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You can fight aphids on viburnum with available folk remedies - herbal infusions, solutions of pharmaceutical preparations. Insecticides also help a lot. But it’s better not to let the situation get worse and carry out preventive treatment in early spring. If you urgently need to get rid of a pest infestation, it is better to immediately treat it with chemicals.
What does aphid look like?
Black aphids are one of the most common varieties along with green ones. This is an insect with a dark-colored body ranging from 1.5 to 2.5 mm in length. It has an angular head with antennae located on the forehead. Wings may be present (one pair) or absent (depending on the stage of development). The legs are walking, the front pair are jumping, due to which they easily move along the branches of viburnum and other plants.
Black aphids go through several stages of development:
- The pest egg overwinters on viburnum and other perennials.
- The founder is a wingless larva. It emerges from the egg in the spring and begins to feed on juices. After reproduction it produces another 50 larvae.
- Wingless virgin. These are larvae that were born from the founder. They give several new generations.
- The disperser is the stage of the winged generation of aphids.
- A normal male and an oviparous female emerge from the larvae of the previous generation and again lay eggs for the winter, after which the cycle repeats.
Black aphids feed on plant juices, which causes leaves to wither
Pest colonies are very dangerous, since insects stick to all plants, methodically destroying them. They harm delicate leaves, flowers, ovaries, buds, and buds. This leads to a decrease in viburnum yield, so you should get rid of aphids as soon as possible.
Signs of a pest appearing on viburnum
The insect's body can be seen with the naked eye. Black aphids, unlike green ones, contrast against the background of viburnum leaves and flowers. The invasion is always numerous, so it is easy to detect visually.
There are other signs of the appearance of a pest on viburnum:
- deformation of apical leaves and thin shoots;
- white coating;
- crown wilting;
- a sticky, slightly viscous liquid appears;
- general unhealthy appearance, developmental delay.
Insects help each other survive. If anthills are found on the site, they must be completely destroyed, for example, with boiling water, a shovel, any liquid oil or using chemicals.
How to deal with aphids on viburnum
You can get rid of aphids on viburnum in different ways: folk remedies, chemical and biological preparations. You need to act in the following sequence:
- Inspect the viburnum and assess the scale of the pest invasion.
- In the first stages, carry out 2-3 treatments with folk remedies (both affected trees and healthy ones).
- If these measures do not help, special preparations are used to protect viburnum from aphids.
Anti-aphid drugs
Insecticides of various origins are effective against aphids:
- Biological - at the fruiting stage (including when the berries are green).
- Chemical - at all other stages (including in early spring for prevention).
Biological insecticides include the following:
- "Letto";
- "Fitoverm";
- "Biodischarge";
- "Vertimek";
- "Bitoxibacillin" and others.
You can get rid of aphids using Fitoverm and other effective means
Examples of popular chemicals against aphids:
- "Biotlin";
- "Aktara";
- "Match";
- "Confidor";
- "Inta-Vir";
- "Decis";
- "Karbofos";
- "Karate" and others.
The products are prepared according to the instructions - they are diluted in water in the specified amount, mixed and poured into a spray bottle. Some drugs pose a certain danger to humans, domestic animals, and bees. Therefore, you need to clarify the toxicity class and, if necessary, work with gloves, a mask, goggles and special clothing.
Folk remedies
You can get rid of black aphids on viburnum using folk remedies. These are water infusions or decoctions of herbs, root vegetables and other raw materials. They need to be prepared based on a standard bucket of water (10 l), then strain the solution, pour it into a spray bottle and begin processing. Spraying is best done in the late evening in dry and windless weather.If there is rain in the forecast, it is better to wait for sunny days.
Soap solution
A product based on soap shavings helps get rid of black aphids on viburnum, especially in the early stages
To prepare, take a large piece of tar or laundry soap (250–300 g), grate it and place it in a bucket of water. Stir, leave for an hour and proceed to processing.
Chili pepper infusion
Take two small or one large pod of hot chili pepper and chop it finely. Place in boiling water (1 liter) and leave covered for several hours. Strain and dilute to 10 liters, then process the viburnum. This remedy helps get rid of black aphids within a few days.
