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Tidying up my urban garden at the weekend as part of my preparations for the Big Garden Birdwatch (26, 27 Jan), I discovered my jasmine's infested with greenfly.
It's January! I know London's climate is mild, but this is absurd.
It's too early for ladybirds or lacewings. Can anyone suggest how I can get rid of the suckers without resorting to chemical warfare?
Thanks Alan. I've given them one squirt with a diluted soap and water spray, but they're still there and I fear it may need something a little more drastic. Any ideas on strengthening the mixture?
A drop of parafin in the soap mixture usualy works.
To each their own
According to the weather forecast we are due a cold snap by the end of the week. Maybe that will sort the problem.
"The road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom" - Wlliam Blake
Claire.
I never thought I'd be looking forward to a cold snap, but a dose of natural balance is just what the aphid doctor ordered.
If Jack Frost doesn't sort it, I'll try Nighthawk's suggestion. I can always use any leftover paraffin to help keep me warm in the cold snap.
Can anyone suggest a decoy plant I could use to save my jasmine from a repeat attack?
Not a seasonal remedy, but aphids are attracted to Calendula species, and they are really easy to grow from seed.
Hi there,
I think that this cold snap should sort them out for you and in my opinion the best way to deal with them is to let nature do it's thing.
If you are determined to use a mixture I was given a home-made mixture recipe by Kazesmum when she was on here but can't think exactly what the exact ingredients were now! I'll do some research through some old threads and see what I come up with.
As most will know I use no chemicals what so ever in my garden and feel that things balance out naturally if you concentrate on attracting the right wildlife into the garden.
Not sure if birds will take greenflies or not but moving a feeder close to an infected plant works against some bugs as the birds find them whilst waiting to get on the feeder.
your other alternative is to just run your thumb and forefinger down the stems and squash them!....
Best
Higgy