Greenfly on runner bean plants

ChocolateIsLife

Hi, we have some runner bean seedlings starting out on our window sill indoors. But they have little green creatures appeared on them, am assuming they are greenfly, and they are spreading themselves to one of the chilli plants I have been overwintering. Any tried and tested methods to get rid of them?

grannyjo

best method- squash them with your fingers- carefully so you don't damage the plant. - no chemicals. Otherwise greenfly spray- some people say soapy water sprayed on them- but others say they just get washed down and climb up again later. They multiply very quickly so keep an eye on them. A Friendly ladybird will eat them all also

foxgloves

I second the above. Ladybirds love aphids. Squidging is the most foolproof, but young runner bean plants are quite soft & sappy, so take care not to damage them. I do use the soapy water method on bigger plants.....had to do my whole chilli & pepper seedlings one year. I just mix some washing up liquid (I prefer eco type brands for this, but don't know if it makes a difference) in a spray bottle & spray it on. The theory is that as aphids breathe through their skin, the soapiness blocks their ability to do this & they die. It was certainly successful on my chillies & peppers, but I did need to squidge the very small amount of extra tough aphids that lived to fight another day!

ChocolateIsLife

Thanks for your replies, have squashed the little blighters! For now anyway, expect they'll be back

darkrain

Often with greenfly, you also get ants, they use the greenfly to milk the plants for them. If there are any ants, watch where they run and set a trap for them.

TRAP
Mix a T spoon of icing sugar with a T spoon of borax (very cheap at a chemist), put the mixture in a little pile, on a piece of paper if you like as near as you can to where they run. It wont kill them straight away, they take it back to their nest and it kills the lot of them. Cover the pile with a saucer propped up a teeny bit with a matchstick or spoon handle so that only the ants can get to it. don't get the mixture wet or it wont work.

The only way I know of to stop the greenfly going for beans is to grow them with nasturtiums, greenfly seem to prefer nasturtiums, so they are sacrificial.