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I`ve got ants on my runner beans. Do they do any damage? Also some clusters of black things on the underside of some leaves - any ideas?

Sounds a bit like blackfly (which the ants "farm"), not sure if you get them on runner beans I know you get them on broad beans. I am trying my own garlic spray this year to see if I can get rid of them.

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Kim



http://kimbos-veggies.blogspot.com

Yes, they are blackfly which the ants milk for their sugar secretions. Best to remove the fly if you can as they can increase quite rapidly and distort the leaves.

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Mark

Vegetable Kingdom blog

What`s the best way to get rid of them. Does soapy water work & Kimbo how do you make your garlic spray?

Garlic Spray - 2 bulbs of garlic, separate and crush and put in a pan. Add 2 pints water and boil for 5 mins. Top up water to 2 pints. Let cool, strain and I then put it in a plant sprayer, top up with water and a couple of drops of washing up liquid to make it stick.

Not sure if it is going to work but is worth a go especially if you get them early.

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Kim



http://kimbos-veggies.blogspot.com

I'm looking forward to trying your garlic spray as well kimbo as my broad beans have started being infested with aphids and ants & I want to get them before they do too much damage.

There's nothing quicker and more effective than just squishing the blackfly (and greenfly) between your fingers. Do it regularly because they multiply rapidly (they're born pregnant).

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~ What do I think of Western civilisation? I think it would be a very good idea ~ Gandhi

Is this also effective if the plants are covered in the black eggs? Will the garlic spray (or other methods) work on them or do you have to remove these by hand as well?

Are they really born pregnant? How weird is that!!

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Imagination is everything, it is a preview of what is to become.

Soapy water for me, about a tablespoon per watering can. Do it over and again for a couple of days. Farming aphids, the ants do more than just collect the sugary secretions, they drive the good insects away, thus making your lovely runners a breeding ground for aphids.

You can also get a horticultural glue to stop the ants from climbing up the plants, I know this works for trees, don't know if its the same for runner beans, I can't see why not.

We've got ants & black fliy on the broad beans.

On Sunday I sprayed them with my homemade stuff, went to check them today and the infestation was much reduced - sprayed them again and will keep doing it until the plants are clean again. Squished as many as I could but the blackfly are right in the nooks and crannies where it's hard to get them - and I'm a bit scared of being bitten by the ants too!

Homemade stuff - slightly random made-up recipe - fill the plant sprayer with hot water (just from the hot tap, not boiling), add 3-4 soapnut husks, break 2 garlic cloves in half and add them, leave to steep / cool, then spray. This makes about 1.5 to 2 litres. And today I just used the dregs from yesterday with more hot water, it was still just as garlicky and soapy as yesterday, if not more so.

I've heard you can use soapwort or horse chestnuts instead of soapnuts - so when my soapnuts run out I'm going to save on carbon and try using something local / native instead! (For my next blag, I'll be seeking out some wild soapwort to dig up or take cuttings from or something...)


PS we've got huge number of ants - we've found 4 or 5 nests at least, just on our little plot - any tips for persuading the little chaps to move on? They like to camp under the chicken house!

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Warning: I have a dangerous tendency to act like I know what I'm talking about.

They're not actually eggs, they're immature blackfly, squash or spray them according to your inclinations.

What a charming thread! The last time I grew runner beans I had a lot of black fly (well, they were black at any rate!). I simply saved my washing up water and used it to water the plants. Very effective and environmentally friendly, too.

I didn't know they were born pregnant. I suddenly feel sorry for the little beggars.

Is this for real?!!! I'm having them on my tom plants.

put some semolina were they are,the workers take it back to the nest,feed the queen,she cannot digest it,and bingo,bang she goes,so no more workers,and it works,type ANTS in the search,at the top right of page and see more ideas.

Rhubarb contains oxalic acid. The leaves have a greater concentration. It is the oxalic acid that makes them poisonous. A useful insecticide can be made from the leaves of Rhubarb.

Take some leaves and cut them into strips, place them in a large pan and cover with water. Bring to the boil and simmer for a few minutes. Once cooled strain and add a little liquid detergent. The soap acts as a surfactant and helps the liquid stick to the leaves of what you will be spraying. The resulting brew makes a good spray to use against aphids.

One word of warning though. It does not smell very nice when it is being made so open the kitcen windows and close the kitchen door.

Hope this is of some use, it works for me. I use it on the veg patch and in the rest of the garden. Pity about the smell but it's only during the making of it. Once cooled it is not too bad.

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It is the doom of man, that they forget.

Wow - thanks!

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Warning: I have a dangerous tendency to act like I know what I'm talking about.

This may be just me, but whenever I have a blackfly/greenfly problem, I get rid of the ants and the problem goes away. I used to get a really bad problem with blackfly on my cherry tree, which is huge. All the leaves went black and sticky and curled up but the tree was too tall for me to get to them all. Now every year I put ant powder down and I don't get the problem.
Jools

I've been spraying garlicky soapy water on the broad beans every day since Sunday and they look loads better than before - far fewer aphids and I only saw a couple of ants on them - it's taken a few goes, but it's obviously working!

But loads of ants elsewhere ... Put some semolina down today everywhere we saw ants - hope that will work. One question though - these exploding queens - from how far away can you hear the bang?

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Warning: I have a dangerous tendency to act like I know what I'm talking about.

if every one is using semolina,FEEL THE EARTH MOVE