Houseplant Pests Aphids
Aphids those pesky house plant and landscape pests are sometimes called plant lice. You’ll find them on the tender new growth or on the undersides of leaves. They are equipped with piercing/sucking mouth parts where they ingest fluids from new tender growth and stems.
Size wise the aphid is tiny about 1/8 of an inch and oval in shape. They may be green, pink, brown, white, black, yellow, red or gray in color. Aphids are commonly found on young, developing leaves and stems in clusters or colonies. Their feeding distorts the new growth and they sometimes cause leaves to curl.
Aphids live and work in colonies and are generally easy to control. Insecticidal soap, will kill them on contact. You may need to repeat applications three times to be sure to kill the eggs as they hatch. Because aphid eggs are air-born, keep an eye out for more, you may need to re-apply.
If one of the commercial soaps is not available, try 3-4 tablespoons of liquid dishwashing soap per gallon of water and apply as a foliar spray to your plant. Soap is effective in managing aphids, safe for people and the environment so is Neem Oil which I’ve found to be very effective in controlling aphids.
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