I'm having an aphid problem with my VFT. It was near my tomato plants during
the summer & the aphids seem to have infested it.
I have rinsed it under a tap which got rid of the visible ones but they soon
came back. Then I rinsed it under the tap AND changed the pot & soil but
they're back again. The plant is on it's own so they're not coming off
something else.
I'm wary of using a soapy solution in case it has an adverse affect on the
plant.

TIA

Dave

On 19/2/09 14:40, in article
, "Dave" wrote:

I'm having an aphid problem with my VFT. It was near my tomato plants during
the summer & the aphids seem to have infested it.
I have rinsed it under a tap which got rid of the visible ones but they soon
came back. Then I rinsed it under the tap AND changed the pot & soil but
they're back again. The plant is on it's own so they're not coming off
something else.
I'm wary of using a soapy solution in case it has an adverse affect on the
plant.

TIA

Dave


I'm surprised it's not taking care of the problem for itself! Don't they
eat aphids?
--
Sacha
http://www.hillhousenursery.com
South Devon
Perennials & shrubs online

Sacha writes
On 19/2/09 14:40, in article
, "Dave" wrote:

I'm having an aphid problem with my VFT. It was near my tomato plants during
the summer & the aphids seem to have infested it.
I have rinsed it under a tap which got rid of the visible ones but they soon
came back. Then I rinsed it under the tap AND changed the pot & soil but
they're back again. The plant is on it's own so they're not coming off
something else.
I'm wary of using a soapy solution in case it has an adverse affect on the
plant.


I'm surprised it's not taking care of the problem for itself! Don't they
eat aphids?

Probably not large and fast moving enough to trigger the leaf closing
mechanism, which relies on a fly bumping into some hair-like extensions
on the leaf.
--
Kay

"K" wrote in message
...
Sacha writes
On 19/2/09 14:40, in article
k, "Dave"
wrote:

I'm having an aphid problem with my VFT. It was near my tomato plants
during
the summer & the aphids seem to have infested it.
I have rinsed it under a tap which got rid of the visible ones but they
soon
came back. Then I rinsed it under the tap AND changed the pot & soil but
they're back again. The plant is on it's own so they're not coming off
something else.
I'm wary of using a soapy solution in case it has an adverse affect on
the
plant.


I'm surprised it's not taking care of the problem for itself! Don't they
eat aphids?

Probably not large and fast moving enough to trigger the leaf closing
mechanism, which relies on a fly bumping into some hair-like extensions on
the leaf.

They're on the stalks... the plant is only just coming out of its winter
dormancy so there are no open traps at the moment.

On 19/2/09 15:50, in article
, "Dave" wrote:

"K" wrote in message
...
Sacha writes
On 19/2/09 14:40, in article
, "Dave"
wrote:

I'm having an aphid problem with my VFT.
snip


I'm surprised it's not taking care of the problem for itself! Don't they
eat aphids?

Probably not large and fast moving enough to trigger the leaf closing
mechanism, which relies on a fly bumping into some hair-like extensions on
the leaf.

They're on the stalks... the plant is only just coming out of its winter
dormancy so there are no open traps at the moment.

Ah, that explains it. I thought the remedy might be self-administered!

--
Sacha
http://www.hillhousenursery.com
South Devon
Perennials & shrubs online

"Dave" wrote in message
I'm having an aphid problem with my VFT. It was near my tomato plants
during the summer & the aphids seem to have infested it.
I have rinsed it under a tap which got rid of the visible ones but they
soon came back. Then I rinsed it under the tap AND changed the pot & soil
but they're back again. The plant is on it's own so they're not coming off
something else.
I'm wary of using a soapy solution in case it has an adverse affect on the
plant.

TIA

Hi Dave, I have a few flytraps (Dionae) and mine are surrounded by
Butterworts and Sundews, that will scoff aphids with glee. But this doesn't
help your problem, unfortunately for a trap to close, it needs two trigger
hairs to be moved. Apart from being too small, the aphid is also too
lightweight. The trigger hairs mustn't be to sensitive, or breezes will
cause the plant to trigger and die of exhaustion.
I strongly recommend joining CPUK, a great crowd of guys and gals from
around the world. You don't need to join, you can lurk. I went to 'forums'
Spring Traps, Dionaea and typed aphids into the search engine and got :-
http://preview.tinyurl.com/ce88t5 If this doesn't work, I'll be quite happy
to ask the question.

Bertie

"Bertie Doe" wrote in message
...

