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Thread: Root Aphids attack cash strapped gardener . HELP!

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    Default Root Aphids attack cash strapped gardener . HELP!

    Hi Everyone . i'm new here so please excuse any ignorance of site rules or etiquette. I had real issues i my last grow and suffered a 40% reduction in my yield as a consequence. I treated and treated for fungus gnats and after a little success with each new method saw a terrible return to yellowing and stunted growth etc. I realise now that the scyriad were only one of the pests I was fighting and I was totally unaware of the other more serious customer. After that go round I packed down and hit the room/tents/equipment with a 30/70 bleach solution hard . After a 4 month rest ( thinking that some time would stop repopulation) and starting again with new genetics from seed , in less than 3 weeks I have problems again and after much closer and more regular inspection have recognized my issue to be Root Aphids. Tiny black fliers (just appeared) 1/4 size of fungus gnats , already yellowing and dying off of the lowest leafs and tip s. honeydew slug trail type white residue over the top of my root riots and upon examination conical tails extending from the back eds of the little blighters. I cannot afford to get an expensive loupe for my phone camera so cannot i'm afraid really add any images of use to this post. I suffer from long term health problems that dont allow me to work , so growing my medicine has to be done a very tight budget and forking out for non effective remedies on my last crop caused me to go without vital life needs ( gas/adequate food etc) After buying seeds BB Cheese + Dinafem OG #18 I am terrified that im going to lose my girls before were even a length out the gate. Presently they are under a small 50w Cfl in a Bay6 Propagation tent in small plastic pots filled with tropic batmix soil surrounding the root riots i seeded them in. the itake is passive and double netted. I have a circulation fan inside but no extractor in my start tent as not really deeded i find.
    I know ive' caught it quick but they're young and after lots of research the most effective kill dead cures and ongoing systemics, either are not available in the UK imidacloprid products , Botaniguard es or wp and products like Orthene . All pretty heavy duty I know but I used h2o2 and soaps and neem , as well as diatomaceous earth, which I have already added to my soil in the pots as I had some left. As i said I dont have much money at all to combat this , so PLEASE does anyone here have any good information of cost effective ways of eliminating these awfully resistant pests. Time is one thing I have plenty of on my side and can spend as much as is necessary i my room to fight this . What I don't have is £100's pounds to spend on insecticides that might not work and will gave to be re brought and applied again and again. If there is a solid killer of these pests that can be applied as a root drench or good practices I might not be aware of I'd be so massively grateful for your help. Lastly apart from bleach is there a again more powerful long acting solution to completely soak my whole area ad equipment with. Sorry for such a massive post but I wanted to get in as much information as possible. Ok thanks again for anything you might be able to do for me .

    Cheapseats

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    ice will be along shortly welcome to the talk
    skin it roll it lick it twist it.


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  5. Default

    Hello CheapSeats, sorry to read about these issues..

    As far as I have read about these Root Aphids is that there is no chemical control for root aphids..is it possible it's being introduced into your area from the soil you are using?

    Apparently, you can try and wash them off with soap but I personally don't think that would work very well..If I were you, I'd completely disinfect the area at least 3-4 times with 200ml bleach per litre water and give it a couple of goes at least, make sure to wash it all down.

    If there is a possibility it's being introduced through the soil, then buy something else, from a different supplier and see how you get on.

    Good luck!

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    Hi Ice , thanks for the response .

    Soil is not the issue . Due to what I thought were fungus gnats but more than likely were RA as well last time I informed my supplier with my 'not amused' face on . He told me that they hadn't had any other inquiries in over 3000 bags sold locally over 18 month s. Even went as far as to get their producers (as it is their own product) to look over practice and possible contamination, as we are well acquainted and he could see I was trying really hard to pin down the problem. i think I might change it up next time I purchase though as maybe wherever they are hibernating and returning from , it is a favorable blend that suits them as a habitat. I am continuing with the bleaching . These are mighty tough critters though. They have 18 stages of life , can go into a hibernation in nooks and crannys for up to 3 years and the females dont even have to lay eggs as they give live birth straight onto the root zone. Even though i nuked my area with bleach again and again over the 4 month break i took hoping for them to go away. almost as soon as i popped my seeds and they started to pop up in the root riots. There they were, the small tent had even been soaked in a bleach bath for 24hrs and all intake holes closed apart from the one with double netting over it. Thanks again for your suggestions though mate and your time in thinking about it for me , Hope your having a good summer yourself .

