Lice on balcony flowers can happen to anyone. But nobody should tolerate them. With good reason: If they are not fought as quickly as possible, the beautiful floral decoration will soon be history. What can stop lice from sucking?
Ladybugs are often an indication of aphid infestation
recognize signs
Plants grow close together on the balcony. If one of them is attacked by lice, the others are not spared for long. In addition, the lice themselves have a strong urge to reproduce.
If the early signs of an infestation are not recognized or associated with lice, the damage done can be enormous. These are possible symptoms:
- curled leaves
- sticky leaf undersides
- stunted plant parts
- yellow leaf spots
Isolate affected plants
If possible, place the infested balcony plants further away from other plants so that no lice can be transmitted. Only then should you rid the plants of lice with suitable measures.
tips
First of all, you can shower the plants with a hard jet of water. That alone will wash most of the lice off. In this way, subsequent control measures are even more effective.
choose control agents
There are many natural remedies that lice don't like. Fortunately, no one is forced to use a chemical solution. This goes deep into the wallet, damages the environment and it takes time to obtain.
How about a soapy solution instead? Add 2 to 3 tablespoons of soft soap (€44.90) and a dash of spirit to 1 liter of water. Spray the affected plants all over.
nettle brew
Nettles grow everywhere. They can be used to make a free spray that has been shown to be effective in controlling lice.
- Pick 100 grams of non-flowering nettles
- pour over 1 liter of boiling water
- Leave for 24 hours
- Strain the juice
- Spray infected plants with it
dry control agents
If balcony plants also suffer from fungal diseases, spraying them with liquids is not advisable, as moisture can promote fungal diseases. In such cases, dry control agents such as algae lime, pure wood ash or rock flour (14.13€) are recommended.
- pollinate plants with it
- ideally early in the morning
- the agent adheres better to the rope
tips
Check your plants for hidden companions before overwintering. Especially in late summer, many eggs are laid in leaf axils or on the underside of leaves.