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Invasion of tiny red bugs
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Posted by Viola1900 (My Page) on Thu, Jun 23, 05 at 8:54
| There are hundreds of these on my false sunflower. Does anyone know what they are and how I can get rid of them? Thanks.
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Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Invasion of tiny red bugs
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RE: Invasion of tiny red bugs
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| Thanks Aaron, I only knew about green aphids so I learned something today. Thanks again! |
RE: Invasion of tiny red bugs
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| Rosy apple aphids. Here is a closeup of one 
Praveen. |
RE: Invasion of tiny red bugs
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| Holy smokes, that's a close up. Kinda like a alien bug. |
RE: Invasion of tiny red bugs
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| What cameras are you two using? |
RE: Invasion of tiny red bugs
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You can get rid of them by releasing ladybugs. To get rid of them instantly, just get your water hose and spray them with a good strong stream of water. Their mouths are embedded in the plant so it rips their bodies right off their heads. Gruesome, but efficient.
The reason aphids (or any "pest" insect) attack is because the plant is in stress for one reason or another. This is nature's way of taking out the weak (survival of the fittest). Stress causes: If it is planted wrong, if it is planted by plants that do not get along or if it is an ill-adapted plant for the area. Could also be that the soil is not in optimal condition as well. High nitrogen & other synthetic fertilizers seem to have detrimental effects on soil health. |
RE: Invasion of tiny red bugs
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| Nanelle, I am using a Nikon D100 Digital SLR now, the picture of the aphid was taken with a Nikon CP-990. pgm |
RE: Invasion of tiny red bugs
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| This aphid is common on a wide variety of yellow composites in the sunflower tribe, Rudbeckia, Heliopsis, Ratibida, Helianthus, etc. Individual plants which do not have them are most likely either lucky or genetically resistant, rather than stressed, since even healthy plants will often be infested. On the other hand, I've never seen these aphids kill the host plant, and they do provide food for a variety of other predatory insects, so unless you just can't stand the look of them, I recommend you take no remedial measures and simply appreciate them as part of the web of life. Also, if you live in much of eastern US, the invasive Asian variable ladybird beetle will probably come along and "clean them up", as it does most aphids not protected by ants. These beetles, released with the intention of providing a "natural" control for aphids, are really doing damage to a lot of native, non-pest aphid populations, with untold cascading effects on invertebrate communities in our North American ecosystems. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Asian lady beetle
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