    CS.

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    Hi Lip thanks for the welcome .

    CS

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    Quote Originally Posted by CheapSeats View Post
    Hi Ice , thanks for the response .

    Soil is not the issue . Due to what I thought were fungus gnats but more than likely were RA as well last time I informed my supplier with my 'not amused' face on . He told me that they hadn't had any other inquiries in over 3000 bags sold locally over 18 month s. Even went as far as to get their producers (as it is their own product) to look over practice and possible contamination, as we are well acquainted and he could see I was trying really hard to pin down the problem. i think I might change it up next time I purchase though as maybe wherever they are hibernating and returning from , it is a favorable blend that suits them as a habitat. I am continuing with the bleaching . These are mighty tough critters though. They have 18 stages of life , can go into a hibernation in nooks and crannys for up to 3 years and the females dont even have to lay eggs as they give live birth straight onto the root zone. Even though i nuked my area with bleach again and again over the 4 month break i took hoping for them to go away. almost as soon as i popped my seeds and they started to pop up in the root riots. There they were, the small tent had even been soaked in a bleach bath for 24hrs and all intake holes closed apart from the one with double netting over it. Thanks again for your suggestions though mate and your time in thinking about it for me , Hope your having a good summer yourself .

    CS.
    You're more than welcome mate and it's been a good summer for me and the wifey so far thank you for asking

    Hmm this is very odd then, I think changing it up might be worth a shot mate, just on the off chance it is something to do with their storage somewhere along the line..I just can't imagine after you cleaning your area so well, they would be back so quickly!..something not adding up for sure.

    Sorry I can't help you more with this and please do update us here for future reference, hope it all sorts out for you.

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    Welcome to the Talk dude, enjoy

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    Hi Everyone.
    So I've given my little ones the smallest drink I could get away with after leaving them 5 days trying to dry out their soil as much as possible
    to try and slow down a spread of these root aphids . I'm not sure if this is correct as it's really a method I use with fungus gnats. Also got to ordering something called Botaniguard 22 wp offline from the states but it wont be here for up to 15 days (ARGHHHH) Thing is I was planning to top/anchor/train them for scrog and usually I like to get in early but they have climbed to their 5th/6th set of branches already. I am so unsure about whether to top them before I've treated for the root aphids as having cuts open to the element in the tent might encourage yet more spread. I have a few doubled over gaffer tape with sugar solution traps up , which disturbingly are clean although ive seen one or two tiny black fliers and I know they are there and am worried about them infecting the girls even more through the open cut locations.
    Does anyone know anything about topping whilst suffering an infestation ? Also I have cleaned their base tray in a weak bleach solution hoping to add another defense against the crawlers. Ill let it dry naturally but does anyone see a problem with my roots from having a freshly bleached tray surface beneath them? Thanks for everyone's welcome and comments so far

    CS

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    Making me fooking itch now
    Heyup cheapseats is this soil stored indoors before purchase?
    I bought some from a supermarket carpark, got it home had a butchers and all looked fine
    But less than a week under my lights the mud were crawling the lot went to tip seedlings and all
    Now I just visit a hydroponics store that stores it soils in as close as sterile as possible condition indoors

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    Hi Greengrass ( Love the name and character btw).

    Soil was purchased from my local hydro and is a brand that they formulate themselves , knowing them well I informed them after my last grow
    about the possible issue. They have had no other complaints in the last 1500 bags they have sold but went as far as to review their practice
    and the possibility of contamination in storage specifically with RA in mind. Apart from there being occasional chunks of rotting wood in their
    product which they are looking to get down to 0% and is not in itself the cause of pests , just a optimum habitat for them to thrive . There was
    nothing reported back . I was mighty impressed at the efforts they made tbh.

    I am now pretty much sure that I was infected 2 crops ago with some Gorilla glue cuttings i took in from a friend of a friend, Cardinal sin and
    for anyone following something to avoid at all costs . Now although they assured our mutual friend they had no issues in their own grow. I was
    less than convinced and think guilt might have been guiding their responses to my understandable hump. At that point i just thought it was
    fungus gnats and indeed I did have some , which is why it's taken a further crop and this starter to eliminate that possibility.

    CS

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