If you are noticing yellowing and distorted leaves, stunted growth, or an unpleasant black sticky substance on your garden plants – you may have an aphid problem. Aphids will feed on a wide range of plants, and in some cases the plants may fail to thrive completely. As an aphid feeds, it secretes a sticky substance called honeydew which becomes infested with black mold. They may also spread viruses to the plant. For these reasons, it is important to protect your garden by controlling the aphids.

Getting Rid of Aphids Naturally By taking advantage of aphids’ weaknesses and changing some of the ways you maintain your garden, you can control an aphid infestation in a way that is effective and better for the environment (and your garden) than using harsh chemicals. In many cases, pesticides will remove beneficial insects rather than the aphids and make the aphid problem worse.

One of the best ways to keep aphids away from your garden is by nurturing insects that pray on aphids. Beneficial bugs such as ladybugs and lacewings are great at helping to control aphids, and can easily be introduced to your garden by planting some of their favourites – such as mint, fennel, dill, yarrow, or dandelion.

Getting rid of ants from the garden is another great way to help with aphid removal. Ants feed on the sticky substance that aphids excrete, so they tend to defend the aphids from predatory insects. Controlling ant populations is a large part of an aphid control program. This can be accomplished by trimming the lower portions of the plant, or coating the lower stems in a sticky substance that will repel ants.

Some additional natural deterrents for aphids include:

• Growing plants under row covers;
• Using reflective mulch underneath the plants;
• Spraying with water to knock the aphids off; and
• Growing plants that deter aphids.

Since aphids can quickly destroy a garden, it is a good idea to control their population quickly and efficiently. Using some of the above methods will help to keep your garden aphid-free and growing strong!