GardenBanter.co.uk - View Single Post

12-06-2006, 02:39 AM posted to rec.gardens

wrote:
my dwarf bing cherry has itty bitty insects the size of fly specks. there are
thousands in a small area, mostly on the tips where the new growth is, and the new
growth is curled and stunted. my other dwarf cherry, a sour cherry does not seem to
have an infestation. any idea what this is?

Are these wee pesties emitting honeydew, which is as we speak amassing
airborne schmutz and fostering bacteria and mold and making the curled
stunted leaves look sooty? Does it look as though the ends of the
branches are curling up into heavy black fists?

You may have black cherry aphid.

My sour cherry was hit by black cherry aphid the spring we moved into
this house. It was GROSS! Fortunately, it only damages the areas it
infests and usually the areas of infestation are small. However, it
*can* spread and will if conditions allow it.

In North America, your cherry should be well into fruit. If you want to
use chemical pest control, you can do so now. Heavy infestations of
black cherry aphid are more than lady bugs and lace wings can handle.
And the heavy covering of yuck on the branches can make it difficult to
get to where the buggers are. Insecticidal soaps, contact insecticides
good at dissolving the aphids themselves, are not good at dissolving the
crud that shields them and therefore have trouble getting to the aphids.
You can prune the infested areas off and dispose of them and hope the
infestation isn't spreading, or you can use one of many more imposing
pesticides available at any garden center.