On Fri, 16 Apr 2004 06:04:40 +0100, Kay Easton wrote:

In article , FF
writes
On Wed, 14 Apr 2004 08:21:00 +0100, simon wrote:


Thanks for the reply Liz. My green-fingered mother-in-law has suggested
that we apply dilute washing-up liquid.

Great minds an' all that:-)
It worked for shield bugs on our bay tree, but we had to lather up each affected
leaf
with our fingers. It also worked very well (without the shampooing action) on
our
broad beans, but this year we're going to try planting marigolds between the
beans.

If you're not doing it already, pinch out the tops of your broad beans
once they've got to a reasonable height. If the tender tops aren't
there, they're less attractive to blackfly.

Planting either very early or very late is supposed to help too.

Ad avoiding growing the alternative host plant nearby - can't remember
what it is but have an idea it might be spindleberry. I think Nick knows
so he may jump in and correct me.

Thanks for the advice:-) Following a thread here last year we planted the broad beans
in the Autumn, some in a patio pot and some just in the ground. The potted ones seem
to be doing slightly better for now, but time will tell.

Liz