and made a mental note to go find the insecticidal soap. I couldn't find it, and when I checked again, the aphids had repopulated.

===>>> that was either a really long search.. or some kind of super aphids ... lol ...

i usually find aphids in the yard ... by first noticing the ants.. as you said.. its a symbiotic relationship wherein the ants 'milk' the aphids for honeydew .... i dont recall hearing they kill them .. but i wouldnt be surprised if there arent commando ants ....

whitefly.. in the house.. i associate with soggy soil .. check out the link ... the problem is killing a number of generations .. and not allowing them to lay eggs in the swamp in between .... its really hard ... one must either rely on systemic chems ... [in the house????] ...

or even better.. sterilize some new media.. and repot them ... and leave them out in the garage .. ONLY bringing them in.. if severe cold is forecast ...

two ways to get rid of the eggs in the swamp ...

you really are not contemplating 'coping' with ants.. IN THE HOUSE ... are you??? ===>>> get the pots out of the house ....

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: link

LOL! It was a search that was abandoned, and I did not seek out alternatives! I was wondering about something systemic.

I will keep an eye on them. But they are definitely little desiccated bodies.

In a month I can put the pots outside. They are huge, so repotting is not much of an option (while indoors). It's all I can do to lift them from their location at the dining room windows 8 feet to their summer home on the porch.

The soil is not really soggy. If anything, they dry out too fast. As they are large and deep, the bottoms of the pots are filled with blocks of Styrofoam. So when the water runs into the saucer, it does not get drawn back up. Thus I try to water lightly, so I won't have standing water.

I have ants every year in this house. Though usually they really start when it gets warm, then I put out ant traps and Terro liquid. Though that barely makes a dent, and they hang out near the exterior doors mostly. I've learned to live with them, just trying to keep them down. Every time my neighbor calls Orkin, they march over here.

i think what you are seeing as dead aphids could be the empty skins left after they have molted.

Wiki has a good section on aphids and describes their relationship with ants.

I would get the planters outside at the first possible opportunity. Indoors the aphids are coddled as they don't have to contend with rain, wind or predators. Just getting them outside can alleviate the problem. A good squirt from the hose will also dislodge and weaken many of them.

In a month I can put the pots outside.

====>>> i said the garage.. you have one??? .... you should be able to get them in a sheltered place .. pretty soon ...

even during frost or freeze nights .. a closed shelter... garage.. barn.. shed ... can easily stay well above hurtful temps ...

just make sure you shut the door.. while it is still warm out.. not at midnight ...

ken

I was concerned that the garage would still get too cold, especially for the sweet potato vine. But no matter how cold the garage feels to me, I suppose it's still well above freezing temps.

I can't haul them back and forth in and out of the house, too many steps to go down. So once in the garage they would stay there (in the dark) unless a sunny day turned up (rare).

just hang on for a week or so .. this weather has to break soon ...

they will need to harden off to temps even in the garage .... and it has just been a miserably cold spring in my z5 ...

what it boils down to .. is simply when you get fed up .. lol ... if you can stand them for a week or two.. leave them be..

if every last nerve is frayed.. throw them in the garage.. and remember them in august.. lol ..

ken

I would be sorely tempted to whack them all off down to a few inches of the soil...and let them start out fresh when the weather breaks and you can set them outside. All of them will grow back and the bulk of the bugs will go bye-bye with the nasty foliage.

Probably not dessicated bodies of aphids, but their shed skins. They cast them aside like dirty clothes left for the maid to pick up. IF, these dried 'husks' were fat and swollen, then they are what we call aphid mummies....the outer skins of the parasitized aphid. They are usually tan in color, while the shed skins are white.

I think you are right rhizo_1. See my post on Tuesday.

Didn't see that, Flora!