| Appearance |
Adults: Small, soft-bodied, tear-drop shaped, ranging in color from green to blue-green, yellow, orange, red, black and greyish white. Some are covered with fluffy white wax. Most have a pair of tubular cornicles near the tip of the abdomen (looks like a “dual-exhaust” system). Dispersing adults have wings.
Immatures: Resemble adults. |
| Life Cycle/Habits |
Eggs laid in fall overwinter and hatch in spring. Many more generations are produced during the growing season. Aphids move slowly, congregating on new succulent growing tips and leaf undersides. Winged dispersing adults may fly to other plants. Aphids have long slender mouthparts to suck plant sap, and excrete sticky honeydew. Aphids feed on plant leaves, stems or roots, depending on the species, and can transmit plant diseases. |
| Host Plants |
A wide range including: beans, beets, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cantaloupes, cauliflower, collards, cucumbers, eggplant, kale, peppers, potatoes, pumpkins, radishes, spinach, squash, tomatoes, turnips, watermelons. |
| Signs/Symptoms |
Sucking of sap stunts plants. Leaves curl  and/or discolor with white or yellow stippling. Sooty mold may grow on honeydew, blackening leaves. Aphids congregate on new growing tips, but are also attracted to lush, overly fertilized growth or stressed plants. |
| Monitoring |
Examine transplants to intercept infested plants. Check leaf tips and undersides and along stems for clusters. Inspect for sooty mold growing on honeydew. Note any curling, stunting, or stippling. Ants frequently harvest honeydew from aphids, so the presence of ants may be a sign of aphid infestation. |
| Prevention/Control |
- Do not plant infested transplants.
- Aphids are mainly a problem May through June, but have many natural enemies (e.g. lady bird beetles, lacewings, surphid fly, parasitic wasps) that keep numbers controlled. Look for brown, swollen parasitized bodies.
- Encourage predators with attractant plants and avoid toxic pesticides.
- Control low aphid infestations with a robust spray of water.
- If damage is obvious and predators and parasitoids few, use insecticidal soap.
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