Aphids are driving me mad - we must be quick to act
I imagine you might have had the same problem, not necessarily mealy aphid but attacks on the likes of your roses. As with so much, I wondered if the problem stems from climate change.
Read More:
It seemed I was right as recent research by SASA (Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture) has shown. The scientists' data covered last winter and this spring and found that, overall, aphids could be active 3-4 weeks earlier than usual.
Cold winters kill off many hibernating insects, so the milder the weather, the more aphids will survive. In looking at the mean temperatures for Edinburgh and Dundee between December and February, researchers showed that last winter was unusually mild. Edinburgh experienced the 13th warmest winter in 50 years, while it was the 12th mildest in Dundee.
And if that wasn't enough, higher April and May temperatures encouraged the insects out of hibernation early which will give them time to produce even more than their usual number of generations.
We gardeners rely on many different predators of pests like aphids. Wasps, hoverfly and lacewing larvae, ladybirds and birds such as tits can be relied on to predate aphids, but they hadn't built up large enough populations to deal with the early pests. Wasps are especially useful but the nests were still small with few workers feeding hungry larvae.
So how do we deal with the problem? The first thing is to check the plants regularly to spot the problem and to act quickly.
You could use insecticide or a soapy water spray, but that would kill 'beneficial' insects as well as the aphids. Particularly the lacewing, ladybird and hoverfly larvae that live among the aphid colonies. Although turning a jet from the hose on established plants would probably help, you obviously can't do this with young plants.
I'm afraid I have to resort to routine check and squash - unlike me you can wear gloves. Natural predators are mow getting to work now their populations are building up.
Plant of the week
Hemerocallis 'Old Tangiers' (Image: PA)
Hemerocallis 'Old Tangiers' is a later season daylily with bright tangerine coloured flowers with a striking yellow throat.
Later season daylilies are less likely to suffer from Hemerocallis Gall Midge which causes buds to distort and go brown.
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The Herald Scotland
3 hours ago
- The Herald Scotland
Aphids are driving me mad - we must be quick to act
A few weeks ago, I had been surprised to see aphids begin plastering the Sutherland kale with their foul little grey bodies before I had even planted them. What was going on, I don't usually see them till early autumn? I imagine you might have had the same problem, not necessarily mealy aphid but attacks on the likes of your roses. As with so much, I wondered if the problem stems from climate change. Read More: It seemed I was right as recent research by SASA (Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture) has shown. The scientists' data covered last winter and this spring and found that, overall, aphids could be active 3-4 weeks earlier than usual. Cold winters kill off many hibernating insects, so the milder the weather, the more aphids will survive. In looking at the mean temperatures for Edinburgh and Dundee between December and February, researchers showed that last winter was unusually mild. Edinburgh experienced the 13th warmest winter in 50 years, while it was the 12th mildest in Dundee. And if that wasn't enough, higher April and May temperatures encouraged the insects out of hibernation early which will give them time to produce even more than their usual number of generations. We gardeners rely on many different predators of pests like aphids. Wasps, hoverfly and lacewing larvae, ladybirds and birds such as tits can be relied on to predate aphids, but they hadn't built up large enough populations to deal with the early pests. Wasps are especially useful but the nests were still small with few workers feeding hungry larvae. So how do we deal with the problem? The first thing is to check the plants regularly to spot the problem and to act quickly. You could use insecticide or a soapy water spray, but that would kill 'beneficial' insects as well as the aphids. Particularly the lacewing, ladybird and hoverfly larvae that live among the aphid colonies. Although turning a jet from the hose on established plants would probably help, you obviously can't do this with young plants. I'm afraid I have to resort to routine check and squash - unlike me you can wear gloves. Natural predators are mow getting to work now their populations are building up. Plant of the week Hemerocallis 'Old Tangiers' (Image: PA) Hemerocallis 'Old Tangiers' is a later season daylily with bright tangerine coloured flowers with a striking yellow throat. Later season daylilies are less likely to suffer from Hemerocallis Gall Midge which causes buds to distort and go brown.
