liters of water - 1 tbsp. a spoonful of the drug. However, you need to keep in mind that you should not use chemicals during plant flowering and fruiting.
Aphids often become a serious threat to pepper seedlings grown in greenhouses. This floor plan is an ideal environment for the rapid proliferation of aphid beetles.
To save pepper seedlings from death, it is worth, depending on the situation, to use special means that will help you achieve maximum effect.
But no matter what means are considered the most effective, there is probably no better means of prevention. To prevent aphids from appearing on pepper seedlings, you should take care of this in advance. For example, by disinfecting the soil mixture before planting seeds for seedlings, you can reduce the likelihood of not only aphids, but also fungal diseases. Treat the seeds as well as the soil in the area, getting rid of ants. After all, it has been noticed by many plant growers that, what fewer ants on the site, the faster the aphids will hatch.
Vegetables like homemade pepper and are very useful because they contain a large number of vitamins and microelements. In places with temperate climate These plants are grown from ready-made seedlings. These crops are a favorite delicacy of many harmful insects, so modern gardeners are interested in the question, how to get rid of aphids on eggplant seedlings and. During Taken measures will save plants and delight you with the results with proper care.
Aphids on pepper and eggplant seedlings
Aphids are small, translucent, greenish insects 0.3 - 0.8 mm long. Found mainly on indoor flowers, edible crops and fruit trees. Green aphid completely occupies all plants and destroys them, sucking juice from branches and leaves.
There are about 3,500 species of aphids, almost all of them feed various types plants, but among them there are also those that prefer only one type of crop. Aphids live in colonies.
Signs of aphids
If aphids have settled on the plant, this will become clear from:
- ants running along the stems. They are attracted to the sweet liquid secreted by the bugs onto the surface of the plants.
- viscous drops with stretchy liquid form on the leaves and stems, which can easily stick to your fingers;
- the leaves of the crops turn yellow, curl, and then wither and dry out;
- aphids lay their eggs along the edges of the leaves of the affected plant;
- young shoots are deformed from above, which impedes their growth and development.
It is easiest to deal with aphids at an early stage of plant damage. Colonies of harmful insects grow quickly and eat the plant, causing undeniable damage to it.
Female aphids have wings, which allows them to lay eggs on a wide variety of plants. During the season, each individual aphid can make up to 10 clutches. They make their last clutch in the fall; the eggs remain for the winter. The next breeding cycle begins in spring.
Prepared pepper seedlings can suffer from various types of aphids: 
- green;
- mealy;
- room
Causes of infection:
- Failure to comply with temperature conditions. Too warm air indoors, especially at night;
- High humidity near plant roots;
- When planting, soil affected by larvae was used;
- In the summer, during breeding, aphids laid their eggs on plants.
How to deal with aphids. How to treat plants
There are various ways to combat aphids. Each gardener uses his own methods, which are divided into two types:
- Folk using natural ingredients;
- Chemicals (insecticides).
Traditional methods of killing aphids
Traditional methods are very popular, but they must be used in the early stages of the appearance of aphids, when the number of pests is not large and the plant can still find the strength to recover.
The most common method is to wash the plant with plain water or a solution of water and 72% laundry soap. To prepare a soap solution, rub the soap and add a tablespoon of shavings to 1 liter of water. When using this method, special attention is paid to treating the tips of the leaves, where the aphid larvae are located, but this method is effective only if the number of beetles is small.
Another one of simple ways- This is spraying with a decoction of ash. The ash is sifted, then poured with water and brought to a boil. Before use, the solution is allowed to settle. Approximately 300 grams of ash are needed per bucket of water. You can add a little to the already prepared decoction laundry soap.
An infusion of hot pepper is also effective in combating aphids. About 100 grams are needed per bucket of water. This solution is infused for 2 days and the plants are sprayed with it 3-4 times with an interval of several days.
Infusion of celandine. It is cut finely and poured with a small amount warm water. Approximately 20-25 grams of laundry soap shavings are added there and left to brew for several hours, usually 2-3. Next, the solution is filtered and the resulting tincture is sprayed on the warped tops of plant branches and fruit trees.
Some gardeners use tops from. It is finely chopped, added to a bucket of water and boiled for half an hour. Next, 1 glass of the resulting solution is added to 800 ml of water. An infusion is also made from potato sprouts; they are considered more effective.
