How do I get rid of aphids on my strawberries without using anything that would be harmful to our grandson and our Yorkie?
Hardiness Zone: 8b
By Judie from Apple Valley, CA
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I assume that getting rid of aphids on strawberry plants is the same as getting rid of them on tomato plants. On my tomato plants I spray the underside of the leaves with a water hose, washing the aphids off the plants. They won't climb back up. I have read that tip in several different gardening books and it has worked every year for me for a lot of years.
Hello, I had that problem on our lemon tree. I bought ladybugs at Home Depot. I also noticed, when I had aphids, I also had ants.
A fascinating fact is, that ants actually herd aphids, like we do cows and sheep. The ants like to eat a sweet sticky substance known as honeydew, that aphids excrete. They "tickle" the aphids' bellies to make them release the honeydew. They do not eat them. Ants will even move them to new areas of a plant, once the food source is exhausted in that area, and are even known to carry them to other plants for a new food supply once the plant they are on, has died. Pretty fascinating!
I'm with mvb. The most organic and safe method is to import some ladybugs. Besides your grandson will love them!
Another idea is planting garlic or green onions in the area. I have little green onions which put up their own seed "heads" (multiplier bulbs), so there's always more to plant and replace those picked for salads, etc.
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