How do I help my plants recover from an aphid infestation?
Asked by
Carmella (
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February 8th, 2010
Aphids were allowed to feast on my window box plants while I was on vacation. My violetas were worst affected, some of which died and some look like they might be dead. Parts of other plants have also gone black.
I sprayed them with some insecticide I found at Home Depot which claims to protect my plants for 30 days. But how do I help them recover? They’re in pretty bad shape. Should I dig them all up and buy new window boxes and soil? Would new plants be ok in the current window boxes/soil?
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7 Answers
Oh man…..I don’t think you want to traumatize them further by digging them up…but I don’t know. They may just have to recover by themselves….good luck.
I have used a mixture of dish soap and water in a spray bottle to kill them ,making sure to spray the undersides well.It seems to be more gentle on the plant.I also water and feed them after cutting the dead leaves off.
If you’ve sprayed them then they should recover fine on their own.
Most anti-aphid sprays have a maximum number of uses per plant, so just see if it recovers, and if not spray it again up to the maximum amount of times.
Long term, consider getting some ladybugs. Besides eating aphids and other insect pests, they can also help with pollination.
If they are outdoor boxes, I would deep-six the plants and soil, wash the interior of boxes with soapy water and bleach, dry in the sun and start from scratch. Several starter packs of violettas, etc are not too expensive.
Try spraying the spots affected w/ aphids with Neem.
There are mild soap based insect repellents that are totally benign to pets. A little up the scale is perithrin based insecticides that do not cause grievous harm to pets or humans but it’s recommended to wash it off of produce. To pull out the big guns get an insecticide like Bayer or other brand; it’s the kind you attach to a hose and spray. You must get one that works above ground so important quality. Finally Ladybugs are the greenest option, never tried. Word to the wise, never try homemade concoctions, I’ve murdered Pansys and Allysum that way.
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