A Gardeners Forum Forums Gardening Reference Gardening in 2006 Tomato Plants Have Aphids

Ok...I need help with this one...I noticed aphids on my tomato leaves tonight....How can I get rid of them???? Mine are just starting to bloom and I have a few marble sized tomatoes. These are Brandywine tomato plants.

Just rub them off with your fingers or squirt them off with a jet from the hose.
Lay off the high nitrogen ferts and consider a side dressing of potassium rich fertiliser to keep them from having lush green growth which is a lure to aphids.

Attract ladybugs. They love aphids. Lawn centers should have ladybug attractant.

Squeeeeeeeeeze'em!!
Squishhhhhhhhhhhhh'em!!
Then spray'em off..
And watch daily!!!

Whatchya' been doing with the growing requirements Comfrey?
Aphids' lovvvvvvvvvve fresh, new tender green growth??
Too much nitrogen usually??????
*ie; ferts or manures??*

(man, my tomato plants are just wee~one's right now)

Insecticidal soap works on aphids Comfrey.

I used some composted manure around the plants recently, but not all of them and they are all effected...Spraying them off with the water hose has not worked very good. My mom suggested I spray them with 'seven' but I really don't want to have to do that if I can find another way. Also I see lady bugs in my garden...so they are there...just too many aphids for them to consume

I despise aphids and whiteflies SO MUCH, but even worse, is whatever bug is making lacy holes in my mints and roses.
I can't and won't poison because the wild rabbits I feed sometimes nibble.
The ladybugs I bought all left in two days, what a waste of $7.99 for a few ladybugs. Sigh....
Anyone have any suggestions for a wildlife safe something that I can use for the hole makers?
I wonder what they are. Sure not happy about them.

make a mix of dish detegant and water.
Say teaspoon to a quart.......Then squirt. Under the leaves till they are soaked .

dodge

OK, I'll try it, and thanks, Dodge.

Also I see lady bugs in my garden...so they are there...just too many aphids for them to consume
+++++++++++++++++++++++++
The young ladybugs consume aphids too. They're little critters, i'm sure there's a foto out there somewhere.
The numbers can build up pretty quickly so you'll probably find it'll balance. On heavily infested new growth, i just snip the growth off. Tomatoes come back pretty quick and you get a bunch of aphids in no time.
Or as John suggests, insecticidal soap is a pretty gentle way to go. They're soft bodied insects and as such are pretty susceptible to soap sprays.

Last summer I discovered Garlic Barrier. It's a natural insect repellant that works great on everything except Japanese Beetles. It is made from pure garlic oil. It has made a big difference in the insect damage in my garden, and the garlic smell only lasts about an hour.

Note: Don't use garlic spray on anything that requires bee pollination - during the pollination period.

oops - I forgot to say that the garlic spray does not harm people or wildlife.

i used the dish soap diluted in water with my indoor plants this past winter. it worked great. and i didn't have to worry about poison being in the house. oh- and it was cheap!

Blasts from the hose has really worked well for me on my okra and roses. It's amazing really! But they do come back so check every day. They really dont like it!

I use the hose as well blast them off about every day if they get infested then only if I see any works well for me.