I keep getting aphids, GIGANTIC APHIDS, on my poor roses. I have sprayed every 3 days until my sprayer finger is sore. I only have 6 rose bushes but I am covered with scratches from trying to make sure I get both sides of every leaf. I am seriously considering digging them up & tossing them out. Today when I checked them, they were covered again. My feverfew was even covered with them. I didn't even know the little buggers liked feverfew. I wonder if they have a headache from all the spray. Thank goodness my peppers are in the back yard & the roses are in front. In the fall, I had a problem with them on the peppers. Help before it is too late for either me or the roses.

I spoke too soon. I need a herd of lady bugs. I just checked my peppers & found a few of the little beasties there too. There were a few on my mums also. I have been invaded. I make sure to wash my hands well when I go from the front to the back yard. Don't tell me I have to change clothes too. If a fence keeps stray animals out, why can't it keep these beasties out.

You know, the more you spray, the worse the problem is likely to get. Get some beneficial insects to work on them, even if you have to order them. It may take a week or so, but they'll get ahead of the situation and keep ahead of the situation. When you spray and apply systemics, you tend to kill the good along with the bad, so there is no protection when the aphids come out again. Look for little larva around the area that look like ugly little alligators. Those are ladybug larvae and are doing the job. Two days ago my roses were covered with aphids, and so were my chrysanthemums, but now there is scarcely an aphid to be seen, and lots of ladybug larvae. And I did absolutely nothing. Let mom nature do her job for you.

Mom nature sure likes to keep me in a tizzy. No it isn't her fault. My daughters call me 'ditsy lady'. How long will it take to get rid of the spray I used & how can I attract the beneficials. Will spraying with good old water help to wash off the aphid spray? If I order lady bugs, how will I keep them around?

Spraying with water will help knock off the aphids. The early ones usually have wings, but the later generations don't and they have a hard time crawling back up. If the spray had an oil base to make it stick, maybe a little dilute soapy water would get rid of it sooner. If there are plenty of aphids, the lady bugs will stay around. They will also lay eggs and the "gator looking" larvae will stick around for sure, since they can't fly.There are plants that attract beneficials and some companies offer special food, but I never needed that.There are also organic sprays for aphids, but I prefer letting beneficials do the work, as it keeps things in balance over the long run. I only use organic sprays for emergencies, like when my beans are being gobbled up overnight.

The spray was Safer Insecticidal Soap. I think I have just enough energy left today to go out & spray the roses. Then I will pray for the ladybugs. God tells us to ask for all things.

I believe the soap is regarded as organic. It works by dissolving the waxy coating insects have to keep from dehydrating. However, it will kill any beneficials that are there when you spray, so your problem buggies will come back without opposition. Maybe you can get the OG'ers complaining on another post about being invaded by Asian ladybugs to send you theirs, so you can all be happy.

I had thought of that.

Yes, this is already a BAD aphid season. Try this: order lady bugs NOW from Garden's Alive. When they arrive, put them in the refrigerator until dusk. Spray a little plain water over all the plants with the aphids and then let the ladybugs out, over those plants. It really works, I just did it.

Jenniferch, if I can add one more item to your great advice?

"Release" the ladies at night. For whatever reason, the bug purveyors claim that this prevents them from flying to your neighbor's aphids as soon as they warm up from their refrigerator stay.

Works for me! I haven't bought bugs in YEARS, but I still get aphids a lot, too - it just takes awhile for the 'gators to kick in.

In the meantime, I squish them all off the flower buds/leaves/stems with gloved fingers. So gross.

-nita

That you have a lot of aphids and they continuely repeat indicates a soil nutrient problem. Aphids, once removed from a plant, do not return and what you are seeing is later generations. Aphids start to produce live young while they are still nymphs and, since the life span of an aphid is only about 30 days, you are seeing generations of them. A good sharp water spray to knock them off the plant is all that is needed, and find out what is going on in your soil and what you need to do to correct that so your plants can grow healthy and not be attractive to pests.

I've found that some years there are few aphids, and other years there are lots of them. My soil is pretty good, 16 years of lots of homemade compost, soft, black, and fluffy. So it isn't necesarily poor soil.

Last year there weren't too many aphids but there were lots of sawfly larva on roses, all over the city.

Zone 9.....reminds me of the good old days.
i use to live in zone 9.

now I'm in 5 or six depending on who you talk too. Let's see...Aphids.

I'm wondering since you are probably in the land of water conservation,are you keeping your rosie's well watered?
Bugzies love malnourished plants. I do get aphids on my rosies...although the harsh winters here make it a little less of a problem.I have found safer soap to be a decent solution generally speaking.... but only as a remedy for a serious problem. What I do is go out everymorning. and gently rub my hands along the stems of the plants removing,crushing the aphids.

when it comes to spraying you really shouldn't have to cover the entire plant,only the new growth...Safer soap only lasts a few days in reality.( I know the package label says up to two weeks) If the plant gets wet than yes the safer soap is gone.( which is why I do the aphid rubbing because summers here can frequently get wet)

you might want to give your plants some bananas by the way...just give each plant a banana.(I'm serious)
one well rotted banana planted in the ground near the roots for every rose plant. Keep it in the skin. This will provide your roses with lots of potassium that roses crave and I garantee you that if you can keep the aphids off you will have more roses than you have ever previously seen on your plants. Seaweed (liquid)sprayed as a foliar feed is known provide immune system boosters And most tiny insects really don't like the taste.You can also try buying some Habanero peppers crushing them soaking them in water and using the strained water as a pepper spray. their is almost no bug that willhang out and eat habanero juice(it's the hottest pepper in the world) and I know you can find it in zone nine(be careful using it!!!)Every year I also give my roses a table spoon of bone mealin the soil and at least every three weeks or so a good drink of liquid fish fertilizer.

What does all this have to do with aphids? Well bugs prefer chewing on weak plants more than strong healthy ones...the seaweed tastes gross to them and if you use habanero spray it will burn the hell out of their toungues...just make sure you aren't spraying into the wind it can get uncomfortable.


good luck!

Unfortunately aphids are sap suckers, not chewers, but if the remedy works, it might be finding another way to annoy them.

I came across a pine needle extract spray two years ago. It claimed to be an natural insecticide/fungicide and fertilizer in one. I tried it. I am not convinced it is a great fertilizer, but it did a great job on a partially shaded rose bed of the mother-in-laws that suffered from aphids and mildew.