another method is to make a spray that will not harm hummingbirds, but does
harm aphids. i've used a spray that i mix up from equal parts water and
ethanol (or rubbing alcohol) with 3-4 drops of liquid soap (dishwashing
soap). give this a shake to mix and spray away. your aphids will die.

probably best to repeat the treatment on a weekly basis (this was effective
for my houseplants.)



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On Tue, Jul 11, 2017 at 2:31 AM, Jeff Kozma <jcr_5105 at charter.net> wrote:

> I picked up a container of ladybugs at my local Co-op in Yakima to take
> care of aphids on my Cuphea 'David Verity'. They are a great alternative
> to sprays. Within about 5-7 days, all my aphids are gone. I even noticed
> on the second day after release ladybugs were mating on my plants and
> laying eggs. I tried mail order but our mail gets put in central metal box
> outside with others in our development and they fried with the summer
> heat. So, I buy them locally and they work well. I also did this to
> control wooly aphids on my crabapple tree. I treated the tree with
> ladybugs and green lacewings for 2 years...I now have no wooly aphids on
> that tree.
>
> I swear by ladybugs.
>
> Jeff Kozma
>
> Yakima
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: tweeters-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu [mailto:tweeters-bounces at
> mailman1.u.washington.edu] On Behalf Of Lee Tenneboe
> Sent: Monday, July 10, 2017 12:25 PM
> To: tweeters at u.washington.edu
> Subject: [Tweeters] aphid control?
>
> Hi Tweeters, I need some help please. I have been striving to turn my
> condo balcony into a hummingbird haven with feeders, a fountain, a bird
> swing and as many hummingbird friendly plants/flowers that I can manage.
> The aphids are taking over. I sprayed a fruit and vegetable safe
> insecticide on a couple of plants they don?t seem to like, but I?m not
> convinced that a spray supposedly ?safe? for humans is safe for a tiny
> little hummer. I don?t want to spray anything, but the aphids are killing
> the blooms that the hummers would feed on, so I just don?t know what to
> do. Any suggestions on how to get rid of those darn aphids that is safe
> for hummers? Thank you in advance for your help!
> Lee_______________________________________________
> Tweeters mailing list
> Tweeters at u.washington.edu
> http://mailman1.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters
>
> _______________________________________________
> Tweeters mailing list
> Tweeters at u.washington.edu
> http://mailman1.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/tweeters
>



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