Aphids on peppers in a greenhouse, how to treat them: chemicals and folk remedies

After planting, seedlings should be systematically inspected for harmful insects. It must be taken into account that even vegetable crops grown indoors are not protected from the pest. Therefore, you need to find out in advance what to do if aphids appear on peppers in a greenhouse, and how to treat the plants.

And having discovered symptoms of damage, immediately take measures to destroy the pest. Even if there are no aphids, do not refuse preventive measures - they will help preserve the harvest.

Aphids: description and types

Both in greenhouses and in open ground, aphids on peppers multiply very quickly. Its colonies cause significant damage to plants and can even cause their death.

Scientists have classified about 4 thousand species of aphids. Almost all of them are not particularly picky when it comes to food and can attack any plant.

The insect is small in size; its round or oval body can reach a length of several millimeters. The aphids that attack vegetable crops grown in open ground are slightly larger than those that live on indoor plants.

The color of insects can be different:

• black or green;
• red or pink;
• brown or transparent.

In most cases, it resembles the color of the leaves and flowers that the pest infects. There are hairs and growths on the insect's body.

The feeding organ of aphids is the proboscis, which serves to pierce the shell of the trunk and leaves, with its help the insect sucks out the juice. Three pairs of legs allow pests to move quickly in search of food; some individuals have wings and jump well.

The most common types of aphids that can be found on the site are:

• potato and cabbage;
• apple and cherry;
• pea and carrot;
• root and leaf.

Even such a toxic plant as tobacco can be affected by aphids, tobacco.

The pest is widespread and migrates easily. Pepper can infect several varieties at once.

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Why are aphids dangerous?

In addition to the fact that aphids suck juices from young leaves and shoots, they carry many diseases. Even if the pest has not infected the plantings, it produces sweet honeydew, which contaminates the leaves and promotes the development of fungi.

Even the saliva of aphids is dangerous for peppers; it contains substances that are toxic to plants; in addition, it contains viruses that can cause quickly spreading diseases.

Where do aphids come from?

Aphids overwinter in soil or fallen leaves. Pest eggs can also be stored in the bark of trees or shrubs. The awakening of adult individuals that have survived the winter occurs with the onset of warm days.

Ants contribute to the spread of the pest. They carry aphids from one bush to another and protect them because... The favorite food of ants is honeydew, a sticky sweet liquid that the parasites secrete.

It is useless to fight against one pest; single measures will not bring the desired effect.

Signs of aphids on peppers

An alarming signal for a vegetable grower should be the appearance of ants in the garden beds. Aphids should be looked for on the back of the sheets; upon careful inspection, insect eggs can also be seen there.

Next, whitish spots form on the leaves, sticky traces of honeydew appear, plant growth slows down, and the leaves begin to wither and dry out. Pepper flowers fall off without setting an ovary. Deformation of young shoots may be observed. Productivity is significantly reduced. Infection of young bushes can lead to their death.

Aphid reproduction becomes more active with rising air temperatures; during the summer, one female can reproduce 10 new generations.

Lack of control will lead to the fact that the population of insects in the beds will number in the thousands.

Greenhouse conditions are especially favorable for the life and reproduction of the pest, so vegetable growers should pay special attention to the condition of peppers. When the first signs of damage are detected, measures should be taken immediately to destroy insect pests.

Preventive measures

To avoid the appearance of aphids in your beds, you should adhere to the following rules:

1. The ideal microclimate in a greenhouse for peppers is 85% humidity and air temperature 25 degrees.
2. Regular ventilation.
3. Constant feeding.
4. Fumigation of a greenhouse with warm sulfur gas before planting plants.
5. Disinfection of the greenhouse frame with bleach or potassium permanganate solution.
6. Regular weed removal.
7. Purchase planting material only from trusted manufacturers.

Reference. Plants that receive proper care have good immunity and, therefore, are more resistant to pests and various diseases.

Prevention

Timely preventive measures, if not completely eliminated, will minimize the risk of aphids appearing on peppers in greenhouses.

Prevention consists of:

• in treating seeds before sowing;
• disinfection of soil in the greenhouse during the preparation of beds;
• creating normal conditions for growing seedlings;
• compliance with watering rules;
• planting sharp-smelling plants next to the peppers: onions, herbs, garlic.

In autumn and spring, before the start of the planting season, it is recommended to fumigate the greenhouse with a sulfur bomb. In summer, it is advisable to dust the soil in the beds with ash. Active control of ants will help prevent the appearance of aphids.

The natural enemies of aphids are wasps, ladybugs, and hoverflies, so you need to create conditions to attract them: plant lavender, calendula, basil, and mint.

