Posted on 06/21/2008 8:06:46 AM PDT by GreenAccord
(The background is the close up of a chaise lounge pad)
I sprayed some Sevin pesticide on the trees fairly well 7 days ago, but the bugs have apparently made it through that treatment. They're quite small (one-fourth the size of an ant). So far, they've only been outside but they number in the dozens on the patio furniture when you look closely.
Any ideas? An exterminator is a route of last resort as they don't seem to be home invaders.
Look like some sort of aphid to me.
There should be a local conservation office who could nail it for you.
“I have these little white bugs in my backyard and they seem to be falling out of my three river birches (they’re 15 years old and 22-28 feet tall).”
22 to 28 feet tall? I’ve never seen a bug like that.
(sorry, couldn’t help it)
Bug looks like some kind of termite.
Aphid is what it looks like to me, too.
Yes, I’ve called the same folks who made Starship Troopers and they advised a full scale assault. :)
hehehe
http://audilab.bmed.mcgill.ca/~funnell/photos/DSC09685_aphid_crop.jpg
Seen here:
A quick google image search on aphids results in:
from Donna Young.org
Thanks, folks.
So the question now is: What gets rid of them?
If you’re looking for some random input (I have the “luxury” of living near Chicago, however), I’ve discovered that certain museums (the Field) and univesities with entomology programs gladly identify insects for you, if you send them a corpse.
Try some dishwash soap and water in a spray bottle.
Three oatmeal cookies, and ice pick and a hammer.
No, wait, that’s for tape worms, let me think.
It’s a Democrat. Stomp on it and move on with your life.
Great site for such inquiries - http://www.whatsthatbug.com/
Buy some fireants from me. Ants farm aphids (no, really).
Your local nursery might well sell them in little containers kinda like a milk carton -- but be forewarned that most of 'em will fly right away.
Aphid.
Adult females and some males have wings, thus will fly from infested trees and shrubs to recently cleared trees and shrubs.
If the trees overhead are getting them, it’s a good bet that the source is another nearby tree (or several trees).
Immunox works on roses, but trees I have no practical experience with.
The Seven will work, but it takes repeat applications a couple days apart for really bad infestations.
That works well if spraying is done frequently. If you have aphid infestations you probably have lots of ants too. It's not well known but ants actually "herd" aphids into foliage so they can feed on the "honeydew" produced by the aphids. I am NOT making this up! Aphids I had lots of aphid problems in my garden until I decided to get serious about eliminating ants. Now both are gone.
That is the plague of Dephilrats, a sign of the Apocalypse now that we’re on the verge of electing Hussein as the leader of the free world.
:)
Just kidding. I have no idea.
What gets rid of them?
It’d be a big operation for a whole tree, but on roses, plain old soapy water kills em deader than a doornail.
Just get some sort of sprayer, put a bit of dish soap (like Dawn) in it and fill the rest with water.
I read that lady bugs are the first line of defense against aphids. Here’s the bummer; A day after last week’s Sevin treatment, guess what the pesticide left dead all over the patio?
They will be parasitized by the parasitic aphid wasp in a few days. It is all part of the big game.
You can order boxes of the orange spotted lady bugs or parasitic wasps and turn them loose in your yard. Lady bugs, parasitic wasps and lacewings feed upon them. If you have a sufficient population, they will naturally attract one or more of these natural predators anyway.
Does Al Sharpton know about aphids being held in bondage? It’s not just, I tell you! :^)
I sent that website an email with an image earlier today. Of course, I’m getting a much faster response right here on our site. Thanks for the tip, though.
I thought it was lighter fluid and a shaver...
The Chinese beetle was imported to control aphids...those beetles have now increased their numbers to almost biblical proportions. No we have aphid AND beetle problems.
Look carefully — those aphids are White! But someone like Tom Hayden will probably take up the Cause with a slogan like “Save the Aphid Six Million!”
Perhaps an aphid defense fund — Soros could finance it.