In pest control, a tincture of and is used. Take one onion and two heads of garlic, twist and add to a pre-prepared solution, which is made from two glasses of water and a tablespoon baby shampoo or soap. The resulting slurry is infused for more than a day, squeezed out of the garlic and onion pulp and, diluted with water, sprayed on the seedlings.
Tobacco. Its crushed, pre-dried leaves are infused for 24 hours in 5 liters of warm water. 200 grams of tobacco will be enough for this. Then dilute the resulting tincture in 10 liters of water and boil for about two hours over low heat.
Folk remedies are used repeatedly and alternated to prevent the harmful insect from becoming addicted. The plant itself is fed during the treatment period so that it does not lose strength. But what to do, if the number of aphids has increased to colonies? In this case, more radical methods are used.
Watch the video! The best way aphid control
Controlling aphids using chemical methods
When using chemicals, you must carefully read the instructions. IN in this case Suitable drugs that can be used indoors.
Aktara
This drug is used to treat plants for early stage growing season. Treatment is carried out a couple of times with a break of one week. After 30 minutes after spraying, the pest stops sucking the plant juice, and dies a day later. One ampoule of this solution is enough for a bucket of water. The diluted drug is poured into a sprayer and the damaged plants are irrigated. The product is very toxic, so you need to be careful when using it.
Karbofos
One of the popular insecticides that is used to combat all types of harmful insects. One tablespoon of the drug is diluted in a bucket of water. The resulting solution is sprayed twice on pepper seedlings with an interval of 7–10 days.
Fufanon
The drug is used to destroy various types of insects on vegetable and fruit crops. The plant is sprayed ready-made solution- 5 ml per 2 liters of water.
Intavir
The drug is used to kill insects such as:
- Colorado beetle;
- codling moth;
- potato ladybug;
- thrips.
A solid preparation in the form of tablets, which are dissolved in 10 liters of water. If the number of plants that need to be treated is small, then the tablet is divided into several parts, taking into account the reduction in the dose of water. Spray twice at intervals of a week.
Biological processing methods
Biological products include products produced on the basis of natural colors and herbs. These include the following.
Fitoverm-M
The product is used to kill caterpillars, mites, aphids and thrips. Suitable for processing vegetables, fruits and indoor plants. Sold in ampoules of 2 ml. This ampoule is diluted in 4 liters of water.
Akarin
Used to destroy all types of sucking pests for vegetables, fruits and berries ornamental crops. To prepare a solution, 2 ml of Akarin is diluted in 4 liters of water.
Biological insecticides are just as dangerous to humans as chemical ones. Therefore, processing must be carried out with caution. Natural ways treatments are least harmful cultivated plants and are used to kill aphids on peppers during the growing season.
Good in the fight against aphids beneficial insects, birds and some plants. If you plant necessary crops, which will attract beneficial birds and beetles, you can significantly reduce the risk of aphids. Aromatic herbs such as basil, mint or lavender are good aphid repellents.
Advice! Garlic, onions or fennel will help reduce pest infestation if planted between the rows along the edges.
Fighters against aphids are ladybugs, hoverflies, lacewings and ground beetles. In order for them to help, you need to lure them into garden plot by planting the plants they feed on. Daisies or fennel are planted to attract hoverflies. Ground beetles like amaranth or nightshade plants. The lacewing will enjoy shady places with ferns. Several containers of sawdust placed around the garden will interest earwigs.
Fans of aphids include such winged species as sparrows, tits, linnets and warblers. In order for the helpers to take root, especially in winter, it is necessary to equip the garden with birdhouses and fill them with food and feed. When attracting aphid lovers, you will only need natural preparations.
Conclusion
An effective way to control aphids is prevention. It is better to spend more time in the fall on cleaning and delivering quality soil. Make sure that lighting, watering and fertilizing of plants are properly organized. Constant control inspection of plants and detection of aphids in the early stages will allow you to get rid of them using traditional methods.
Watch the video! How to get rid of aphids on pepper and eggplant seedlings
In contact with
Young pepper seedlings consist of 90% water, and tender upper layer on the leaves and stem makes them even more attractive to sap-sucking pests. The aphid pierces the young skin and attaches itself to the seedling, feeding on its juice. From lack nutrients the leaves begin to wither and, without timely treatment, the seedlings will die.
