Every action carries consequences. Some not so good. A few days ago I discovered bugs on my pepper plants. I have about 60 plants and most of them were infected. I couldn't find any information anywhere, even the garden center nearby didn't know what they were. They suggested I use 'Sevin' to kill them. So I did. I even sprayed the plants with an insect powder. A few days later some of the little critters turned completely orange. Most of them disappeared.
Now my daughter-in-law, who knows bugs, tells me, to my horror and too late, much too late, these invaders were the pupae of ladybugs. Beneficial insects any gardener wants, because they eat those pesky aphids. Why did I act so hastily? Why...why?
This morning I found a few ladybugs on my plants and my spirits lifted a little, but I also discovered many of my pepper plants had shiny leaves, which comes from the excretion of aphids. Now I have aphids on my peppers and I killed off the very little friends I could use right now.
Pupae and adult ladybugs eat aphids. Ignorance is not always a bliss, sometimes it is painful and costly.
Tomorrow morning I will spray my peppers with a homemade remedy: 2 tsp mild dish detergent, 1 tbsp canola oil mixed with 1 spray bottle of lukewarm water. I won't use 'Sevin', because then I'll kill the few ladybugs I didn't kill.
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