Hot chili peppers are effective in pest control
Onion infusion with peel
To get rid of black aphids on viburnum, take two large onions along with the husk (an arbitrary amount), chop them well and fill them with a bucket of warm water. Leave for up to four days, dilute and add 2 tbsp. l. liquid soap or shavings, mix and spray the viburnum.
Onion peels are a good remedy for pests on plants.
Garlic infusion
Another way to get rid of black aphids on seedlings is to take two heads of garlic, chop them together with the husks (you can add green arrows), add a bucket of water and let stand for a day. Then strain and spray the leaves and shoots.
To enhance the effect, add a solution of laundry soap to the garlic infusion.
Horse sorrel infusion
If there is a lot of horse sorrel growing on the site or nearby, you can get rid of black aphids on viburnum with the help of this plant. Dig up several weed bushes and cut off the root, chop it, take 300 g and pour 10 liters of hot, but not boiling water. Leave for a day, filter and proceed to processing.
Horse sorrel infusion is a good remedy for spraying against pests.
Pharmacy drugs
You can get rid of black aphids on viburnum using ordinary pharmaceutical products. They need to be dissolved in 10 liters of water. For this you will need:
- hydrogen peroxide – 20 tbsp. l.;
- ammonia - 2 tbsp. l.;
- alcohol iodine – 10 drops;
- milk of any fat content – 0.5 l;
- mustard powder – 2 tbsp. l.;
- baking soda – 10 tbsp. l.
To effectively get rid of black aphids, it is recommended to add liquid soap or household shavings to the solution.
Dried citrus peel
You can treat viburnum against black aphids with an infusion of lemon, orange and other citrus zest. Take 300 g of dry crusts, grind them thoroughly and soak in 1 liter of water for 24 hours. Boil after boiling for 15 minutes, filter and bring the volume to 10 liters.
Citrus remedy allows you to get rid of black aphids on viburnum in 1–2 treatments
Wood ash infusion
Wood ash also helps get rid of black aphids on viburnum. Take a glass of raw material and leave it in a bucket for several hours. Then they begin processing.
Infusion of tobacco dust
Two glasses of tobacco dust (shag) must be added to a bucket of boiling water. They insist for three days. Add 5 tbsp. l. laundry soap shavings. The product has shown its effectiveness; it helps get rid of aphids both on viburnum and other plants.
You can get rid of aphids on viburnum by treating with infusion of tobacco dust
Infusion of marigold flowers
Another way is to collect marigold flowers, dry them and grind them. Select an arbitrary number of inflorescences (150–200 g) and pour boiling water (10 l). Let it sit for two days, after which they begin spraying.
Marigold infusion will help get rid of black aphids on viburnum
Plants that repel aphids
The following are used as repellents: onions, garlic, basil, rosemary, nasturtium, mustard, mint, tansy, thyme and others.
They are planted in beds, next to the tree trunk, between rows, near flower beds, and also along the borders of the garden. Almost all of these plants are unpretentious, so growing them is easy. Moreover, they not only help get rid of black aphids on viburnum, but also decorate the area. Some of them are used for food.
Prevention
Getting rid of black aphids is always more difficult than preventing its massive spread on viburnum and other trees and shrubs. Therefore, it is recommended to take the following preventive measures:
- Every autumn, after the leaves fall, the entire area is thoroughly cleaned. Remove leaves, branches and weeds, especially in the viburnum tree trunk.
- In early spring, trees are treated with any insecticide or folk remedies.
- In the spring, it is necessary to whiten the stems of the viburnum with slaked lime (2 kg per 10 liters of water, for quicklime the ratio is 1 kg per 10 liters).
- To begin destroying the pest as early as possible, periodically inspect viburnum and other plants for the presence of black aphids.
- They attract natural enemies, such as ladybugs. They are capable of destroying aphids. To do this, dill, parsley, coriander, cumin, mint and other fragrant plants are planted in the garden.
Conclusion
You can fight aphids on viburnum quite successfully if you identify the pest invasion as early as possible. For minor damage, use folk remedies - decoctions, infusions, solutions. If they do not give the desired result, chemical or biological insecticides should be used.
