The best folk remedies for aphids

Aphids are a common plant pest. It infects many cultures and feeds mainly on cell sap. And the poison secreted by aphids can cause curling of leaves and curvature of young shoots. It is necessary to fight with it. There are different ways to get rid of the parasite, among which there are both chemical agents and folk methods. In the fight against this pest, it is important to detect it in time.

In the fall, the aphid lays eggs. In the spring, insects also appear. The reasons for the appearance may be different:

• purchasing and planting untreated plants;
• soil brought in already with insect eggs.

Larvae can also be carried by wind or on clothing.

Signs of defeat:

• yellowing and curling of leaves;
• deformation of the branches;
• underdevelopment of fruits;
• drying out of fruits;
• white sticky film on buds and leaves.

The culture becomes weak and prone to disease. It is during this period that treatment should be started.

To destroy pests in the garden, a long time ago they began to use ordinary laundry soap. This remedy appeared much earlier than insecticides. The composition contains fatty acids of natural origin. Caproic acid, also included in the composition, destroys up to 90% of aphids. Even a solution with a low concentration showed effectiveness.

Important: cosmetic soap is not suitable for removing aphids. Only household or tar is suitable, because it is they who have a high level of antibacterial and disinfecting ability. Consider a few popular soap solutions.

• To prepare a product based only on soap, you need a liter of water and four to five tablespoons of liquid soap. Stir the soap thoroughly in water and shake to form a foam. The resulting solution is used to treat the affected areas. As a prophylaxis and protection against burns, plants are recommended to be sprayed in cloudy weather. This will eliminate the appearance of burns on the leaves. Treatment with soapy water is an effective remedy for aphids on indoor plants. For a vegetable garden, it is better to use tar soap at the rate of 100 g per bucket of water. The smell of tar will scare away the insect.
• The second option is a mixture of soap and baking soda. Combine 1/4 of the soap and a tablespoon of baking soda with a liter of water. This mixture will help defeat both aphids and powdery mildew. If the soap is in solid form, you must first grind it in any convenient way.
• The third option is an oil solution. Soap and vegetable oil are taken in equal proportions. A bucket of water will need 200 ml of oil and the same amount of crushed soap. Everything is thoroughly mixed until the soap is completely dissolved. The resulting solution is sprayed with damaged plantings. This treatment is very effective at the first sign of a pest.
• The fourth option is soap and tomato tops. Take 4 kg of fresh tops, chop and put in a metal bucket. Raw materials are poured with 10 liters of water and infused for 4-6 hours. Over time, the composition is boiled and brought to a boil. After that, boil for another 30 minutes. The soap is added at the very end in a crushed form and an amount of 50 g.Mix well and filter.

There are two more ways to prepare a soap solution. However, they do not give as much effect as the previous recipes. Usually, such compositions are used as a prophylaxis on healthy plants when neighboring ones are infected.

• Take 100 g of tar soap and dissolve in 10 liters of water. The seedlings are treated with the liquid.
• Four tablespoons of washing powder and shavings of laundry soap are diluted in a liter of water. Spraying is carried out.

To eliminate aphids from plants with dense and hard leaves, use ordinary water. Watering in the country is carried out from a hose, while there should be a good pressure. Aphids are simply washed off to the ground. They use a shower at home. This is a great way to get rid of pests.

There are other folk remedies for removing aphids from the garden.

Ash is often used in the garden as a top dressing. It improves soil fertility. Proper preparation makes ordinary ash an excellent remedy for fighting aphids and other insect pests. There are several options for preparing ash.

• The ash is carefully sieved, then put on the stove, 300 ml of water is added and brought to a boil. The ash solution is ready. All that remains is to strain it and stir it in water. Ash is especially effective against pests on trees. It is very simple to use: first, the leaves are doused with a shower or moistened, and ash is applied on top. There is a lot of potassium in ash, it eliminates the increased amount of nitrogen in the soil, prevents the reproduction of aphids.
• Two hundred grams of ash is stirred in 5 liters of water and infused for 12 hours. Plants are sprayed with the prepared solution. This method allows you to quickly get rid of aphids on plants.

Tobacco is another good remedy. It can also be used to poison aphids. You will need 200 g of crushed dried leaves and 5 liters of water. Insist within 24 hours. Add water to 10 liters and boil over low heat for about 2 hours.

