Dunking entire tree in soap/insecticidal water

[zeejet]

I'm in my first year of bonsai and already noticed that aphids and possibly other insects have started showing up on new growth in my Japanese boxwood.

I've tried spraying generously with Cap Jack's Deadbug and pruning some of the shoots with large colonies but they always come back the next day.

I recently saw a houseplant YouTuber dunk entire foliar masses in soapy water and was wondering if this is viable for trees. Can't seem to find anyone who has tried it though and I suppose the trees need to be small enough to handle. I don’t think I’m able to reach all the nooks and crannies where aphids hide with the spray and thinking that a complete dunk might be necessary.

What are my options here?

 

[hardtimes]

spray with soapy water and maybe add bayer 3 in 1 to your pesticide routine

 

[rockm]

I'm in my first year of bonsai and already noticed that aphids and possibly other insects have started showing up on new growth in my Japanese boxwood.

I've tried spraying generously with Cap Jack's Deadbug and pruning some of the shoots with large colonies but they always come back the next day.

I recently saw a houseplant YouTuber dunk entire foliar masses in soapy water and was wondering if this is viable for trees. Can't seem to find anyone who has tried it though and I suppose the trees need to be small enough to handle. I don’t think I’m able to reach all the nooks and crannies where aphids hide with the spray and thinking that a complete dunk might be necessary.

What are my options here?

Um, you ever turned a bonsai pot upside down? Sees a few videos of that practice are making the rounds...It is what it is. One is of a dunk into a pail of lime sulfur solution-- If you haven't secured the soil/tree into the pot, you're in for a disaster. Additionally, all that stuff you're dunking the tree into will drip into the soil once the tree is turned upright. Since it has saturated the entire top of the tree, there can be a significant amount of dripping which could affect the roots.

FWIW, insect infestations are a SYMPTOM of something else going on with a tree--insects are drawn to weaker trees. Best way to keep them away is keeping them healthy.

A simple method of getting rid of aphid infestations is to direct a forceful spray of water UP INTO the foliage from below. Spray the entire canopy from underneath

 

[penumbra]

I have dipped entire tops of plants (upside down) in soapy water a number of times. I have also dipped bare root plants in soapy mix to get rid of mealy bugs. I use Dr Bronners soap only.

 

[penumbra]

FWIW, insect infestations are a SYMPTOM of something else going on with a tree--insects are drawn to weaker trees. Best way to keep them away is keeping them healthy

Absolutely agree with this but it is not always as cut and dry as keeping plants healthy. Often there is environmental and geographic concerns over which we have limited control at best.

 

[Mikecheck123]

Depends on how wimpy your tree is. I once submerged a Chinese elm completely (pot and all) for 24 hours, which completely eliminated an aphid infestation.

The tree was healthy, and Chinese elms are bullet proof. So I'd think hard about doing it to other trees.

 

[penumbra]

Depends on how wimpy your tree is. I once submerged a Chinese elm completely (pot and all) for 24 hours, which completely eliminated an aphid infestation.

The tree was healthy, and Chinese elms are bullet proof. So I'd think hard about doing it to other trees.

For the record, I have done this with a fairly wide variety hardwoods, conifers, and tropicals. When doing tops or bare roots, a swish through the bucket for even 30 seconds will take care of aphids and mites. For mealy bugs and scale I leave them in awhile.
This is using Bronners soaps ( I like peppermint) and not other soaps that do work but are harsher. Nearly all of the others are detergents, not soaps.

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

Cap Jack's Deadbug

Look man, I'm going to be a little bitch about it because I'm a sucker for READING LABELS. I'm also a sucker for not treating insects, and if you do, do it with proper insecticides.
You can swallow a tube of athlete's foot cream if you have a UTI, but that isn't going to help even though it contains "antibiotics".

Nowhere on the label of deadbug brew it says that it's listed for aphids.
It contains spinosad, a chemical that's used to treat beetle-like bugs. Not everyone is an ornithologist or whatever an insect-professional is called, so I get it, but nobody here thought about labels either and that upsets me a little. I also get that not everyone is a biochemist or a chemist or a biologist, but we're collectively trying to act like it and we're collectively falling short, that upsets me too.

It's no wonder the aphids keep coming back because you're not treating the aphids. Simple as that.

One minute of googling helped me figure that out. One copy and paste, four or five clicks in total.

Please, please for your own safety and the safety of all people and animals around you, read the label and stick to it.
If you want to treat against aphids, get something that has aphids on the label. One or two treatments and you're good to go.
If you want help picking out the good stuff, we're here to help! Not sure what's available over there, but look for something that has pyrethrin in it. It should kill aphids dead and it's globally available.

If you're going to use soap, make darn sure it's potassium soap and not sodium based soap. Sodium based soap will kill your plants, and it's about 100x cheaper because it has no use other than washing humans.

 

[Darth Masiah]

all that stuff you're dunking the tree into will drip into the soil once the tree is turned upright. Since it has saturated the entire top of the tree, there can be a significant amount of dripping which could affect the roots.

after you dip your tree you set it down on it's side so the run off goes on down to the table/ground. a couple different size blocks will help. should dry fairly quickly in windy/fan assisted conditions.

 

[Seany]

You can fuss with insecticidal soap but a few sprays of bayer 3 in 1 will easily kill all aphids for at least a month.

 

[roberthu]

I use BioAdvanced for aphids and it works really well.