Hi, I have 4 (8 feet tall) Phyllostachys bambusoides Castillon Inversa bamboo in pots. I noticed the other day that they all have an infestation of aphids. I’d like to annihilate the little buggers (aphids) before planting the bamboo in my garden. Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Hi, I'm pretty sure. They look like the pictures i've seen, and there are ants on the plants and black spots. There may well be mites.
I went to Gardenworks in Burnaby the other day and bought 250 lady bugs. I hope this works, as i back up i also bought a 3 in one spray. My two year old has a great time setting the buggies free.
My arrow bamboo (Pseudosasa japonica) seems to call aphids from all around the neighborhood. They seem to get about a 1 month head start on the army Ladybug alligators which comes to clear them up in no time. I'm reluctant to spray the bamboo with anything because they do bring hoards of ladybugs and the plants don't appear to suffer too badly.
When it comes to aphids, I have always relied on one or more of three things 1. my fingers (I find the crunchy sensation very satisfying) 2. a sharp spray of water (I have a special nozzle ideally suited for this job) 3. nature. It all depends on how heavy the infestation is.
It was a particularly bad infestation, I used three methods. Ladybugs , spray and to keep them off, I use a water sprayer. I guess the key is to stay ahead of them. I got the nozzle from the Superstore and spray the undersides of the plants every few days, so far so good.
