In this article we will discuss ways to get rid of aphids and protect your plants from them in the future.
Aphids weaken your plants by sucking the sap out of them. These insects are found in most temperate zone in north America and are found living on leaves of plants. It may seem like they appear out of nowhere but chances are they have been there and traveled there long ago.Sometimes, when there are only a few aphids you can get rid of them easily by spraying the leaves with soapy water and then wiping them off. However, if there is an infestation you may need to take more drastic steps. You will know if there is an infestation if you see yellowed, twisted and curled leaves, stunted shoots and the plants generally look unhealthy.
Ways to get rid of them:
1) Soap Water Spray
A bit of dish soap and water mix can be sprayed onto your plants that has aphids. This insecticidal soap mix can dry up the waxy coating of these soft-bodied insects without harming your plants. Just remember to wash your produce like usual before consuming.
2) Soap and Peppermint Oil Water Spray
Aphids hate the smell of peppermint. If you mix water with some peppermint oil into your spray, the aphids will leave it alone. The soap as mentioned can kill the aphids.
3) Soap and Garlic Water Spray
Aphids also hate the smell of garlic. You can mince or blend a few cloves of the garlic and put it into some sunflower oil to infuse for 24 hours. The next day you can add in water and mix. You can use this mix to spray onto your affected plants. Alternatively, you can skip the sunflower oil infusion step and just add in the grinded garlic, soap and water to the mix.
You should see an improvement after day 1 and the aphids should be gone after a few days of using the sprays.
Ways to prevent them from appearing:
1) Monitor your Garden
A simple way to prevent aphids is to monitor your plants from time to time. Look for if there are aphid eggs and aphids. If there are, you can use one of the sprays mentioned above to get rid of it.
2) Plants as Repellents
Aphids hate the scents of basil, chives, rosemary, dill, cilantro, parsley, lettuce, peppermint and catnip. There are also other plants you can search that they are repulsed by. These plants can be around your garden to prevent aphids from coming near for a chance of infestation.
If aphids in your garden are in abundance, we suggest to harvest the whole garden, clean it, and start fresh.