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sweet pea with whitefly - organic garden

catherine172catherine172 Posts: 67
in Problem solving
alarmed to see nasty little white things on the sweet peas I bought recently.

worked out by googling that these are whitefly.

how can I get the plants back to health organically?
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Posts

  • fidgetbonesfidgetbones Posts: 17,618
    Hang some fat balls near by. The tits will eat the aphids, but need a bit of encouragement.
  • catherine172catherine172 Posts: 67
    mm, I wouldn't know how to hang a fat ball anywhere :-)
    what is a fat ball?
  • catherine172catherine172 Posts: 67
    oh, look, fat balls! - https://www.waitrose.com/ecom/products/waitrose-garden-6-fat-balls/504397-338403-338404?gclsrc=aw.ds&&gclid=CjwKCAjwx_boBRA9EiwA4kIELmgN-N28DqZIsiBgowmjmT_giBd3V-0zi6mDtowk49H0AcvpUZ55jhoCcI0QAvD_BwE
  • catherine172catherine172 Posts: 67
    are whitefly aphids? - so much to learn...

  • catherine172catherine172 Posts: 67
    slightly belittling comment? - 
  • fidgetbonesfidgetbones Posts: 17,618
    No, white fly are not aphids. Black fly and green fly are both aphids. However natural predators will usually clear them if you encourage them into your garden. Any sort of ladybird and their larvae are useful, and small birds often eat these type of insects.
    Sorry if you thought I was belittling you.
  • chickychicky Posts: 10,410
    I always had a problem with greenfly on my sweetpeas until I hung a peanut feeder nearby - now the blue tits and great tits have moved in and the flies are gone ......so I can vouch for the fact that this works 👍🏻
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    They also congregate when plants air crowded and haven't got a decent airflow round them, so make sure when planting that each plant has plenty of space round it. 

    Whitefly are easy to wipe off as described, but encouraging birds is the best way to keep all sorts of pests away, and achieve a nice balance in garden. It does take a while though. Feeding consistently and having some water available is a very good way to start and also provides great entertainment.
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • catherine172catherine172 Posts: 67
    thanks, all - there are so many on these plants - which I bought ready planted at the supermarket - 
    off to buy fat balls (from same supermarket...) and ready to have a go at squishing.
    :-)
  • catherine172catherine172 Posts: 67
    PS sorry if I misinterpreted and was oversensitive yesterday.
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