Massive aphid infestation

19 years ago

Hello, I am new to this forum, and I am in desperate need of some advice and guidance. My husband and I bought our first house last summer, and we have 6 extremely large mature trees that we absolutely love. One of them is a box elder that sits right next to our house and porch, and I would guess the thing is at least 30 feet tall with some limbs that hang a little over the house. A few weeks ago I took off a whole bunch of suckers that were surrounding about 1/2 of the base of the trunk. Shortly after I noticed alot of tiny green bugs under the tree and on the vinca I planted there this year. I went to the garden center and I was told that they were aphids and that I could just hose them off with water. Because I thought they were only on the vinca, that is all I sprayed. Last week I realized that what I thought was something minor was actually a major infestation. It appears as though the entire tree is affected and the little suckers are crawling all over my house, my patio, anything within reach of the tree. The box elder is dropping quite a few yellowed leaves, and it is raining sap all over the place. There are also thousands upon thousands of the adults with wings. I've called around to a few garden centers and the county extension, and I'm getting mixed information. I'm worried to what extent the damage will be to everything, and what I might do to get rid of these. Literally the entire tree, as far as I can tell, is just covered. I don't really want to spray, because I have toddlers. I have read the other posts, but I haven't come across anything that sounds this extreme. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Oh yeah, and those darn ants are being quite the farmers!

Featured Answer

calliope

19 years ago

The pest should be seen to be diagnosed with that I agree, but I don't find it hard to believe they are aphids. Box elder is a particularly popular aphid host tree. With population pressure that high, they'd move looking for more chow. The fact the tree is dripping in honeydew surely suggests it. My extension agent will make house calls for problems that serious. Can you call yours and ask them to please consider doing that?

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Comments (9)

maineman
19 years ago
Tenderkat,

"I don't really want to spray, because I have toddlers."

Not all sprays are toxic. I have been attacking the aphids (also tended by small ants) on my zinnias with GreenCureÂ®. It helps prevent a number of foliage problems, including powdery mildew, but it also has an excellent wetting agent with spreader and sticker properties. As an added benefit, the wetting agent makes my blast of spray penetrate and wet the interior of the zinnia blossoms and wet the aphids and help dislodge them.

A pressure washer filled with water and a little wetting agent (even some dish-washing liquids work well) might help wash the aphids from your trees, and that would be a nontoxic operation. A pressure washer should be able to spray high into your trees.

MM
rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
19 years ago
Why use a fungicide for a serious aphid infestation? I'd suggest insecticidal soap applications for some assistance in control. It can be used without worry around your family and home. In the winter, you should consider a couple applications of horticultural oil to the bare branches, limbs, and trunk of the tree.
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Kimmsr
19 years ago
First, if these wee critters are crawling around they are not aphids. Aphids tend to stay put and do not move very far from where they were born except those that emerge from the soil in the spring. Since your garden center diagnosed your problem without seeing the problem I would stay far away from them in the future. Collect a few of these buggers, put them in a sealable plastic bag (a ZipLoc plastic bag works quite well) and take it to your local Extension Service office for proper diagnosis.
dinajean(SCzone7b)
19 years ago
MAINEMAN - I have an okra plant that was infested with aphids - and ants - they go hand in hand. I sprinkled coffe grounds around the base of the plant and within 2 days the ants were gone, which means the aphids cannot survive. One week later, the plant is absolutely free of aphids and thriving!!! The coffee grounds repel the ants, which supposedly protect the aphids. HTH
calliope
19 years ago
Aphids can survive without being "farmed" by ants. They do in greenhouses all the time. There is nothing an ant does absolutely essentialnecessary to the survival of an aphid and aphid can't do itself.
dinajean(SCzone7b)
19 years ago
Thanks for clearing that up, I was misinformed then.
tenderkat
Original Author
19 years ago
Thanks for everyone's input. We've had family in town since I posted my question, so I've been unable to address the problem. But, yup, they are definitely aphids, had it checked out. I'm gonna take a little bit of everyone's advice, and see if I can weaken their front line. I was wondering about insecticidal soap, will it kill the army of ladybugs that have arrived to rescue my tree? I'd really hate to kill them along with the aphids.
Kimmsr
19 years ago
Insecticidal soap is a broad spectrum poison if it contacts an insect. Insecticidal soaps are a prefered pesticide because they have no residual affect, once dry they do nothing, it is only while wet that they work. So yes IS will kill the Lady Beetles, if they are sprayed with it.