Oleander aphid infestations - Ask Extension
On July 30th, seemingly overnight, Oleander aphids appeared upon our milkweed plants...by the thousands!
Damage ? Control ?
Knowledgebase
Oleander aphid infestations #879412
Asked July 30, 2024, 12:19 PM EDT
On July 30th, seemingly overnight, Oleander aphids appeared upon our milkweed plants...by the thousands!
Damage ? Control ?
Le Sueur County Minnesota
Expert Response
They are scary when they come in droves but they won't hurt your milkweed plants.
You can remove them manually and drop them in soapy water. you can also blast them with a hose or use an insecticidal soap. Understand that anything you spray on besides water is non-discriminating and will affect all insects.
We do not recommend the dish soap formula that is so often cited on the internet.
We appreciate your quick reply……. Regarding the Oleanders……… After all these years of ‘bugging’ the bugs, we had not become acquainted
Ole…. Interesting information, and… we do not use chemicals in our gardens: squish (except for Japanese beetles; pluck and duck.
During the night following the discoveries…s…….s……..s….. thousands, a cloudburst occurred. No fuss, no muss, no beetles.
Today, Aug 1, we discovered just one leaf with a small cluster, perhaps a hundred. The really sad part for us, the storm of July 31st took
down all our wonderful tall podded milkweeds….no weeds, no monarchs!!! That’s nature. Due to hail with the cloudburst, we spent August 1st
re-storing our garden…which will not be the same this year! We thank you for the information, and can add Oleander aphids to our
trophies on the wall…………. Barb/art straub of LeSueur, Minnesota
On Aug 1, 2024, at 2:29 PM, Ask Extension <<personal data hidden>> wrote:
Those milkweeds will grow back. Monarchs don’t need the pods - just the plants to lay eggs.
