Aphids on squash? HELP!
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Posted: Jun/30/2008 10:23 AM PST
I am pretty certain it's aphids. Would they cause the leaves to curl and shrivel also? I have been spraying Safe Garden to no avail. There are alot of ants, some flies and ladybugs on them but don't know if they are the beneficial types. If so, they are unable to keep up. Please help. Sorry about the direction of the pictures. Karen B Attachments:    |
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Posted: Jun/30/2008 12:43 PM PST
Try squirting the leaves, vines and stems with a high pressure stream of water. That helps to remove many of them. Try spraying the plants with a mix of dishsoap, oil, and water too- spray every surface of the plants- it will suffocate the aphids. Those ants are probably "farming" the aphids for the sweet fluid they excrete. Ladybugs, especially their larvae, will devour aphids, but it takes time for their population to increase enough to really offer effective control. |
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Posted: Jun/30/2008 2:49 PM PST
I don't think aphids are the problem. I think you've got some kind of fungus. |
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Posted: Jun/30/2008 5:31 PM PST
What should I do Steve? Do you think it could be both? You can't see it in the pics but there are those nasty little off-white things all over the backs of the leaves. If it is a fungus, do you have any idea what type, and will any fungicide work? I have only used fungicide on zinnias, never on veggies. I just soaked them with Organicide this evening. I used this product on my tomatoes and it seemed to work fairly well. But now that I think about it, I also had yellowing and leaf curl on the tomatoes, and small yield. They were in a different bed about 20-30 feet away from where the squash are. Any suggestions are much appreciated. Karen |
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Posted: Jun/30/2008 5:50 PM PST
Yes of course it could be both - insects are known discriminators, always attacking the weakest plants first and leaving robust, healthy plants alone. If you have fungus, the greatest danger is in spreading it. Some people would advise you to use a fungicide, but anti-poison people (me for example) would sadly and dejectedly suggest that you destroy the plant at the first opportunity. Seriously, your squash looks far gone to me. But your tomatoes. Or any plant where you see yellowing, curling leaves right next to healthy green leaves. Cut those sick buggers off! Tell your precious plant that you're hurting yourself more than it, and doing so for its own good. Your plant will thank you for it. If it survives. Either burn the sick leaves or put them deep in your compost. In general fungus likes to grow where the ground is moist even though the air is hot. Straw mulch is a great deterrent. It passes moisture right through, and reflects the sun's heat onto the undersides of the leaves to keep the leaf surface dry. Speaking of mulch - are those wood chips you have your squash mulched with? |
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Posted: Jul/01/2008 3:33 AM PST
Hmm, your leaves look similar to mine. They are not curling up but have that same colour. Do they also feel dry, like they are not getting enough water? I don't see any pests on my leaves though. 
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Posted: Jul/01/2008 4:41 AM PST
Speaking of mulch - are those wood chips you have your squash mulched with?[/quote] Yes, it is cypress mulch. When you say straw mulch, do you mean hay or pine? We don't have many pine trees around here. I don't think I've seen pine straw at Home Depot or Lowe's. (Where I prefer to buy my mulch - a little cheaper.) I can go to the feed store to buy bales of hay if you think that is better. I was thinking that particular squash plant should be pulled out. The others aren't bad. I'm going to pull it out right now. As regards to the tomato plants, I did cut the affected leaves off. The poor things looked miserable. Thanks Steve. |
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Posted: Jul/01/2008 4:43 AM PST
Hi Chrispaul: I guess they feel dry. The newer leaves at the bottom of the plant are getting a little mushy as they curl up. As Steve said, it's a goner. |
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Posted: Jul/01/2008 5:25 AM PST
The dry feel of the leaves is a direct result of the fungus damage. When the fungus gets into the vascular tissue of the plant, it blocks the flow of moisture to the leaves. Quote: Originally posted by gardenbook Quote: Originally posted by Speaking of mulch - are those wood chips you have your squash mulched with?Yes, it is cypress mulch. When you say straw mulch, do you mean hay or pine? Have you checked your soil pH? Around these parts, using fresh wood chips around vegetables would be deadly, as our soil tends to be slightly too acid to begin with. When rain falls on fresh wood chips (or pine straw), it leaches acid out of the mulch and into the ground. If your soil is a little alkaline, that's a good thing. But if not, you could be stunting your plants with your mulch. So yeah, straw mulch means hay. |
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Posted: Jul/01/2008 5:59 AM PST
Yes,that garden tested at 6.6. I have since added some horse manure to it. Would that change it that much. I a not getting alot of fruit on these plants. The cucumber has alot of blooms though. Perhaps I should have this particular area tested again. I didn't know that about wood mulch. Another question, when I pulled out that squash plant a nest of what I call bull ants was directly beneath it. The big red ones with the black end. (Not fire ants) Are they the good guys? I had seen them on the plant occasionally. I got the plant out of my hands so quickly I didn't really take alot of time to look at the roots. What I did see looked OK. I want to take care of as many issues as I can before we plant the 484 sq.ft. veggie garden that we are preparing now. I hate to put all that work into it and have it fail. |
