I have a 3 year old plum tree who has problems. The tops of the leaves
are very sticky and underneath there are what look like aphids, I
suppose that I have answered my own question but if they are aphids how
do I treat a tree or has the damage been done, some leaves are curling.

kate

"Kate Morgan" <katemorgan [at] btinternet.com> wrote in message
news:MPG.1f10cdd37e41a12a98973a [at] news.plus.net...
>I have a 3 year old plum tree who has problems. The tops of the leaves
> are very sticky and underneath there are what look like aphids, I
> suppose that I have answered my own question but if they are aphids how
> do I treat a tree or has the damage been done, some leaves are curling.
>
> kate

I'm afraid that this seems to happen most years especially in this type of
hot weather.
Whilst it is a pain & unsightly, it doesnt seem to have much effect on the
tree & it's fruit production.
My victoria has been planted 15 years now & has been very productive on 12
of them.

SH

> >I have a 3 year old plum tree who has problems. The tops of the leaves
> > are very sticky and underneath there are what look like aphids, I
> > suppose that I have answered my own question but if they are aphids how
> > do I treat a tree or has the damage been done, some leaves are curling.
> >
> > kate
>
> I'm afraid that this seems to happen most years especially in this type of
> hot weather.
> Whilst it is a pain & unsightly, it doesnt seem to have much effect on the
> tree & it's fruit production.
> My victoria has been planted 15 years now & has been very productive on 12
> of them.
>
> SH

Good to know that this is a comman problem, I was thinking about pruning
some of the branches where there is no fruit - not that there is much
anyway - will the bugs spread, does anyone think it would be harmful,
must buy a book on fruit trees :-)

kate

sounds like aphid leaf curl which my large plum has, unfortunately its
said to be almost impossible to eridicate, but u can control it. damage
for this season has been done and leaves will curl and not look too
good. yes you can spray it if you want, but it won't affect the leaf
curl process, but will control the aphids.

the most important thing to do is spray the tree at end of winter JUST
before bud break. i made the mistake of spraying this year end of jan,
which worked in 05, but due to the long cold winter i sprayed too early
and the leaf curl has returned with avengance. i noticed yesterday after
the heavy rain made the branches droop lower that some leaves were just
covered.


--
Tiger303

snip
> the most important thing to do is spray the tree at end of winter JUST
> before bud break. i made the mistake of spraying this year end of jan,
> which worked in 05, but due to the long cold winter i sprayed too early
> and the leaf curl has returned with avengance. i noticed yesterday after
> the heavy rain made the branches droop lower that some leaves were just
> covered.


Many thanks for that information, I will do as you suggest :-)

kate

http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7404.html (treatement
scroll down) pretty comprehensive.

I've been having aphid infestation on banana but it's cleared up. The
wiki has nice pics and a life cycle http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aphid

Also:

"A 2% soap solution is the quickest & best aphid control. This would
be about two ounces of dishwashing detergent per gallon of water, in a
sprayer. There is no extra "oomph" from paying extra for special
insecticidal soap where aphids are concerned, dishwishing detergent is
fine. Drench the tree especially the undersides of leaves. Once is
usually enough but at most a second time two weeks later. "

-paghat the ratgirl

I read somewhere that ladybugs (which are available in shops in the
UK) and some other insects eat them and that ants rear aphids.
Might deter them in the long term.

"Vivek.M" <vivekm1234 [at] cyberspace.org> wrote in message
news:k3thb211vtefi8lpqcf9nhdmlakt0ek0ca [at] 4ax.com...
> Also:
>
> "A 2% soap solution is the quickest & best aphid control. This would
> be about two ounces of dishwashing detergent per gallon of water, in a
> sprayer. There is no extra "oomph" from paying extra for special
> insecticidal soap where aphids are concerned, dishwishing detergent is
> fine. Drench the tree especially the undersides of leaves. Once is
> usually enough but at most a second time two weeks later. "
>
> -paghat the ratgirl
>
> I read somewhere that ladybugs (which are available in shops in the
> UK) and some other insects eat them and that ants rear aphids.
> Might deter them in the long term.


Where even small trees are concerned, the idea of spraying is kill
overwintering eggs, which are present on the bark, not adult aphids.
With no foliage on the tree this is easier to achieve, but needs to
be done thoroughly. Tar oil winter wash - a weak creosote solution
used to be the standard remedy but is no longer available. A bit of
research might suggest possible alternatives for those who didn't
lay in a stock in time.


michael adams

....