Common Mistakes

Sometimes aphids appear on vegetable crops due to mistakes made by the gardener:

• It’s hot and humid in the greenhouse or at home;
• the temperature does not drop at night;
• crops are watered abundantly and often.

The main mistake of a gardener is neglecting preventive measures.

During watering, pepper seedlings are carefully inspected. Having noticed alarming signals - withering of the tops, shrinking and yellowing of the foliage, a whitish coating, the plant is isolated from other plantings. The soil is sprinkled with ash, the leaves are washed with warm water. They choose a method of struggle and begin health procedures. Timely assistance will support pepper seedlings and give hope for a bountiful harvest. To avoid hassle with seedlings, preventive measures are taken.

Fighting methods

Having noticed that the pepper is weakening and looks depressed, you should support its immune system, for this you will need to feed the plant with complex fertilizers.

Before spraying the bushes, it is advisable to remove the leaves on which the most insects have accumulated and burn them.

If the seedlings are in an apartment or have fruits, then it is advisable to use folk remedies for processing.

If the flowers on the bushes have not yet opened, it is better to use chemical plant protection products.

In greenhouse conditions, both processing methods can be used. But if pests appear during fruiting and flowering, then it is still better to treat the plants with folk remedies.

Let's watch a useful video about methods of combating aphids on peppers:

Biofighting

The “technology” is very simple - you need to try to lure as many insect enemies of aphids as possible, as well as birds, whose nutritious diet involves eating the pest. Moreover, there is no need for anything special. The familiar tits and sparrows, hover flies and ladybugs, certain varieties of wasps, etc., will cope well with aphids. For them to appear on the site, you need very little - provide them with tasty food and water, and the aphids will serve as a snack.

Some types of wasps feed on aphids

Attention! Birds and spider beetles should be helped - aphids can and should be collected by hand and then physically destroyed. Another commonly used method is rinsing under pressure with water. In this case, the water should be as cold as possible. In this case, the insects will be instantly immobilized, which means they will be washed off to the ground without any problems, where they will die without a power source.

Aphids on peppers in a greenhouse: how to treat them, what folk remedies can be used

Folk pest control remedies are safe for people. Since the increase in the number of parasites occurs in geometric progression, the fight against them should not be postponed for a single day.

To repel and destroy aphids, you can use products that are easy to find at home; let’s take note of the most accessible recipes and list them in the table.

It is necessary to repeat treatments; this is the only way to prevent re-infestation of the plant by new generations of aphids. The reason is that folk remedies give results only when fighting adult individuals.

It is advisable to process peppers in a greenhouse early in the morning or in the evening. The doors to the greenhouse must be open.

Let's watch a video about how to fight aphids on peppers in a greenhouse and open ground, how to treat plants against the pest, folk remedies and the principle of their use:

Seed treatment before sowing

Typically, pests primarily attack weakened, unhealthy, stunted plants. Therefore, it is so important to properly prepare pepper seeds before planting, harden and pickle them in order to obtain high-quality and complete seedlings.

Disinfection helps to destroy possible fungi and spores located on the surface of the seeds, so such procedures should not be neglected. Standard seed preparation methods used by almost all gardeners today include:

• sorting;
• pickling;
• hardening;
• germination.

To select the most viable pepper seeds, a saline solution is used. Dissolve salt (2-3 tablespoons) in a liter of clean water, mix thoroughly, and then put the seeds in a jar. Those that float to the surface are not suitable for sowing, but the “heavy” seeds are the ones that will produce good seedlings. They are carefully taken out, washed and dried.

A simple and time-consuming technique is to pickle the peppers in potassium permanganate. The seeds are immersed in the pink solution for no more than 20 minutes, then they are also taken out and washed with clean water. If you wish, you can additionally soak the peppers in a growth stimulator, which promotes favorable seed germination.

ON A NOTE! For soaking, use EPIN, ZIRCON, as well as an infusion of ordinary wood ash.

Hardening is carried out by placing the seeds in the refrigerator for about 1-1.5 days, while maintaining a temperature not lower than minus 1 degree. It is important not only to prepare the seeds for sowing, but also to treat the soil where the peppers will be grown. To do this, use the same potassium permanganate, but the solution is made more saturated, dark purple in color. Pepper seeds are sown in the prepared mixture no earlier than two days later, so that the potassium permanganate has time to be absorbed into the soil.

All these measures are preventive, ensuring protection of peppers from various infections and good germination. But at the same time, we should not forget about observing the rules for growing this crop, temperature conditions, and proper watering. Often, it is violation or non-compliance with the rules (too hot temperature, excessive watering) of agricultural technology that leads to the appearance of aphids on peppers.