beoad beans

[Dobby]

I whent to the plot yesterday and our broad bean are black with what I think are afids
just wonderd what you use to get rid of them
wether to buy some or make some
its not on all of them but I dont wont them to spred
ant theys lots of ants feading on them i think

[Flummery]

They are black flies Dobby - they can appear VERY suddenly! I had none 2 days ago and quite a few are affected now. You can just break off the tops - it's usually the tops they go for, or you can spray with soapy water - a bit of washing up liquid in a hand sprayer, and squish! Messy but satisfying!

[Dobby]

thanks Flum
just been talking to my dad he siad use Daz in a watering can his mam used to use it on her roses when he was a kid suprized he can rember that far back

[Snadger]

thanks Flum
just been talking to my dad he siad use Daz in a watering can his mam used to use it on her roses when he was a kid suprized he can rember that far back

I would be a little bit careful as most washing powders contain bleach methinks!

[Vegmonkey]

Hi, there are quite a few posts about blackfly on here, and a good recipe on my blog, if you 'search' for blackfly...someone left it as a comment. It worked for me for a while, but they came back, and i've decided to let them have the plant as we've had quite a few crops from it.

I find spraying them with a powerful jet of water does a fantastic job too, and have also tried to encourage ladybirds (which you can also buy!) as they eat huge numbers of aphids

[moggssue]

I had a sudden colony of blackfly on my broad beans too - a spray with fairy liquid (very watered down of course) worked wonders, no return so far.