Aphids Under The Lights

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GoDawgs
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Re: Aphids Under The Lights

#21

Post: # 62959Unread post GoDawgs
Fri Feb 11, 2022 10:01 am

Out in the garden there are only a few things that I find aphids on; green peas, field peas and, when the temps get right, on the undersides of kale and collard leaves. Aphids are the reason I don't like growing frilly kales, Too many places for aphids to hide and they will in great numbers if you don't inspect each and every nook and cranny. That's why I grow a relatively flat leaf kale called 'Premier'. The aphids pretty much leave everything else alone. I don't think I've even seen aphids on the peppers here.

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brownrexx
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Re: Aphids Under The Lights

#22

Post: # 62963Unread post brownrexx
Fri Feb 11, 2022 10:06 am

Every time I bought pepper seedlings from the nursery, they had aphids so now I inspect they before I bring them home.

In the garden I rarely have aphids but one year my tomatoes got aphids and I Googled them They were called peach aphids because of their color. I squirted them off with a blast of water from the hose and I have not seen them since.

I have also had black aphids when I grew artichokes but I never never seen them on any other garden vegetables.

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Rockoe10
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Re: Aphids Under The Lights

#23

Post: # 62969Unread post Rockoe10
Fri Feb 11, 2022 11:26 am

Peach? That's one Aphid i wouldn't mind seeing *cough* that's a lie.

Green are the usual around these parts. Though i saw black ones for the first time last year. Also, squash beetles. It was an interesting year for pests. It seems that my ecosystem continues to develope over the years. Only been in this house for 5 years
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Rob, ZONE 6A with 170 days between frost dates, Western Pennsylvania

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bower
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Re: Aphids Under The Lights

#24

Post: # 62980Unread post bower
Fri Feb 11, 2022 12:26 pm

Gee @GoDawgs I'm glad you mentioned it because one of the plants in my greenhouse right now is a frilly leafed kale... So far I didn't find a single aphid on it but I guess I should look extra carefully. These mostly green ones have been pestilent on my Napa cabbage first, then spread to some newly sown brassica greens. They seem to prefer really tender or young growth and so their flying adults (black) did not spread them to the chard or the kale, at least before winter shut em down.
No sign of anything on the pea plants yet, so I haven't done anything except brushing off "imaginary"? eggs.
AgCan Zone 5a/USDA zone 4
temperate marine climate
yearly precip 61 inches/1550 mm

Setec Astronomy
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Re: Aphids Under The Lights

#25

Post: # 62983Unread post Setec Astronomy
Fri Feb 11, 2022 12:39 pm

ddsack wrote: Fri Feb 11, 2022 9:34 am Every time I find aphids in the house during the winter, they eventually spread to my new pepper seedlings even though they are on a different floor of the house. Just not worth the hassle.
Wow, I guess I shouldn't be surprised then that I got aphids on my new seedling shelf 6 feet away from the table I had aphid-y tomato cuttings the year before. I thought that distance, including the up and down, would be like walking to the other side of the earth for a tiny aphid, but I guess they could hitchhike, or some other way. Not to mention that the aphid-y cuttings were gone at least 6 months before I got the new seedling shelf.

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GoDawgs
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Re: Aphids Under The Lights

#26

Post: # 63014Unread post GoDawgs
Fri Feb 11, 2022 5:21 pm

@Bower, when the field peas get about 18" tall it's time for me to regularly inspect the lowest 6" of the stems for aphids. If I forget and don't catch them in time they will encrust that area and head on up into th4e leafy part of the plants. Then it's a real pain to deal with. Vigilence is the word! LOL! And then a good strong spray of water. If they reappear it's time for the insecticidal soap. It's war, I tell ya! :D

They usually don't get into the green peas until the peas are starting to produce. Powdery mildew is more of a hassle. That old henbit that constantly pops up among the plants is a literal mildew magnet and once the mildew finds it, away it goes up the peas. Even though the peas are mulched well, there are still wily, conniving henbit plants popping up all the time and I have to constantly patrol the beds to remove them.

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ddsack
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Re: Aphids Under The Lights

#27

Post: # 63052Unread post ddsack
Fri Feb 11, 2022 9:51 pm

Setec Astronomy wrote: Fri Feb 11, 2022 12:39 pm
ddsack wrote: Fri Feb 11, 2022 9:34 am Every time I find aphids in the house during the winter, they eventually spread to my new pepper seedlings even though they are on a different floor of the house. Just not worth the hassle.
Wow, I guess I shouldn't be surprised then that I got aphids on my new seedling shelf 6 feet away from the table I had aphid-y tomato cuttings the year before. I thought that distance, including the up and down, would be like walking to the other side of the earth for a tiny aphid, but I guess they could hitchhike, or some other way. Not to mention that the aphid-y cuttings were gone at least 6 months before I got the new seedling shelf.
The problem is that at some point in their life cycle, at least some of them develop or are born with wings, so they can flit away to greener pastures. I looked it up once and but can't remember now if the wings are triggered by season, temperature, population density or what else. They can reproduce sexually or as clones of themselves. Very interesting critters.

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GoDawgs
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Re: Aphids Under The Lights

#28

Post: # 63294Unread post GoDawgs
Mon Feb 14, 2022 11:38 am

I was just looking for something in my 2018 garden photo file and came across this shot of a feasting lady bug stuffing herself with aphids on a pea leaf. :)

Image

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bower
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Re: Aphids Under The Lights

#29

Post: # 63296Unread post bower
Mon Feb 14, 2022 12:53 pm

Great shot. :) We don't have many ladybugs here for some reason they are quite sparse. IDK what eats the aphids in my garden but I have zero trouble with aphids outdoors. Anything that gets aphids indoors, I put it outside and they 're gone in a day. Maybe the ladybugs can't take the competition?
AgCan Zone 5a/USDA zone 4
temperate marine climate
yearly precip 61 inches/1550 mm

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