what is this parasite?

Hi,

I have a lonicera belgica growing in a large wooden box.
Recently I have noticed many little bugs, pale blue, greenish attached to the ends of the plant.

The leafs also have some rust on them.

The pic is not very good but you can make out the bugs at the end of each stem.

any ideas how i can get rid?

 

It`s Aphids, spray with Provado.

 

Its just aphids, As a biologist I dont worry about pests and diseases, as long as they are managed, by attracting birds and nesting birds particularly and homing hedgehogs in our garden, pests are my favorite study.

I would be more inclined to look at the spores of a leaf fungus than get rid

 

I admire your sentiments Lad, but gardening is about the health and welfare of plants not the health and welfare of pests.

 

Yes I get aphids on my honeysuckle. Each year I spray with provado just before it flowers. It makes a big difference and the plant looks healthier for it. Before the flower buds used to be seething with them.

 

Bother, and there was I gardening organically & caring about the environment all these years :DOH:

Never sprayed aphids off, I just round up a few ladybirds, they sun themselves in the morning & like going up.

 

Yeah, but you use all the bugs as groundbait Ziggy.

 

:D Never thought of that Dai, you could be onto something there.

Found something previously unseen by me today, root aphids on a dandelion.

 

That`s new to me too. Not impossible though.

 

About 10 of them, only on the white new root growth, not on the yellow bit. Better not be sucking the flavour out of next years dandelion coffee:gaagh:

 

I know aphids on honeysuckle can be really bad...but if you can manage to wash them off or squish them it gives the ladybird larvae a chance to hatch and do a proper job. If you spray with a systemic like Provado, you never get that whole balance going and you end up needing to keep on spraying.
I reared a baby bluetit for four days in my bedroom when I was little...it had fallen out of a bluetit box before the others flew out.
I know you should leave them, but I was about ten at the time and this couldn't fly at all. Anyway, I spent hours collecting aphids from all the neighbours gardens and after four days, my dad put it on top of our bird feeder when he could see the others all out of the box and being fed by their mum.
It was a success!
Don't tell me gardens are just about plants...how sterile and boring would that be?

 

Nobody said gardening was all about plants, only that it was about nurturing plants not pests. ALL gardeners encourage wildlife into their gardens, but we do not want aphids.