Man, if these bugs are falling in a river from these trees, I would LOVE to be there with my flyrod!!!!!
If they are aphids they will be very bad for your flowers/garden though. Here’s a garden ping gardengirl and gabz.
It’s been a long time since I dealt with bugs on any large scale but I do remember that aphids aren’t particularly harmful. What they do do (or is that do-do?) is produce a sort of honey, kinda like bees. That honey attracts other, less pleasant bugs such as ants, which will actually herd the aphids and milk them of the honey.
Ladybug larvae (which don’t look very much like ladybugs) eat aphids like a kid eats cookies. The adult ladybug doesn’t eat anything, it’s too busy making more larvae. Lacewings eat aphids too as do several other beneficial bugs, the names of which I forget right now.
Aphids are a fact of life. You can get rid of them for awhile by using insecticide but they come back quickly, stronger than before. There are places to buy ladybugs and lacewings and the ahids never seem to get so strong they are immune to them. Check with an agricultural extension service office from your county or state to find out where to get the good bugs.
When I was working in that field we were using Parathion on bad bugs until they started getting stronger. Then we went with Malathion, Sevin and a whole witches brew of stuff. It finally came down to a decision between burning the trees or chasing each individual bug down and hitting it with a hammer. Go with beneficial bugs if you can.
He is not only a climatology expert, but is an expert on entomology.
This Man-Bear-Pig knows his bugs.
I got two sets of lady bugs and I thought most of them had flown away, but I'm still noticing them all over my yard over a year later so maybe they didn't fly very far.
heh heh heh...you said homo...heh heh heh
Bad for some trees too.
They poo everywhere, sometimes leaving driveways and sidewalks black.
It is interesting to watch wasps apparently farm these aphid colonies. Don’t know if the eat the aphids, but they seem to go after the sugary aphid secretions.
Oh, it's worse than that! Order "Homoptera" is so-named for the shape of the rostrum (a beak-like mouth part) which is used for sucking the juices out of... oh, never mind...
hubby is out fishing as we speak/I work. He got rained/lightninged out—had to come off the boat, now he’s fishing off the dock where he works/Marine Fisheries. Storm is almost gone. we really need the rain, didn’t get much.
girlangler—you’d love his job! He gets to fish all day, takes measurements, and gets paid to do it! He loves it. He gets to shock and see what floats to the top so he knows where to fish on personal time. Last summer the water was so salty the shocker wouldn’t work.
Spray bottle, water, one or two drops of liquid soap and lightly mist your trees. That should take care of it.
Or you can take off and nuke the place from orbit if you want to be sure.
Diatomaceous earth will get rid of them. PLUS it’s good for all plants,trees etc. Kills fleas, ticks, internal worms.
Just hope you dont find one of these on your lounger.
dont forget the ice pick....
If they're orangish in color (not to confuse them with the reddish lady bug) they're Asian Lady beetles. Over the past few years here in Michigan they have increased astronomically. Except last year there didn't seem to be too many of them. Usually when it starts to get cold in the fall we would see them all over the warm buildings........and they bite too but not bad.
I'm familiar with the Asian Lady Beetles because they appeared all over my son's college dorm in Minnesota. Apparently they prefer to land on light-colored buildings.
will the soap and water work on all flowers, trees, etc.?
Pretty much. Most plants are very tolerant of a mild soap mix.
I know it kills aphids, I’m not sure about spiders or ants or whatever.
DDT works quite well on all kinds of bugs, but I’m not sharing what little I have left. ;)
Soapy water in a pump up sprayer also works on a lot of insects and the infamous killer bees too!
Thanks. I’ll try it today.
I had this same problem. I found a very effective solution. If you shoot a bunch of M-80’s up into the tree with a slingshot, right after lighting each one, the leaves will be blown off of the tree. The little critters will promptly go elsewhere in their search for foilage. I also find that a tumbler of whiskey beforehand really improves my aim & proficiency. Good Luck!
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