Aphids simply cannot stand everything hot and spicy, so horseradish, garlic, hot peppers will be excellent means for destroying the pest. Each of these remedies will help eliminate the insect without unnecessary complications. The roots, horseradish leaves are crushed, placed in a container. The mixture should take 1/3 cup, after which boiling water is added to the very top. Insist 24 hours.

Garlic infusion is a little more difficult to cook. Take one head of garlic and chop it. Pour a liter of boiling water. As an additional tool, you can add a couple of teaspoons of detergent, soap, or a couple of tablespoons of vegetable oil.

You can prepare a solution for aphids with onions or onion peels in the composition in different ways. Below are three simple and effective methods.

• To prepare the product, you will need 200 g of onion husks and 10 liters of warm water. Insist from 12 to 15 hours, then filter.
• Onion peel is combined with citrus peel, poured with boiling water, insisted for three days, filtered. Spraying is carried out. Dilute with water before spraying.
• Chopped onion in the amount of 35 grams, without removing the husk, is poured with a liter of water. Leave for 5 hours for infusion, after which 5 g of household soap is added. The resulting solution is filtered and brought to a volume of 1 liter with water.

Since all essential oils, without exception, have a pronounced smell, almost every one is suitable for fighting aphids. For example, tea tree, thyme and cedarwood oils do the job very well. You can mix several oils to enhance the effect. Cream is taken as a transporting agent. For 100 ml of cream, 15 drops of the selected oil are enough. Add 400 ml of water and spray twice a day.

After three days, the result will be noticeable. It is preferable to spray in the evening. All areas should be thoroughly moistened with water. It is desirable that the solution falls on the bottom plate, where the pest is localized.

In addition to the recipes described, there are several more effective options.

• Dandelion infusion. For the preparation of the infusion, both flowers and leaves are used: 200 and 400 grams. The resulting mass is poured with 10 liters of water. The exposure time is 4 hours. There is another option: 30 g of dry leaves and roots are poured with 10 liters of water, insisted for 3 hours.
• Sorrel infusion. Four hundred grams of sorrel are crushed and poured with 10 liters of hot water. Insist 3 hours.
• Pine infusion. One kilogram of pine needles is poured with 4 liters of water and insisted for a week. Once a day, be sure to mix the contents. A week later, you get a concentrated infusion. Before processing the plants, you need to dilute the composition with water in a 1: 1 ratio.
• Citrus infusion. One hundred grams of any citrus fruit is poured with a liter of water. Insist for three days. Dilute with water before use.
• Infusion of peppers. One kilogram of fresh chilli pepper or 300 g of dry fruits is infused in 10 liters of water a day. This time is enough to obtain a highly concentrated infusion, therefore, after 24 hours it can be applied by diluting it with water in a 1: 10 ratio.
• Infusion of marigolds. Plants together with flowers are crushed. The amount should be about half the bucket. Pour water to the very top and insist for two days. Before spraying, filter and add another 40 g of soap per 10 liters of solution.
• Potato infusion. You will need 1 kg of healthy potato tops. The crushed tops are poured with 10 liters of water and insisted for 3 hours, filtered and the plants are processed.
• Milk with iodine. A couple of liters of water will require a glass of milk and 1 ml of iodine. Iodine and milk are mixed, after which water is added. Shake and spray. This effective and little-known remedy can help remove more than just aphids. With its help, phytophthora and powdery mildew on tomatoes are also eliminated.
• Oil with water. Two hundred milliliters of sunflower oil is mixed with 10 liters of water. The affected areas of the plant are treated with this mixture. Two or three procedures are enough.
• Infusion of dope ordinary. The grass is harvested at the very beginning of the flowering period. A kilogram of dried raw materials is poured with 5 liters of water and infused for 24 hours. The infusion is filtered and 30 g of soap is added. This is a very effective remedy. Gives a noticeable result both at the initial stage of the defeat of aphids, and at later moments of defeat.
• Rhubarb decoction. You will need 1/2 kg of rhubarb and old dishes (for the simple reason that the oxalic acid in the rhubarb can damage the surface). Pour rhubarb with 2 liters of water and boil for 30 minutes. During boiling, some of the water may evaporate, so the liquid is topped up as needed. After cooling the broth, add a teaspoon of soap solution. The resulting composition is thoroughly mixed and used for processing. The broth is very toxic, so it is stored in a place safe for children, as well as away from food, drugs, etc.
• Ammonia. Another potent aphid remedy. Most often, aphids settle on trees, because there are a lot of ants. These insects support each other's activities. Thus, by destroying one insect, it is possible to influence the activity of another. It is simple to carry out the treatment: the affected areas are wiped with ammonia.
• Zest. Dried peels of any citrus fruit will work. You will need a jar with a capacity of 1 liter. It is half filled with zest and poured to the very edge with water. Bring the contents to a boil. In a boiling state, stand for about 10 minutes, then filter. The resulting mixture is poured into 10 liters of clean drinking water. To increase efficiency, add a tablespoon of liquid soap.
• Tomato or potato tops. The greens are crushed and placed in a container. A three-liter container must be half full. Then the jar is filled with boiling water completely and insisted for 24 hours. At the very end, add a tablespoon of shavings of soap or washing powder.
• Sorrel. Three hundred grams of horse sorrel roots are poured over 10 liters of hot water. Insist 3 hours. The treatment is carried out by spraying or directly wiping the affected area with the prepared agent.

