Greenflies

GardenAmateur

Just wondering if anyone is getting particularly plagued by greenfly this year? My hydrangea, strawberries,  tulips and roses all covered in hundreds of them . I've been given the leaves a battering with the hose but they keep coming . Is it the weather? Compost heap? Bad luck? 

josusa47

None of those, just nature.  Aphids have no appreciation of natural beauty, all they see in a garden is a big free buffet. The bigger, stronger and healthier your plants are, the better their chances of surviving damage from pests, that is natural selection at work, so keep them fed and watered.  If you encourage birds to visit your garden by providing food and shelter, they will help control insect pests.

Fairygirl

I haven't seen any difference, but I do have a lot of blue and great tits who love them. I also don't grow a lot of susceptible plants, and new growth here coincides with the birds having their young to feed, so it's rarely an issue. 
I've noticed from a lot of queries on this forum that when it's warm early in the year, many people start feeding plants a bit sooner than they would normally, which can lead to a lot of soft new growth. Perfect for greenfly unfortunately.
That may be just my perception though.

Fire

Discussion here from a few days ago.

GardenAmateur

@Fire Thanks at least I am not alone 

@Fairygirl I haven't fed anything yet was tempted to do the sweet peas last night but thought the rain would just wash it away , maybe the cat is scaring the birds though but to be honest I haven't seen a decline in the use of the feeders. 

ColinA

last Wednesday afternoon around 4 30 our village was covered in a flying swarm of greenfly, the air was thick with them and then about thirty minutes later they disappeared as quick as they came