The Cure for Death by Aphids

(With apologies to Gail Anderson-Dargatz.) I've heard that the aphids are terrible this year. Either I haven't been looking closely enough or I've been spared (for the moment), but I haven't seen too many in my yard. I'll take a closer look. They are a common garden pest, however, so here are some plans for attack:


Hippodamia convergens (aka Ladybugs).
Ladybugs eat the aphids, mate and die within 3 weeks. The larvae look like little alligators and if there is a constant supply of food they will continue to breed and populate your garden.

It's best to release them in the evening so they are more likely to stay in your garden and not fly away. Leah released hers late afternoon on an overcast day into the greenhouse and under cloches.

Garlic Spray
Jenn cooks up a mean garlic spray. Boil whole cloves of garlic, let the liquid cool and spray it on the plants. It will kill the aphids, eggs and will not kill the plants.

Soap and Water
In A Year on the Garden Path, Carolyn Herriot suggests using aphid midges or ladybugs, but also to wash them off with a strong jet of water or spraying them with soapy water or insecticidal soap. She gives two recipes:

Simple Soap: 2 Tbsp. soap flakes in 1 litre of warm water. Apply every 5 to 7 days.

Garlic Oil Spray: 10-15 cloves minced garlic, 2 tsp. mineral oil, 600 mL water, 1 tsp. liquid dish soap. Soak garlic in mineral oil for 24 hours. Strain garlic out and add 600 mL water a 1 tsp. liquid soap. Mix thoroughly and spray on plants.

A few more ideas:

You Grow Girl has a good explanation of both ladybug and aphid biology and gives a recipe for a citrus peel spray as well as other ideas similar to the ones presented here.

And several more from The Cheap Vegetable Gardener.

How do you deal with aphids?