No one likes to have their cherry crop spoiled by starlings or aphids. You can find out how to combat the latter on your cherry tree here.
Cherry trees can be found in many gardens because of their attractive appearance and sweet harvest. However, this does not mean that they are protected from pests. Because an infestation with aphids is unfortunately quite common. So that you don't have to fear any noticeable damage to your cherry tree, we will tell you what is best to do against the cherry aphid and how it can be effectively combated and eliminated. Finally, the voracious aphid is one of the pests most dangerous to the cherry tree.
In the worst case, a heavy infestation with aphids can mean that the fruit of the tree is underdeveloped and therefore not edible. Then the entire harvest would probably be gone. In the case of larger trees, on the other hand, it is usually the case that they can cope quite well with aphid infestation. Whether countermeasures to combat lice actually have to be taken depends on the discretion of the gardener, as well as the size, condition and resistance of the cherry tree in question.
Note: In order to keep the feeding damage that can be caused by the black cherry aphid as low as possible, rapid intervention is necessary in many cases. It doesn't have to be chemical pest control right away, but if your cherry tree is under serious threat, you should take immediate action to combat this infestation.
Fighting aphids on cherry trees with biological means
If you want to try a gentler method of pest control, use biological agents. Nettle manure is very popular in this context. This can be easily prepared from stinging nettles and water. About one kilogram of stinging nettles should be used for every five to ten liters of water. By soaking the nettles in the water, silicon leaches out of their leaves. This active ingredient, in turn, is wonderful for getting rid of those annoying lice. Because if the cherry tree from top to bottomsprayed with the finished nettle manure will cause its leaves to harden.
Stinging nettle manure or soap solution
This in turn becomes a real problem for the aphids. Because hard leaves they can not eat so well. So that the aphids don't even have the opportunity to migrate to another place on the cherry tree, it is extremely important that the entire tree is sprayed with the manure. It is therefore by no means sufficient to treat the affected areas alone, as an infestation in another area would then be feared in the near future. If you don't have nettles on hand, you can also make a soap solution to spray the cherry tree with. The following ingredients are required to mix this solution:
- either 100 grams curd or soft soap
- two liters of water
- 150 milliliters of alcohol
Now these ingredients just have to be mixed together. Then simply spray the tree, making sure that only the underside of the leaves come into contact with the lye. In addition, the spraying should not be done on hot days. Because that would otherwise cause additional damage to the cherry tree that needs to be saved from the pest infestation.
Homemade Tobacco Brew
If you are looking for another alternative to the pest control methods just described, you can also opt for tobacco brew. You should definitely use an old pot in which you put tobacco plants to cook the brew out of them. Before the undersides of the leaves can then be sprayed with this solution, the brew must first be carefully filtered. Whether you have decided to use stinging nettle manure, the soap solution described, or tobacco stock, a single spray is usually not enough in the case of a stubborn aphid infestation. It will therefore be necessary to spray the cherry tree several times to finally combat the cherry aphids.
Expert tip:
In order to be able to get to the collar of the aphids effectively, the spraying must be carried out before the leaves of the cherry tree have already curled up . Because then no effective action against the cherry aphid is possible. So you must not miss the ideal time for spraying your beloved cherry tree.
Other effective methods of aphid control
If you look after your cherry tree carefully, carefully and regularly, you may notice an aphid infestation very early on. Then it makes sense to attack the aphids directly with a sharpconcentrated water jet to proceed. The cherry aphids can thus be removed from the leaves in a targeted manner. You can also be on the safe side by simply cutting off shoot tips that have already been badly damaged. These should then be disposed of professionally together with the aphids. Professional disposal is therefore so important so that the aphids cannot spread further from their disposal point in your own garden.
When biological remedies don't help
However, if the infestation is too severe, the method just described is not recommended. If neither this tip nor the biological methods of combating aphids promise a remedy, only special preparations that are either based on rapeseed oil or made with the help of potash soap will help. This means that the cherry tree must also be sprayed thoroughly in order to get the aphid plague under control. However, you should exercise caution when selecting the appropriate aphid control agents. After all, it's all about eliminating the annoying pests without getting rid of the beneficial insects in addition to the cherry aphids.
Special plasters that can be attached to the cherry tree are also available from well-stocked specialist shops. These were soaked with a substance that works against aphids. Once applied to the branches of the cherry tree, the patches can be used for pest control for a maximum of two months.
If you want, you can also resort to what is known as sprouting spraying in the fight against the aphids. This step must be taken when the first tips of the cherry tree leaves appear. The sprouting agent is applied to the tree and the tree is then coated with a protective layer of rapeseed oil. In this way, the annoying aphids can also be removed.
Tips on how to prevent an aphid infestation
Sweet, sour and other cherries are most at risk from the time of budding into August when it comes to potential aphid infestation. Attentive hobby gardeners will therefore want to avoid an aphid infestation instead of having to fight it later, which is difficult and not always successful. The following tips have proven themselves as preventive measures in the fight against the black cherry aphid:
- It is advisable to cultivate your own garden in a way that is close to nature.
- The garden should consist of the greatest possible variety of plants and a number of mixed cultures,so that pests have fewer chances at the end of the day. This ensures that as many predators of aphids as possible find their way into the garden.
- It should not be overly fertilized with nitrogen. The aphid benefits from this, since the predators of this pest can easily be damaged by increased fertilization.
- An insect hotel is a great way to lure the predators of the black cherry aphid into your own garden. Deadwood hedges and fly boxes that are deliberately positioned in the garden also serve this purpose very well. From cockchafers to parasitic wasps to hoverflies and lacewings, the predators of the louse then move into the garden in droves.
If you heed these tips, you can provide such a large number of beneficial insects in the garden that sucking damage from the lice cannot even occur. The variety of plants in the garden also ensures an appealing overall impression and is visually extremely attractive. It is also useful if ants are kept away from the affected cherry tree. Because they act as protectors of the aphids. However, a glue belt can be used so that the ants can no longer fulfill this role. Such protection is particularly important for young trees. You can be effectively protected not only by soap-based preparations, but also by spraying with the following substances:
- Rhubarb Tea
- Rainfarntee
- Vermouth Tea
All methods of aphid control on the cherry tree at a glance
Below we have listed all methods of aphid control on the cherry tree:
∎ For young trees: Spraying with soap-based preparations, wormwood, tansy or rhubarb tea
∎ Sprout spraying
∎ Keeping ants away from the infested cherry tree
∎ Spraying with nettle manure, Soap solution (based on soft or curd soap) or tobacco suds
∎ Control with a strong jet of water
∎ Special adhesive panels against aphids
∎ Beneficial insects, which are considered enemies of aphids, in the garden Cultivating
∎ Spraying with special preparations based on potash soap or rapeseed oil
∎ Removing infested shoot tips
∎ Planting mixed cultures and natural planting in your own garden