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Last year, I had a horrible aphid problem on my cucumbers and courgettes, which destroyed may of my plants, so much so that I've decided not to grow cucumbers this year, until I have a working solution to them. Which is where I am now.
The other piece of information to the scenario is that I have ants. A lot of ants. They may not do much direct damage, but they are little ******s, farming the aphids. They can also undermine the roots of my veggies. I actually find ants fascinating, so was reluctant to harm them last year, but having seen them playing their part in the destruction of my curcubits, I've pledged war this summer.
I used a spray-on pesticide to attack the aphids last year, but probably far too late, and it didn't seem to do an awful lot - and was very expensive to buy here in Spain. A bottle was about €10 and lasted a couple of weeks. That's a lot of money for something that didn't work
So, here's my plan of attack for this year.
1. Whenever I see an ant nest near the vegetable plot, it will get powdered. Boiling water is ineffective, because the nests are so vast, so it only kills the few ants in the immediate vicinity. The powder is brilliant.
2. Daily inspection of the target veggies, squishing any aphids I find on their leaves before a full-on assault occurs. This is time consuming and a bit dull, but I think probably the most reliable method of control, to prevent the little sods multiplying.
3. I've planted sunflowers along the border, onions, shallots and garlic next to the courgettes and sown other flowers (nasturtiums, marigolds, calendula, cosmos and cornflowers) to see if they help at all. These are all, sadly, a way off flowering, as I can't sow seeds before late April because I live elsewhere in the winters.
Does this sound like it might work? Or any alarm bells set off? Any other suggestions?
Thanks
The other piece of information to the scenario is that I have ants. A lot of ants. They may not do much direct damage, but they are little ******s, farming the aphids. They can also undermine the roots of my veggies. I actually find ants fascinating, so was reluctant to harm them last year, but having seen them playing their part in the destruction of my curcubits, I've pledged war this summer.
I used a spray-on pesticide to attack the aphids last year, but probably far too late, and it didn't seem to do an awful lot - and was very expensive to buy here in Spain. A bottle was about €10 and lasted a couple of weeks. That's a lot of money for something that didn't work
So, here's my plan of attack for this year.
1. Whenever I see an ant nest near the vegetable plot, it will get powdered. Boiling water is ineffective, because the nests are so vast, so it only kills the few ants in the immediate vicinity. The powder is brilliant.
2. Daily inspection of the target veggies, squishing any aphids I find on their leaves before a full-on assault occurs. This is time consuming and a bit dull, but I think probably the most reliable method of control, to prevent the little sods multiplying.
3. I've planted sunflowers along the border, onions, shallots and garlic next to the courgettes and sown other flowers (nasturtiums, marigolds, calendula, cosmos and cornflowers) to see if they help at all. These are all, sadly, a way off flowering, as I can't sow seeds before late April because I live elsewhere in the winters.
Does this sound like it might work? Or any alarm bells set off? Any other suggestions?
Thanks
