Inamon
Full Member
Posts: 59
Joined: Wed May 16, 2007 8:30 am
Location: PA, USA

Insect help!

We have discovered a small aphid like insect on our dill. It doesn't appear to have wings like an aphid and is slightly smaller with a lime green colour. The dill is obviously a very soft limbed plant so we are presuming it is attacking that first.

What is it?
Will it spread to other plants?
Will our insecticidal soap work? (I'm presuming because it looks like a soft bodied insect that it will.....but.....)

Thanks

sminkah
Full Member
Posts: 21
Joined: Mon Jun 19, 2006 3:28 pm
Location: CHELTENHAM, UK

Hey,

It may be green fly or just another type of aphids- I think there are a couple of varieties.

As you said dill is soft and fresh so it will grab that first, it may spread to other things, the best thing to do is (if you can without taking off too much of the plant) remove the affected areas and keep an eye on the rest. I think their eggs tend to be small white groups, really tiny and they just look like flecks- but if you just splash a small amount of boiling water at them that should be enough to polish off the eggs.


I am not keen on using insecticeds on my edibles, but if you check the label it will say if it is ok to use your soap on edibles, but it is soft and may not like the soap.

Hope they haven't munched their way through yet!

:)

User avatar
Jess
Greener Thumb
Posts: 1023
Joined: Mon Mar 19, 2007 7:50 pm
Location: England

Go find a ladybird or spider. They will do the work for you and deter anymore from coming which they will do no matter how much you treat them with insecticidal soap. Ladybirds are best. They have voracious appetites.



Return to “Vegetable Gardening Forum”