What to look for
Almost any garden plant can be affected from aphids. Check the buds, tips of stems and the undersides of leaves to see if a plant has been attacked.
There are many different colours of aphids from the common greenfly and blackfly to yellows, browns and whites. Adult greenfly/aphids are normally no more than 3mm long and are oval shaped.
Symptoms
You may see the following symptoms:
- It is usually possible to see greenfly/aphid infestations with the naked eye, and they tend to colonise shoot tips, flower buds and the underside of younger leaves
- Greenfly/aphids cause stunted growth with curled or distorted leaves. This can weaken the plant
- Most aphids also excrete sugary honeydew on foliage, stems and fruits, which allows the growth of black sooty moulds
- White cast skins of aphids accumulate on the upper surface of leaves
Our Horticulturists top tip
An easy way to get rid of greenfly/greenfly/aphids is to use garlic water. The greenfly/greenfly/aphids hate the smell of garlic Crush a clove of garlic into some water and leave it to infuse for a day or so. Once you spray the affected plants with your homemade garlic water you should see a remarkable improvement.