Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Two weeks ago i noticed i had aphids attacking my lettuces.

I tried a few fish friendly remedies, as i am planning on getting fish this weekend, but to no avail.

My lettuces are all but wiped out!!

everywhere i look says use a soap/detergent based solution but i don't want to have this in my system or am i being to cautious?

Can anyone suggest a fix before they spread to the remaining lettuces, bok choy and cauliflowers?

Many many thanks in advance

Aphids are a worry for sure, and usually are farmed by ants so if you can control the ants then just hosing the aphids off the plants with a pump up sprayer works for me.

I'm having a similar problem and am having no luck using the standard chilli/garlic type remedy but without the soap part.. Different sources say the soap is either to make the stuff stick to the leaves or it's what actually kills them on contact and the garlic etc is what stops them coming back.. so if it's the latter, it's kinda a vital ingredient and making a spray without it is a waste of time..

Another one I havn't tried is a tea made from tomato leaves, mainly because I don't have enough to make it up (2 cups of chopped leaves steeped in 2 cups water overnight or 24hrs or along those lines)..

Lacewing bugs would be nice but they have a minimum order at bugs4bugs, which is too high for my small garden, you might be able to justify it though..

I'd get the kids to run around catching ladybugs to put in the growbeds, but i can't even get them to eat their tea so fat chance of that..

Interested to see other possible fixes..

Can you get hold of some Lady Bugs and/or Praying Mantis?

I haven't seen any ladybugs around here for some time to be honest and trying to find somewhere online in australia is just as difficult. I have emailed bugs4bugs and hope they can help.

I haven't noticed a single ant near my system or even in my shed so that's a bit weird.

I have read that the soapy solutions actually block the 'hole' in the aphid's body therefore suffocating them as they breathe through their body... apparently...

I usualy use a little Earth Choice brand dish washing liquid in a sprayer with garlic and chilly on my dirt garden or just blast them off with a hose. Not sure if this would hurt the fish in AP though, havent had any problems with them in my system well not yet anyway

Hi Iceman, you probably have lettuce aphid which is a recent introduction in to Australia from NZ. A real bugger on iceberg type lettuces.

I don’t think they will infect your other plants and do damage as lettuce aphid is fairly specific to lettuce and related plants.

If you have iceberg type lettuces i.e. with a heart, I would feed them (the lettuces) to the chooks and grow something that is more resistant to the pest.

if they are the open type lettuces eg gourmet types, then I would hose them off with a jet of water. If that does not work start again but get on top of them as soon as you see them.

The predators are OK but for heart types the aphids will be inside and away from predators. Also predators need to be introduced as soon as you see signs of a problems, otherwise the pest will still do the damage before the predators can get up to any numbers to be an effective control.

Now I have a major problem with cabbage aphid. There are varieties that are highly susceptible (as I'm finding out) and others such as drumhead that are completely free even though they are growing next to each other. So next year I will grow drumhead.

My 2 cents worth
Cheers
Marc

i have noticed that they are venturing onto my bok choy...i will be spraying them off before they get a hold of them as well.

the lettuces i am 'trying' to grow are gourmet types... salad mix and cos (no icebergs yet, they are outside in the dirt garden)

I too have had many a frustration trying to get rid of the aphids... Have sprayed the AP safe mixes, sprayed water, used the lacewings from Bugs to Bugs but my aphid problem beat them all....

Out of sheer frustration I went rogue and tried the White Oil home made version (vegetable oil and earth choice dishwashing liquid watered down - recipe on this site...search white oil). I use it very sparingly and try not to spray into the growbed, but obviously it is inevitable that it will cycle through to the fish.....

So far.....no visible Fish issues they appear as healthy as ever...... but the Aphids are dead! Many in AP don't like this solution and neither do I really......... but I needed get on top of these critters!

I have to say I'm leaning towards adding some earths choice dishwashing liquid to my garlic spray as well.. I got the stuff trying to be all enviro friendly and the mrs refuses to use it 'cos it's crap, so may as well use it somewhere.. Of all the things to add that we shouldn't add, that's got to be the least harsh right? Not sure i'd go so far as to use oil yet though but will keep it in reserve..

I add a bit of neem oil. YES...... eveyone says don't , you would have to be stupid. But in the ratio of the water passing through a system, I feel personally the damage is minute and the creatures I am trying to control are problematic.

A good blast of a hose first then treatment, then blast the garden hose again, the garden can most of the time turn around and come back onto balance.

I use a couple drops of dish washing liquid with warm water it does work if you soak them, but if there is a huge outbreak sometimes it better to rip the plants out and dunk them in water and start again

+1

Funny you should say that... we binned all the lettuce plants as they were too far gone, jet sprayed all the aphids off the bok choy and will sow lettuce seeds as there was a good chance that the aphids came in on the seedlings that we planted.

On a side note... 30 rainbows are coming this weekend!!

Spoke too soon. Just noticed a small aphid infestation on my AP Pak Choi right befor leaving for work down south had no time to do anything about it though. They will probably be stuffed by the time i get back on Thursday.