Gold aphids on milkweed ??

I found these lill bugs on my scarlet milkweed -- and when i did a lil search, i found they may be gold aphids.

Terese - Aphids are very common on Milkweed. You did exactly the correct method to get rid of them. I usually get lady bugs which take care of mine, but I'd use your method if the lady bugs didn't show up.

The bug I find the most destructive are the Milkweed Bugs! I've got an invasion of them in my yard and have been battling them for over a year. (I'd prefer to have aphids any day rather than MW bugs!) Argh! Not fun!

Here's a link on MW bugs:

http://insected.arizona.edu/milkinfo.htm

They have actually killed several of my MW plants! They are awful!!!

They are nasty bugs! I have done the bucket-of-death method........but the best way is to put a soft garden glove on and just squish away along the stems. Yes, it's gross, but highly effective.....just be sure and wash the glove lol

Those mw bugs are terrible here too. It seems if you cut off the seed pod, they don't come around...they love those seed pods.

thanks Becky -- these are the seeds i got from you... and i'm very excited to see them bloom. I've got 9 plants right now, and i did self sow some seeds too, but not sure if any germinated.

sadly, i dont have lady bugs... we have those "asian" lookalikes that bite.

I will certainly be more vigilant in looking for bugs now.

fly_girl -- thanks for your tip on killing them. I have no problem squishing bugs if they will do harm to my plants.

I'm just glad i found these when i did... i dont think any damage was done.

terese

tcs, you can purchase lady bugs at your garden store and release in your yard. You do it at night at the base of a plant so they don't take flight right away. They will get a lot of the aphids.

Thanks Sheila... i was unaware of that. I'll look into it.

wonder -- do ladybugs eat slugs too? i'm having troubles with them too... was thinking about getting toads and buy them a house to live in, within my flower beds.

I don't know of anything that eats slugs, if you find something let me know. I have frogs, and they are no help. They only get beneath my bedroom window and keep me awake with their singing.

Toads are supposed to eat slugs and other garden pests. Frogs -- those i dont know about.

a few yrs back i had a toad that would sit on my front porch at night and eat all the bugs that would bounce off the siding or the door [being attracted to the lights] and he'd/she'd have my porch cleaned up by morning.

I miss that toad.

Snakes eat slugs, but I think this one gave up...the slime would take a while to get used to.

http://snakeeatsgoat.com/2007/06/snake-eats-slug.html

Rox - What a great video! I hope the poor snake didn't suffocate on the slug slime! Looks like one more good reason to have non-poisonous snakes in your yard!!! :-)

I thought it was the Ladybug larva that ate the aphids?! Do the mature "Ladys" eat them too?

Adrienne

That's a good question! I honestly do not know. Someone wanna do some research and find out for us?

>>Do the mature "Ladys" eat them too?


funny thing-- i was just reading the Garden's Alive catalog this morning and here is what they say about their "Sta-Home Lady Beetles"

"Adult lady beetles and their larvae are an excellent, nonchemical way to control aphids, ....... and these larvae, which can't fly, have an even bigger appetite than the adults!"

found some info --

>>Lady bugs naturally feed on aphids and often can consume 100 - 300 aphids per day. >>

Awesome insects! And they are cute as adults, too! Definitely worth having them in your garden for sure! Thanks for the information, Terese! :-)

We need to watch what we get rid of on our plants. The LB larvae look nothing like the adult. I hate to say the first year I had lady bugs I may have killed a few, afraid they were small Milkweed bugs.

http://bugguide.net/node/view/15067

Sheila... at first i was thinking it may be something beneficial... that is why i checked in the bug forum first... but found it by googling before i killed.... but you are right.

I was checking on my plants today -- they are doing quite well since being planted [though i still have 4 more in a pot that i have to get in the ground]

only 1 of the plants had a bunch of those gold aphids again... i sprayed it with soapy water --- seem to do the trick.

but here is a pic of the ones still in a pot, almost in bloom.

Any idea if rabbits eat scarlet milkweed??
I want to plant them out near my butterfly bush -- but there are bunnies back there and i dont want them to become snacks.

here's a close up of the flower... 1 tiny yellow one opened.