When black currants are affected by aphids, the leaves begin to curl, deform, dry out. On white and red currants, the lesion manifests itself in a different way: swollen red spots form on the leaves. The affected areas are removed and burned. A folk remedy for eliminating aphids on currants is spraying with infusion of tobacco and wood ash. To prepare the solution, take 400 g of tobacco and the same amount of ash. Combine with 10 liters of water. Let it brew, then spray it.

On an apple, cherry, plum, when aphids are damaged, leaf deformation occurs. They lose their elasticity. Clusters of pests can often be seen on the leaves. A common cause of aphids is the presence of weeds nearby. The best assistant in eliminating the pest will be a ladybug. It is also worth planting fennel, dill, coriander, parsnips between the trees. This will be an excellent prevention of the appearance of aphids.

On cucumbers in a greenhouse and on open beds, you can use the same aphid remedy: soap and onion solution. When the viburnum is affected by aphids, the leaves of the diseased plant immediately begin to curl up. Many black dots and ants appear on them.

In the fight against aphids on cabbage, an infusion of three powerful even separately components (onion, ash and garlic) can help. The specific smell will surely scare away the pest. For 10 liters you will need onions in the amount of 100 g, chopped garlic - 50 g, wood ash - 150 g. The mixture is placed on the stove and waited for boiling. Leave to infuse for a day. Strain and add a tablespoon of liquid soap. The resulting solution is sprayed with cabbage leaves.

Aphids often infect roses: stems, leaves, buds. It is better to remove leaves from shrubs immediately. Insects can be destroyed, for example, with a water shower. Among the natural ways to combat insects, the following effective methods are worth highlighting:

• with minor damage, you can collect the pests with your hands and rinse the flowers with water, repeating the procedure several times;
• you can prepare a soap solution by mixing a tablespoon of odorless soap with a liter of water (sprayed for several days in a row);
• nettle decoction is used for several days, treating the affected areas.

These methods will be effective on both street flowers and indoor flowers.

When aphids are localized on dense grape leaves, watering is carried out with plain water from a hose. You can make a strong pressure to wash all the insects to the ground.

It is impossible to get rid of aphids once and for all. However, it can be prevented through prevention. The best time for this is spring, but you can also spend it in summer. Below are guidelines to help you reduce the risk of aphids on your plants.

• It is necessary to systematically check for the presence of an anthill on the site. If found, it is poured with boiling water. This measure will reduce the likelihood of aphids.
• In the fall, remove all damaged and insect-infested branches.
• Planting calendula in your garden will attract more ladybugs, which are the best aphid killers.
• Potassium permanganate is an excellent prophylactic agent. In the presence of pests, it is no longer so effective.
• Landing on the site of cilantro, lemon balm, mint, thyme will scare away aphids.

Aphids are a pest that can cause significant harm to plants, up to their death. It affects crops growing both in the garden and in indoor conditions. After detecting an insect, it is important to take timely measures.