"Nick Maclaren" wrote in message news
In article ,
Bertie Doe wrote:
snip
Q. Can anyone suggest a spray deterrent, to prevent future attacks? I've
tried various insecticides in the past (can't remember their names) with
no
luck. TIA.

Bluntly, no. I use horticultural soap, which has the advantage that
you can spray until they drip, as often as you need, but you can
also use dilute washing-up liquid with a squirt of meths in it.
That doesn't stop anything invading, but works well on aphids, if
the plants are small enough to spray completely.

Thanks Nick, I'll try and get hold of this soap. Over the years, the shrub
has been clipped to about 60cm high by 2 metres wide.

I've just spent about 30 mins with warm soapy water. Problem is, some of the
darker green leaves, which look healthy, drop off when brushed. I'm hoping,
this is the shrubs safety mechanism?

Also, the plant is contained within a very large earthenware pot, buried up
to it's rim in the earth soil. So should be easy to remove. So far, no
spread of aphids to veg seedlings nearby.