The surviving bushes begin to get sick due to mold damage, the development of which is promoted by honeydew (the remains of aphids). On open ground honeydew is a favorite delicacy of the ants that eat it. At home, honeydew accumulates around the plant, on its leaves and stem.
There are two types of aphids growing on pepper seedlings:
Signs of plant damage
The sooner the defeat is noticed, the higher the chances of saving the seedlings. Attacks from numerous insect colonies will leave their mark, and it will be difficult for young peppers to recover.
Causes of infection
It is difficult to determine the reason why aphids appeared in each specific case.
- Wrong temperature regime. The indoor air is too warm, especially at night.
- Increased humidity at the roots.
- The soil used for planting was contaminated and insufficiently treated.
- An adult insect flew through an open window or greenhouse door.
- Infected planting material was used.
Pepper seedlings are usually grown indoors, on window sills, loggias or in greenhouses. Therefore, the two main ways insects appear are contaminated soil and seeds. As preventive measures It is enough to exercise careful control and purchase soil and seeds only from trusted manufacturers.
Methods for controlling sap-sucking insects
The method to get rid of aphids is chosen depending on the degree of damage to the seedlings and the scale of the planting. There are three effective methods of controlling aphids:
- chemical;
- biological;
- folk
It is better to treat seedlings infected at an early stage with chemicals. The method quickly kills insects, and the plant does not have time to receive critical damage. For more later Before planting and starting budding, it is recommended to use gentle folk methods.
Chemical
Effectively combat severe lesions insecticides containing the following chemicals:
- pyrethroid;
- organophosphorus compounds;
- neonicotinoid.
All chemicals are toxic not only to insects, but also to humans and animals. When using, safety precautions are observed: gloves are put on your hands, and when processing large areas, protective clothing and a respirator are used.
At home small box with seedlings is placed in a bag, in which a hole is made at the top, processing is carried out through this hole. It’s good if the box is located on a ventilated loggia or balcony. After processing, the hole in the bag is tied or glued with tape, and the box is left under polyethylene for a day.
The following drugs are effective in controlling aphids:
Aktara
Suitable for treating all types of plants at an early stage of the growing season. Treatment is carried out twice with a break of a week. After spraying with the solution, after 30 minutes the aphid stops sucking sap from the plant and dies after 24 hours. Prepare the composition from one ampoule in 5 ml and 10 liters of water. The finished product is poured into a spray bottle from which the plants are sprayed. The product belongs to the third group of toxicity, so you need to work with it very carefully.
Karbofos
One of the most famous insecticides, which is suitable for controlling all types of pests. Infected pepper seedlings are sprayed with a solution: 1 tablespoon of Karbofos per 10 liters of water. Treatment is carried out twice with an interval of 7 - 10 days.
Fufanon
The drug is suitable for controlling various types of insects on fruit and berry crops. vegetable crops. The plant is sprayed liquid composition, which is prepared at the rate of 5 ml per 2 liters of water.
Intavir
The drug is used to combat the following types insects: Colorado potato beetle, aphids, codling moth, thrips, potato ladybird. Sold in tablet form, diluted in 10 liters of water. At small quantity seedling tablet is divided into several parts and calculated required amount water. Spraying is carried out in two stages with an interval of 7 days.
Biological
TO biological agents These include natural formulations made from natural herbs and flowers:
Fitoverm-M
The drug is used to control insect pests: caterpillars, mites, aphids, thrips. Suitable for processing fruit, vegetable and indoor plants. It is offered to customers in ampoules of 2 ml. Dilute in the ratio of 1 ampoule per 4 liters of water.
Akarin
Biological poisons are just as toxic to humans as chemical ones. Therefore, processing is carried out with care. Natural preparations are less harmful to plants and are suitable for treating peppers against aphids during the growing season.
TO biological methods control also includes attracting insects: ladybugs, lacewing. Birds effectively fight aphids. But these methods are not suitable for closed ground and growing seedlings on the windowsill.
Folk
Traditional methods are the most in safe ways fighting aphids at home. But to completely destroy insects, it is necessary to carry out 4-5 treatments with an interval of 5-7 days.
Folk remedies help cope with aphids during the budding period of the plant and will not harm the seedlings.
The fight against aphids will be quick and effective if you correctly assess the extent of the damage and choose a means for treating the seedlings. Adult insects will die 24 hours after spraying the plants. But the treatment must be repeated several times, since new individuals will hatch from the egg-laying eggs, which quickly grow and reproduce.
