How to deal with aphids on currants: 13 ways

With the advent of the summer season, every summer resident and gardener fights for yields with various diseases and pests. If currants grow on your plot, the most dangerous and frequent enemy of it is aphids. One can speak of the presence of aphids on the currant by its appearance - the leaves become convex, as if with red pimples. The shoots of currants infected with aphids become painful, lag behind in growth.

How aphids harm currants

Aphids are small insects 1-2 mm in size, which can be green, gray and white. Female aphids lay their eggs for the winter, and with the advent of warm days, insects come to life. Aphids feed on the juice of the fruits and leaves of a plant, piercing juicy greens with their proboscis. Aphid colonies are numerous, so they quickly suck out all the life-giving forces from the currant, leaving the bush to wither. Without life-giving juice, currants cannot resist extraneous diseases; they often die.

The aphid's life cycle is small; more than a dozen generations change over the summer. The female lays a huge number of eggs, and without fertilization, and only females are born. Over time, when the aphid completely eats the plant, winged forms of insects can appear that easily infect neighboring shrubs. And only in the fall males are born in the colony. A fertilized female lays eggs capable of surviving a harsh winter.

Aphids and Ants

Separately, I would like to say a few words about ants. Some mistakenly believe that ants fight aphids. But this is not so. Aphids produce sweet dew, which ants love to regale. Therefore, they in every possible way protect and protect their “breadwinners”. If the currant is infected with aphids, you can observe a huge number of ants near the bush. Ants specially tickle the aphid's abdomen with their antennae in order to get some sweet treats. Moreover, ants transfer aphids to uninfected shrubs so that the insect produces more of its favorite treats. Therefore, in the fight against aphids, it is very important to destroy ants, as the main "accomplices" of these pests.

How to deal with aphids by professional means

There are many professional aphid control products that do not harm currants. Among them, the following insecticides can be distinguished.

• Kinmix
• Karbofos
• Aktara
• Rowikurt
• Wofatox

The plant is sprayed three times. The first time before the appearance of the kidneys. The second time - after the appearance of the first leaves. And the third time - at the end of the season, but at least a month before the start of the harvest. The insecticide is diluted according to the instructions, usually the dose is a tablespoon per 10 liters of water. Carefully need to spray the roots and stems of the bush, its leaves on the back side.

Do not forget to fight ants in parallel. If there is an anthill near the infected shrub, pour boiling water over it. This will destroy the insects, but not damage the branches and roots of the plant.

But professional insecticides are not always at hand. Then you can use folk recipes.

Folk methods of fighting aphids

The very first and most important thing that you should do when you find the "painful" leaves is to rip them and burn them. Collect all the convex and twisted leaves - a colony of insects is concentrated on them.

1. Tobacco and ash. Take the usual shag that is used in the manufacture of cigarette rolls. A pound of tobacco should be mixed with the same amount of ash and diluted with ten liters of water. Prepared means treat the diseased bush.
2. Ash and soap. Dissolve 200 grams of ash in 10-15 liters of water. Add a glass of cheap liquid soap. If there is no liquid soap on hand, you can grate ordinary household soap on a grater and dissolve in the total mass.
3. Soda ash. A solution of soda ash perfectly fights aphids and other pests. Dissolve the powder at the rate of one tablespoon per liter of water. For greater effect, you can add a little soap to the mass.
4. Celandine. Among natural aphids, celandine can be noted. Celandine bushes are torn off and filled with water. For 10 liters of water you need to take a couple of pounds of fresh green grass. You need to infuse the medicinal herb for about a day, after which the infusion is filtered and sprayed under the bush using a spray gun. Before processing, gloves must be worn, as the celandine is poisonous enough.
5. Onion. It is very effective in controlling aphids and other pests. To prepare a healing infusion, you need to grind onions or green onions, pour it with water and let the mass brew for 4-5 days. After that, bushes affected by aphids are watered with the prepared agent. Usually, after a couple of such treatments, there is no trace of pests.
6. Ladybugs. These insects contribute to the extermination of aphids, so you need to attract ladybugs to your site in every way. To do this, you need to plant calendula, tansy, mallow, nasturtium near the currant bushes. The smell of these flowers attracts ladybirds and they are happy to settle on your site.
7. Tops of tomatoes. After collecting the tomatoes, do not rush to throw the tops. She fights aphids perfectly. The tops are crushed, placed in a large vat and poured with water. In a couple of days, the “cure” is ready. They are watered with diseased bushes in such a way as to cover as much land as possible at the roots and stems.
8. Quinoa. In the fight against insidious aphids, you need to use all means and be more cunning. Do not remove all weeds under a bush of currant. If you have not yet managed with aphids, leave a little quinoa under the bush - the aphids love it very much. So you can at least slightly protect and remove pests from currants.

If you find aphids - do not rush to give up. This pest can and should be fought, otherwise the aphid will spoil your crop from year to year. Do not stop trying to get rid of aphids, so that at the end of the season to collect sweet and tasty fruits of currant.

Video: protection of currants and gooseberries from aphids and currants