Re: [CH] fruit fly ?
Tara Deen (tara@es.usyd.edu.au)
Mon, 15 Jan 2001 11:36:10 +1100
James,
If you're in Sydney, then it's sure to be fruit fly. There are a lot
around at the moment. I am also in Sydney and while I can't say I've had
any trouble with my chillies as yet, but I've been fighting them off my
tomatoes.
Fruit fly are a serious commercial pest. You must place all infected
pods in a sealed plastic bag, put it in the full sun for a couple of
hours, then dispose of it in the rubbish bin. It is important to break
their breeding cycle.
A tip you could try is to cover the chillies from above using a bit of
cloth rag or paper bag. If it's a Don Burke Thai chilli, it holds it's
pods upright so a bag would be easy to apply. The reason behind this
madness is that apparently fruit fly identify and attack the fruit by
sight from above. If it's covered, they don't see it. Of course, it also
means you can't admire the pods, but that's better than not having
any...
As for the aphids, try washing them off the serrano a firm jet of water
from the hose. You could also try a jet of soapy water from a spray
bottle, both methods assisted by back-up squashing of those reluctant to
leave. Once aphids have been forcibly removed using this method, their
mouth parts are damaged to the point where they cannot feed again. This
method requires close scrutiny in the follow-up, as any aphids left will
rapidly breed up in numbers again.
You could also try encouraging aphid's predators such as lacewings into
the garden to feed from the aphids. Lacewing larvae are the ones who do
the good work here, but you must attract the adults. They like flowering
alyssium, dill, carrot, parsnip etc.
Good luck,
Tara
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Tara Deen Phone: 61-2-9351 4271
School of Geosciences Fax: 61-2-9351 0184
Building FO5 Mobile: 061 410 538 655
University of Sydney NSW 2006 email: tara@es.usyd.edu.au
AUSTRALIA
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