"Dave" wrote in message
I'm having an aphid problem with my VFT. It was near my tomato plants
during the summer & the aphids seem to have infested it.
I have rinsed it under a tap which got rid of the visible ones but they
soon came back. Then I rinsed it under the tap AND changed the pot & soil
but they're back again. The plant is on it's own so they're not coming
off something else.
I'm wary of using a soapy solution in case it has an adverse affect on
the plant.

TIA

Hi Dave, I have a few flytraps (Dionae) and mine are surrounded by
Butterworts and Sundews, that will scoff aphids with glee. But this
doesn't help your problem, unfortunately for a trap to close, it needs two
trigger hairs to be moved. Apart from being too small, the aphid is also
too lightweight. The trigger hairs mustn't be to sensitive, or breezes
will cause the plant to trigger and die of exhaustion.
I strongly recommend joining CPUK, a great crowd of guys and gals from
around the world. You don't need to join, you can lurk. I went to 'forums'
Spring Traps, Dionaea and typed aphids into the search engine and got :-
http://preview.tinyurl.com/ce88t5 If this doesn't work, I'll be quite
happy to ask the question.

Bertie

Cheers, I tried the submerging method yesterday but the water was quite cold
& the vft floated. Have left the water inside overnight & will look for
something to weigh it down. If that fails, I'll get some of that provado.
I've just had a look at getting some Butterwort & Sundew plants but they're
quite scarce at the moment.

On 20/2/09 11:17, in article
, "Dave" wrote:
snip

Cheers, I tried the submerging method yesterday but the water was quite cold
& the vft floated. Have left the water inside overnight & will look for
something to weigh it down. If that fails, I'll get some of that provado.
I've just had a look at getting some Butterwort & Sundew plants but they're
quite scarce at the moment.

Dave, would it help to hang one of those sticky yellow insect strips near
your plants until it's grown a bit more?

--
Sacha
http://www.hillhousenursery.com
South Devon
Perennials & shrubs online

"Dave" wrote in message
"Bertie Doe" wrote in message

Hi Dave, I have a few flytraps (Dionae) and mine are surrounded by
Butterworts and Sundews, that will scoff aphids with glee. But this
doesn't help your problem, unfortunately for a trap to close, it needs
two trigger hairs to be moved. Apart from being too small, the aphid is
also too lightweight. The trigger hairs mustn't be to sensitive, or
breezes will cause the plant to trigger and die of exhaustion.
I strongly recommend joining CPUK, a great crowd of guys and gals from
around the world. You don't need to join, you can lurk. I went to
'forums' Spring Traps, Dionaea and typed aphids into the search engine
and got :-
http://preview.tinyurl.com/ce88t5 If this doesn't work, I'll be quite
happy to ask the question.

Bertie

Cheers, I tried the submerging method yesterday but the water was quite
cold & the vft floated. Have left the water inside overnight & will look
for something to weigh it down. If that fails, I'll get some of that
provado. I've just had a look at getting some Butterwort & Sundew plants
but they're quite scarce at the moment.

Yes the plunging method is quite popular and Provado is a last resort.
I got 4 sundew seedlings from Dieter (CPUK) for 5 Euros inc postage. You can
get seedlings and seeds from other members, by going to the 'Sales and
Wants' section. They are easy to propagate, Pings (Butterwort), by removing
leaves and Sundew from seeds. Go for the more unusual varieties - then when
a member has a get together in your area, you can take along some of your
surplus for 'swaps'.
Mixed results from my first attempts at propagating Pings -
http://preview.tinyurl.com/atfd8y I took an interest in CPs when someone on
ukrg mentioned the CP stands at Chelsea, about 3 years ago. It's not a
hobby, I just keep them in the porch and greenhouse, to keep the insect
population down. Pings are good against aphids and greenfly and Sundews will
tackle the blue bottles - here's some pics
http://s222.photobucket.com/albums/d...t=d78422a0.pbw

http://s222.photobucket.com/albums/d...t=d18131fd.pbw

Online sources
http://preview.tinyurl.com/blsjfe
http://preview.tinyurl.com/creg34
http://preview.tinyurl.com/7nqma
http://preview.tinyurl.com/2pb5q7
http://preview.tinyurl.com/bxl6jj


Bertie

"Dave" wrote in message
. uk...
I'm having an aphid problem with my VFT. It was near my tomato plants
during the summer & the aphids seem to have infested it.
I have rinsed it under a tap which got rid of the visible ones but they
soon came back. Then I rinsed it under the tap AND changed the pot & soil
but they're back again. The plant is on it's own so they're not coming off
something else.
I'm wary of using a soapy solution in case it has an adverse affect on the
plant.

