How to deal with carrot aphids: top 12 effective folk methods

If aphids appear on carrots, the greens will begin to deform and turn yellow, and the plant itself will develop much more slowly. Subsequently, the pest can move to other crops, therefore, at the first detection of aphids, it is necessary to spray the bushes with insecticide solutions or use folk remedies. In addition, preventive measures can also be used to exclude active reproduction of aphids in the next season.

Signs of aphids

Different types of aphids can develop on carrots:

• Willow - it initially lays eggs in folds on the bark of the willow, after which, with the onset of spring, insects fly to carrots.
• Hawthorn - initially settles on hawthorn bushes, after which insects fly to planting carrots.
• Carrot - leaves eggs directly on the tops of carrots when they are dry.

Mostly insects appear on the greens of carrots, and not on the root crop itself. Aphids begin to migrate to the plant in mid-summer.

The main signs of an insect invasion:

• The appearance of a colony of ants in the garden and next to it. These insects protect aphids, and in return receive honeydew - a sweet nutritious liquid.
• The same liquid appears on the tops, so it becomes sticky to the touch.
• Leaves begin to curl and turn yellow.
• Flowers fall off, buds form rather slowly.

Along with the sticky liquid, the insect also secretes poisonous substances that affect the shoots. As a result, the leaves change color and curl, so the carrot shoots begin to lag significantly behind in development.

It is necessary to fight aphids as early as possible, since it migrates from the carrot beds to neighboring crops, which causes other vegetables, berry bushes and other crops to suffer.

What contributes to the development of aphids

It is useful for gardeners to pay attention to certain factors that are especially favorable for the development of pests:

• Insects begin to reproduce especially actively in hot weather, when hot days are long. Therefore, at this time, special attention should be paid to crops.
• If there is at least one anthill on the site, this also contributes to the development of aphids. Therefore, all anthills must be destroyed with boiling water or special chemicals. It is not enough to simply destroy them with a shovel - the ants will scatter and be able to establish a new colony.
• Planting garden flowers contributes to the development of pests - this is especially true for nasturtiums, petunias, mallow, poppy, etc.

Effective ways to combat aphids

Aphid control measures depend on the total number of pests. If there are very few of them, insects can be dealt with mechanically. If the invasion is too large, folk remedies and special chemical insecticides are used.

Physical methods

First of all, you need to look through all the plants in the garden and, if pests are found, collect them manually or wash them off with a stream of water. In this case, the aphid completely falls from the leaves to the ground, after which it can no longer rise due to the action of moisture. However, this method is effective only when a pest is found on 1–2 bushes. If the invasion is quite strong, it is necessary to use chemicals and folk methods.

Chemicals

Various means are used as drugs to help cope with aphids:

• "Fufan";
• "Spark";
• "Commander";
• "Aktara";
• Corado;
• "Confidor";
• "Arrow";
• Tanrek;
• Fitoverm;
• "Entobacterin".

Note! All these funds are used strictly according to the instructions. If necessary, use personal protective equipment - a mask or gloves.

Traditional methods

All traditional methods are reduced to the preparation of aqueous solutions based on herbs, pharmaceutical products, etc. As a rule, the components are diluted in a standard bucket of water (10 l), after which the liquid can be immediately sprayed onto the carrots. In some cases, the agent is steamed in boiling water or infused for several days.

1. Soap solution: 300 g of tar or laundry soap is rubbed on a fine grater and diluted with 10 liters of cold water. Let it brew for an hour, after which the affected bushes are sprayed.
2. Wood ash: take 300 g of wood ash, boil in 10 liters of water for several minutes, add 2 tablespoons of grated laundry or tar soap, leave for 1–2 hours and spray the plants.
3. Garlic solution: take 200 g of heads or herbs, chop and dissolve in 1 liter of cold water, leave for 4-5 days.
4. If a lot of celandine grows in the country or nearby, it is necessary to collect quite 3 kg of leaves and insist in a standard bucket of water for 24 hours, then spray the carrot greens with the solution.
5. In a pharmacy, they buy 1 kg of dried chamomile and infuse in 10 liters of water overnight.
6. Laundry soap shavings (2-3 tablespoons) are mixed with 1 tablespoon of soda ash. You do not need to use soda without soap, since this composition will quickly wash off as a result of watering, rain and dew. Both components are mixed in 1 liter of warm, but not hot water, leave for several hours and spray the crops.
7. You can use shag or shredded tobacco leaves (1 cup). If they are not there, they take ordinary cigarette butts in the same quantity and brew them in 5 liters of boiling water. The vessels are insisted, filtered. Only young plants can be sprayed with this agent, since the solution turns out to be quite strong - the crop can be harvested at least 1-2 weeks after treatment.
8. To combat aphids, you can also use dried peel of various citrus fruits - lemons, oranges, tangerines, etc. It should be taken in an amount of 300 g, chopped and soaked in 1 liter of cold water for a day. Then boil the mixture for 10-15 minutes, strain and pour into a standard bucket of water. You can add 1 large spoonful of liquid soap to the same solution so that the product does not wash off with rains, but remains on the branches themselves.
9. Aphids flee from plants containing pungent substances. For example, you can chop 2 medium-sized onions along with the husk and pour 10 liters of warm water, then insist for 3-4 days. Add 1-2 large tablespoons of liquid soap to the solution and immediately spray the plants affected by aphids with it.
10. You can take 1–2 pods of hot chili pepper, pour 1 liter of boiling water over it and leave for several hours. Then dilute with a standard bucket of water and spray on the crop.
11. Horse sorrel often grows in the garden. If you take 300 g of fresh roots of this plant and fill them with a standard bucket of hot, but not boiling water, and then infuse for several hours, you can get an effective solution for fighting aphids.
12. Essential oils such as lavender, thyme, cedar and other conifers also help fight pests. They can be dissolved in half a glass of cream of any fat content (only 10-15 drops are enough), after which the composition is diluted with 2 glasses of water at room temperature. This product is very effective and helps to achieve the first results within 3-4 days after application.

Prevention of aphids

It is always easier to prevent the development of insects than to fight against their appearance. Therefore, it is useful for summer residents to know about preventive measures that prevent the active reproduction of aphids and other pests.

There are 5 basic rules to remember:

1. Plantings can be pre-treated with insecticides, following the instructions.
2. Biological control methods can be used along with chemicals. For example, aphids are actively eaten by ladybugs, lacewings and other insects. There is no need to take special measures to attract them. However, birds also eat pests - drinkers and feeders can be equipped for them so that they constantly fly to the garden area.
3. You can also get rid of aphids with the help of fragrant plants. Dill, parsley, onions, garlic are necessarily planted on the site. Due to their biological properties, they repel pests from other crops.
4. In the fall, after harvesting, you should always dig up the area and clean it of tops and weeds. Then the eggs laid by aphids and other insects will surely die from frost. During digging, wood ash can be added to the soil for more effective pest control.
5. During the emergence of the first shoots and throughout the summer season, the crop beds are regularly examined. At the first appearance of a pest, the bushes must be treated with pests or the described folk remedies.

Thus, it is possible to cope with an aphid infestation even in the most advanced cases. Timely spraying with insecticides or other active solutions allows you to reliably protect crops from the negative effects of the pest.