Glasgow Times
2 days ago
- Glasgow Times
Greasy ball will test Wales in Japanese heat
The temperature is expected to be around 30 degrees Celsius when Wales kick off at 2pm local time in Kitakyushu on Saturday attempting to end a run of 17 consecutive Test defeats. It will feel a lot more when high humidity is factored in and the Wales squad, who used a heat chamber at home ahead of the two-Test series, have turned to ice baths, ice towels and cold flannel hats since arriving in Japan. Wales are seeking to end a run of 17 successive Test defeats in Japan (Joe Giddens/PA) 'I didn't go in the heat chamber – it was too hot,' said interim head coach Sherratt, who has made made 11 changes from the side hammered by England in the Six Nations three months ago. 'But we've done everything we can to prepare the players for this. Players weren't hugely excited about the heat chamber in Cardiff, but they worked really hard. 'It was as close as we would get in the UK to the temperatures in Japan, but it's obviously different here because we're training in it for 80 minutes rather than five or 10 minutes. 'We saw a lot of wet balls and we've trained in the middle of the day here to get used to the heat. 'If I'm honest it's not the heat, it's the ball (that's a problem). It's very difficult to keep the ball dry. 'It's probably going to be a game on TV where the conditions look perfect, but the ball's going to be really greasy and will test your skill set.' There are four survivors from the record 68-14 defeat to England in March, with number eight Taulupe Faletau, prop Nicky Smith, centre Ben Thomas and full-back Blair Murray remaining. Faletau will win his 109th cap against Eddie Jones' Japan but the other two back-row members, Alex Mann and Josh Macleod, have only seven Test appearances between them. Other than Faletau, only winger Josh Adams, prop Nicky Smith and scrum-half Kieran Hardy possess over 20 caps in the starting line-up. Hooker Dewi Lake captains the side, inexperienced pair Ben Carter and Teddy Williams form a second-row partnership and centre Johnny Williams returns after last featuring at the 2023 World Cup. There is some experience on the bench in prop Gareth Thomas and back-rowers Aaron Wainwright and Tommy Reffell. Sherratt said: 'We've had three weeks prep and it (selection) is a mixture of recent club form and trying to get some combinations that we've seen in training. Hooker Dewi Lake will captain an inexperienced Wales side in Kitakyushu on Saturday (Joe Giddens/PA) 'It's a new coaching group and we've tried to let the players start on an even playing field and select on what we've seen. 'We feel conditions are probably going to be tough to start with, and to have some real quality experience off the bench will be massive. 'It's not really a 15 we've picked, it's a genuine 23. 'I've learned at Cardiff that you don't throw on all your experience at once because between 60 and 80 (minutes) is where some of the crucial decision-making comes in.' The second Test will be played in Kobe on Saturday week.
The Herald Scotland
2 days ago
- The Herald Scotland
Greasy ball will test Wales in Japanese heat
It will feel a lot more when high humidity is factored in and the Wales squad, who used a heat chamber at home ahead of the two-Test series, have turned to ice baths, ice towels and cold flannel hats since arriving in Japan. Wales are seeking to end a run of 17 successive Test defeats in Japan (Joe Giddens/PA) 'I didn't go in the heat chamber – it was too hot,' said interim head coach Sherratt, who has made made 11 changes from the side hammered by England in the Six Nations three months ago. 'But we've done everything we can to prepare the players for this. Players weren't hugely excited about the heat chamber in Cardiff, but they worked really hard. 'It was as close as we would get in the UK to the temperatures in Japan, but it's obviously different here because we're training in it for 80 minutes rather than five or 10 minutes. 'We saw a lot of wet balls and we've trained in the middle of the day here to get used to the heat. 'If I'm honest it's not the heat, it's the ball (that's a problem). It's very difficult to keep the ball dry. 'It's probably going to be a game on TV where the conditions look perfect, but the ball's going to be really greasy and will test your skill set.' There are four survivors from the record 68-14 defeat to England in March, with number eight Taulupe Faletau, prop Nicky Smith, centre Ben Thomas and full-back Blair Murray remaining. Faletau will win his 109th cap against Eddie Jones' Japan but the other two back-row members, Alex Mann and Josh Macleod, have only seven Test appearances between them. Other than Faletau, only winger Josh Adams, prop Nicky Smith and scrum-half Kieran Hardy possess over 20 caps in the starting line-up. Hooker Dewi Lake captains the side, inexperienced pair Ben Carter and Teddy Williams form a second-row partnership and centre Johnny Williams returns after last featuring at the 2023 World Cup. There is some experience on the bench in prop Gareth Thomas and back-rowers Aaron Wainwright and Tommy Reffell. Sherratt said: 'We've had three weeks prep and it (selection) is a mixture of recent club form and trying to get some combinations that we've seen in training. Hooker Dewi Lake will captain an inexperienced Wales side in Kitakyushu on Saturday (Joe Giddens/PA) 'It's a new coaching group and we've tried to let the players start on an even playing field and select on what we've seen. 'We feel conditions are probably going to be tough to start with, and to have some real quality experience off the bench will be massive. 'It's not really a 15 we've picked, it's a genuine 23. 'I've learned at Cardiff that you don't throw on all your experience at once because between 60 and 80 (minutes) is where some of the crucial decision-making comes in.' The second Test will be played in Kobe on Saturday week.