I'm not very experienced with VFTs - it's years since I had one - but in
your position I would try to brush off the aphids with a paint brush
(artist's sort) every day.
The secret is to stop them breeding as I'm sure you are aware and boy, do
they breed! Hopefully by removing them daily, or twice daily if you have
time might break the cycle.
It's just a suggestion. I don't know if it will work but as it costs nothing
and is unlikely to harm the plant it must be worth a try.

Tina

I've got the vft weighed down with some gravel so that's submerged now. I
signed up to the CPUK forum but didn't have much look finding what I was
after so I've ordered some seeds.

Pinguicula Grandiflora.
Drosera Capensis, Binata, Intermedia & Spatulata.

I'll try getting some plants when they are out of their Winter dormancy &
more readily available.


"Bertie Doe" wrote in message
...

"Dave" wrote in message
"Bertie Doe" wrote in message

Hi Dave, I have a few flytraps (Dionae) and mine are surrounded by
Butterworts and Sundews, that will scoff aphids with glee. But this
doesn't help your problem, unfortunately for a trap to close, it needs
two trigger hairs to be moved. Apart from being too small, the aphid is
also too lightweight. The trigger hairs mustn't be to sensitive, or
breezes will cause the plant to trigger and die of exhaustion.
I strongly recommend joining CPUK, a great crowd of guys and gals from
around the world. You don't need to join, you can lurk. I went to
'forums' Spring Traps, Dionaea and typed aphids into the search engine
and got :-
http://preview.tinyurl.com/ce88t5 If this doesn't work, I'll be quite
happy to ask the question.

Bertie

Cheers, I tried the submerging method yesterday but the water was quite
cold & the vft floated. Have left the water inside overnight & will look
for something to weigh it down. If that fails, I'll get some of that
provado. I've just had a look at getting some Butterwort & Sundew plants
but they're quite scarce at the moment.

Yes the plunging method is quite popular and Provado is a last resort.
I got 4 sundew seedlings from Dieter (CPUK) for 5 Euros inc postage. You
can get seedlings and seeds from other members, by going to the 'Sales and
Wants' section. They are easy to propagate, Pings (Butterwort), by
removing leaves and Sundew from seeds. Go for the more unusual varieties -
then when a member has a get together in your area, you can take along
some of your surplus for 'swaps'.
Mixed results from my first attempts at propagating Pings -
http://preview.tinyurl.com/atfd8y I took an interest in CPs when someone
on ukrg mentioned the CP stands at Chelsea, about 3 years ago. It's not a
hobby, I just keep them in the porch and greenhouse, to keep the insect
population down. Pings are good against aphids and greenfly and Sundews
will tackle the blue bottles - here's some pics
http://s222.photobucket.com/albums/d...t=d78422a0.pbw

http://s222.photobucket.com/albums/d...t=d18131fd.pbw

Online sources
http://preview.tinyurl.com/blsjfe
http://preview.tinyurl.com/creg34
http://preview.tinyurl.com/7nqma
http://preview.tinyurl.com/2pb5q7
http://preview.tinyurl.com/bxl6jj


Bertie

"Dave" wrote in message
I've got the vft weighed down with some gravel so that's submerged now. I
signed up to the CPUK forum but didn't have much look finding what I was
after so I've ordered some seeds.

Pinguicula Grandiflora.
Drosera Capensis, Binata, Intermedia & Spatulata.

I'll try getting some plants when they are out of their Winter dormancy &
more readily available.


Great stuff, I have lots of seedlings (about 2cm tall) of d.capensis, also
some d.spatulata, but no space left on the windowsills, for more pots, as
they don't overwinter in an unheated greenhouse.

When you have some compost media made up, contact me via CPUK and I'll post
you some seedlings. I use equal parts (by volume) of Perlite, lime-free
aquarium grit and Irish peat.

Bertie

Will do... Cheers

"Bertie Doe" wrote in message
...

"Dave" wrote in message
I've got the vft weighed down with some gravel so that's submerged now. I
signed up to the CPUK forum but didn't have much look finding what I was
after so I've ordered some seeds.

Pinguicula Grandiflora.
Drosera Capensis, Binata, Intermedia & Spatulata.

I'll try getting some plants when they are out of their Winter dormancy &
more readily available.


Great stuff, I have lots of seedlings (about 2cm tall) of d.capensis, also
some d.spatulata, but no space left on the windowsills, for more pots, as
they don't overwinter in an unheated greenhouse.

When you have some compost media made up, contact me via CPUK and I'll
post you some seedlings. I use equal parts (by volume) of Perlite,
lime-free aquarium grit and Irish peat.

Bertie