The topic of our article today will be of interest to all gardeners who are faced with the problem of insect pests when growing tomatoes. How to get rid of aphids on tomato seedlings is the main focus of this material, where we will talk about how and with what to treat your tomato seedlings if aphids have attacked. If any of our readers have questions or know additional measures to combat this type of insect, welcome to the comments at the end of the article.
Useful additional information
Numerous species of aphids live in our gardens, which can be observed at any time warm season. Aphids, as a participant in the food chain, play a significant role in maintaining the life of larger and more developed insects, being their main source of food, for example, for ladybugs and lacewing larvae. However, without knowing it, the aphid becomes a big problem when the flying female finds a plant in order to continue her kind, which was planted by a person and should bring some benefit.
Aphids attack most crops - broccoli, cabbage or Brussels sprouts, peas, beans, potatoes, currants, eggplants, and occasionally grain crops. In addition, there is a lot of it on weed plants. Aphids rarely appear on tomatoes, however, this vegetable can also be seriously damaged if colonies on neighboring plants grow to large sizes.
In addition to the damage that aphids cause during their feeding, some individuals can transmit viral diseases, this phenomenon is especially relevant for tomatoes and cucumbers. Knowledge of how to properly control aphids on tomato seedlings is an integral part of predicting the quality of the next tomato harvest.
What does aphid look like?
These are very small, soft-bodied insects that skillfully use their sucking mouthparts. Their body size is usually pear-shaped, 0.5-1.0 mm in length. Aphids can be winged or wingless, depending on their life stage, and often have colors that blend in with the leaf or stem of the plant. This chameleon-like coloring is provided to insects by plant pigments, which enter the body of pests with plant sap. On tomatoes you can most often find green or red aphids, sometimes white insects are found.
Young growing plants are often more preferable to pest attack because their tissues contain less coarse fiber and their cells are filled with more nutritious juice. Aphids often feed in groups, and their activity in the vast majority of cases on open ground is accompanied by the activity of ants feeding on sweet honeydew, which the aphid actively secretes during external environment in the process of their physiological characteristics.
What does plant damage look like?
Curly, variegated leaves are the first sign that aphids are gradually beginning to settle in a new place, although the insects themselves may not be noticed unless you look closely.
Over time, infected plants become stunted and severely stunted in growth, especially for young tomato seedlings, which is clearly visible to the naked eye when trying to compare affected bushes with healthy ones.
Besides the juice plant cells leaves lose a lot of chlorophyll, turn yellow and look like corrugated cardboard. The young stem often curls up and stops growing. On tomato seedlings, aphids are especially numerous in the bud area of the stem, on bottom surface leaves and at the base of young leaves.
Ants are a 100% guarantee that aphids are actively breeding somewhere nearby. If these insects are large quantities scurry up and down the stem of the plant, which means this particular bush is most severely affected.
Breeding conditions
One of key points What makes aphids serious about their fertility is their amazing reproductive ability, which is much more active than that of any other insect living in the garden. It is estimated that one aphid can produce about 5 billion offspring in one warm season.
Each female produces from 50 to 100 representatives of her offspring, and in a year, about 40 generations can successfully pass in our soft climatic conditions, and in greenhouses even more.
The most active aphid eaters are larvae and adults of ladybugs, lacewings and sand wasps. Some gardeners spend a lot of effort to keep populations of these insects on their territory within large limits, for example, by luring them and even building entire separate houses for them.
How to treat tomato seedlings against aphids
As noted above, tomatoes are not the main strategic goal aphids. The insect invades this plant only when there is a shortage of primary hosts. And all because of the toxic alkaloid for insects, but absolutely harmless for warm-blooded animals, which is contained in tomatoes. Most of this substance accumulates in ripe fruits, but its dissolved concentrations are present in leaves and stems. For this reason, aphids, like other types of insect pests, try to avoid tomatoes, but in some cases attacks are still possible.
Treatment of green, red or white aphids on tomatoes is not much different from that on other plants. Basically, the same methods apply that are effective in all cases of resisting aphids, but you need to remember that the delicate leaves and stems of tomatoes are covered with greenish pollen, the accidental removal of which can harm the plant if this happens in large quantities. Therefore, special care should be taken when working with tomatoes.
