How to get rid of APHIDS without harming CATERPILLARS?

[miagardener]

I have a butterfly weed plant and I'm going to be starting many more since I just collected my seed pods. I have little yellow aphids on them though, at first there weren't many so I just let them be, but now there are more and more everyday. Is there anyway to kill them without harming the monarch butterfly caterpillars that live on the plant most of the time? Is there something I can spray them with? I hate bugs, and my husband refuses to sit there and take them all off with his fingers so what can I do? LOL.

[rainbowgardener]

Spray them off with a soapy water spray (SOAP, not detergent, most dishwashing liquid is detergent). After they are gone, rinse the plant off, so nothing else will be affected.

[miagardener]

Thanks, I thought soapy water might do the trick, thanks for claryfying on NO DETERGENT as well. I also heard that spraying with water and rubbing alcohol works for some bugs too?

[rainbowgardener]

Yup!

Here's some other suggestions about aphids

https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=99388&highlight=aphid+control#99388

or type aphid control into the search the forum feature and find tons of stuff that's been written here about it.

[applestar]

I usually don't treat the milkweed with aphids because by the time I notice that there are excessive aphids on them, I already see ladybug adults and larvae at work, as well as green lacewing eggs attached to the milkweed and I don't want to harm them.

Growing flowers that attract [url=https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=335]beneficial insects[/url] like predatory wasps helps too -- little brown aphid mummies indicate predation by braconid wasps. I lose a few Monarch eggs to them as well, but now that I know what to look for, I just avoid collecting those.

If aphids are clustering to the point that I think it's too much, and I don't see my little helpers around, then I knock them off with hard sprays of water, and fetch a ladybug or two from other parts of the garden.

I have an abundance of ladybugs in my garden by the time aphids become a problem, but you can buy them, as well as green lacewing eggs, at better garden centers or on line.

[miagardener]

Oh so ladybugs are aphid eaters? Marvelous! The aphids disappeared after the caterpillars ravished my milkweed but I'm sure they'll be back and now I can control it thanks to all of your advice!