I'm assuming these yellow things on my milkweed cuttings are aphids ??? Have had green ones before but never yellow.
Yellow aphids
Yep, you're right!
Will the aphids hurt the milkweed?
Carla
Was considering just washing them off but don't know if that kills them or just spreads them to other plants. Does anyone know?
Other alternative is insecticidal soap but worry the plant will absorb enough to harm BFs but don't know.
DNP
Usually, a good blast with the water hose will get rid of them, just keep on eye on them.
They really don't hurt the plant, but they look ugly, as Annette said, a blast of water takes care of them for a while, if they get back up do it again, they will eventually get tired.
Josephine.
I have found the blast of water totally ineffective. I must have aphids on steroids or something this year! LOL I just put a good bit of Murphy's Oil Soap in a spray bottle filled with water and go to town spraying them. Works much more effectively that a zap with the hose.
Yes, but if you are trying to feed caterpilars it might hurt them to use the oil.
This message was edited Jul 30, 2009 7:00 AM
I tried washing them off with just water spray like I've done with the other kind of aphids in the past but these yellow suckers just don't come off as easily as the others. So far they've only gotten on the milkweed.
I've had the yellow ones before on mandevilla, and currently have them on my milkweed. At this point I haven't done anything to them, since they've been leaving my roses alone.
I've found that the aphids on my milkweed don't generally migrate to the roses, and they attract the ladybugs(a good guy in the bug world).So I mostly leave them alone.
Well, Josephine, in my veggie garden, where the super aphids have been hanging out this summer, I'm not trying to feed the caterpillars. In the flower garden, I don't mind them and generally just leave the aphids alone unless they're damaging the plant.
Oh Stephanie! I wasn't being critical of using soap, I have used at times myself, it is just that we butterfly people get very protective of those caterpilars.
Oh I know you weren't being critical, I'm just tired of those danged things being all over my veggie buds! LOL They LOVE okra apparently!! I've tried the ladybugs and all the other stuff, but I'm just tired of them. LOL
Yes, someone once said that aphids are born pregnant, and I believe it, the way they multiply.
Yeah, amazed me that the plant was clean one day and the next morning covered with those little yellow suckers.
Hand-squishing helps!
Yuck!