Below we list the main ways and methods of controlling aphids on tomato seedlings, which are most useful for this type of vegetable crop:
- One of best methods natural control of aphid populations - manual removal insects, which often requires pinching an infected leaf or plant stem. So you need to be very careful. For convenience, it is best to use a classic toothpick.
- The most severely affected tomato leaves should be removed completely, especially if they are located at the bottom of the stem. In addition to fighting aphids, this method will allow seedlings to grow faster.
- The goal should always be to maintain a large population of natural predators of aphids. This is especially true for ladybugs, which, it turns out, can be “breeding” quite effectively on your own property.
One of the simplest, least labor-intensive and effective methods- physically washing off insects using a stream of water. If the seedlings are too small, you can use a regular sprayer. For larger bushes you can use garden hose and centralized water supply. Aphids move very poorly and spend their entire short life may not move from their usual feeding place. What can we say about the task of moving from the ground back to the plant. Although, oddly enough, such cases are quite possible. The procedure of “bathing” the plants should be repeated every few days until the last traces of aphids on the seedlings are destroyed.
As a more radical remedy, especially when the vast majority of bushes are affected by aphids and the infestation is quite serious within the limits of damage to the bushes, you can treat the plants with insecticidal soap, a concentrated or dry composition, which can be purchased at any gardening store.
If it is not possible or desirable to purchase ready-made insecticidal soap, you can make such a product yourself. To do this, you need one tablespoon of dishwashing liquid per liter of water, followed by active spraying of the above-ground part of the plant, which gives good control over aphids.
The death of the insect is caused by clogging of the spiracles, which are located on the entire surface of the aphid's body, direct exposure to highly alkaline soapy media on the body, as well as the removal of the waxy coating that protects the insect from external influences and retains internal fluids.
As a result of this complex means There is a guaranteed death of the insect, at least from desiccation of the body. During processing, please keep in mind that soap solutions may have an adverse effect on the plant itself, so it is better to cover the soil around the base with waterproof materials, for example, foil or polyethylene. Among other things, spraying seedlings with soap should be done on a cool, cloudy day, preferably in the late evening, to prevent direct exposure to sunlight.
Folk remedies
Homemade folk remedies are a long-standing tradition among gardeners who have to invent, sometimes, quite creative ways solving problems of combating insect pests and plant diseases without resorting to the help of synthetic chemical substances. In the case of fighting aphids, we would like to publish a couple of really working “homemade” recipes that have shown very effective results in the fight against this type of pest.
These unique recipes contain ordinary tomato leaves and garlic - truly folk remedies. So as not to cut off healthy leaves With tomatoes, you can use those that carry a large number of pests.
Recipe based on tomato leaves
As noted, tomatoes, as members of the nightshade family, contain toxic compounds called alkaloids in the fruit and leaves. When tomato leaves are crushed, they release these substances, which when diluted with water become even more toxic to insects. In addition, the liquid form of the solution allows for more effective spraying treatment.
To prepare this solution, you simply need to soak one to two cups of chopped tomato leaves in two cups of water. If possible, you can chop ripe fruits there, but you should not use tomatoes bought in a store for these purposes - they must be fresh. The mixture is infused for 24 hours. After this, the “porridge” needs to be strained through cheesecloth and added 300-500 ml of water.
Garlic recipe
Seasoned gardeners have long relied on garlic as an integral part of pest control. Garlic contains sulfur, which, in addition to being toxic to insects, also has antibacterial and antifungal properties. The soap solution in this mixture also destroys the bodies of soft-bodied pests.
To prepare the garlic remedy, mince or finely chop three or four cloves of garlic and add two teaspoons to them vegetable oil. Let this mixture sit for 24 hours. Then you need to strain it from the solid parts and add half a liter of water and one teaspoon of liquid dishwashing detergent. This mixture can be stored and diluted as needed. Before spraying, dilute two tablespoons of the mixture in a glass of water.
Garlic oil is a fairly active caustic substance, so you should not spray all the seedlings at once. If after treatment, after a couple of days, there are no signs of damage on several of the weakest bushes, and there are fewer aphids, then you can continue treatment on the rest of the seedlings.
These homemade recipes are easy to use, inexpensive and very effective. In most cases of aphids, they are able to completely replace any chemicals that can have a toxic effect against humans. We wish you a bountiful and healthy harvest!
