Thanks for the input. I have a small garden of about 15 plants total (tomato, bell pepper, various chili) have already tried "safe soap" from the local home center with failed results (killed more green leaves than aphids). Have already had to pull a couple plants due to aphid infestation shrivel / deformation. I am currently preparing a garlic/mineral oil/soap mixture for spray. Is anybody familiar with this old english brew? Will it hurt the plants? Will it make everything taste like garlic? lol. I don't want to go the pesticide isle to resolve this, it is only the second year that we (my two sons 10/12) have grown the garden. Any and all help for the "newbie" is greatly appreciated,
Paul
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- Super Green Thumb
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- Location: Victoria, BC
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I'm fairly lucky in not having many aphids in my garden but managed to introduce a couple of plants stuffed with them recently.
I basically cleaned the leaves by hand but then noticed ants swarming over the plant (hey have now stopped) and a few days later the plants were totally clean - do ants eat/remove aphids?
I'm interested in the ladybird option - the garden at the moment seems to support only ants, slugs, grasshoppers and woodlice. What are the best ways of encouraging them to colonise?
I basically cleaned the leaves by hand but then noticed ants swarming over the plant (hey have now stopped) and a few days later the plants were totally clean - do ants eat/remove aphids?
I'm interested in the ladybird option - the garden at the moment seems to support only ants, slugs, grasshoppers and woodlice. What are the best ways of encouraging them to colonise?
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Found this website in the States:
This one sells ladybugs and Praying Mantis
This one sells ladybugs
https://www.planetnatural.com/site/ladybugs.html
This one in Ontario, Canada
https://www.naturalinsectcontrol.com/catalogue/getprod.cgi?1011A
And this site in the UK sells native ladybirds and other aphid hunters:
https://www.greengardener.co.uk/aphidout.htm
I've never ordered from these sites, but they look like good retailers.
This one sells ladybugs and Praying Mantis
https://www.suburbanhabitat.com/beneficial_insects.phpFinally, at SuburbanHabitat.com, we see stewardship of our greater habitat as a responsibility that we take on ourselves and on behalf of our customers. SuburbanHabitat.com donates a portion of its annual profits to organizations that benefit habitat locally, nationally, and around the world.
This one sells ladybugs
https://www.planetnatural.com/site/ladybugs.html
This one in Ontario, Canada
https://www.naturalinsectcontrol.com/catalogue/getprod.cgi?1011A
And this site in the UK sells native ladybirds and other aphid hunters:
https://www.greengardener.co.uk/aphidout.htm
I've never ordered from these sites, but they look like good retailers.