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Old 16-04-2017, 04:30 PM posted to uk.rec.gardening
Nick Maclaren[_5_] Nick Maclaren[_5_] is offline
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First recorded activity by GardenBanter: Oct 2015
Posts: 596
Default Aphid remedies please

In article ,
Bertie Doe wrote:

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.


It's called Savona, but you won't get it from the usual sources, due
to politics and bureaucracy. It comes in a gallon container and lasts
a long time. But, as I said, washing up liquid and meths works pretty
well, according to all reports - I don't know the dilution.

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?


Yes. It's very common with tropical plants.

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.


The advantage of either soft soap or washing up liquid is that the
residue is not sticky and, if necessary, washed off with water. The
soapy water you used also works, but it's difficult to dissolve well
enough to spray, if its real (hard) soap. Most 'liquid soaps' are
detergents, with the same active ingredient as washing up liquid and
God alone knows how many other chemicals, at a much greater price.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.