Aphids on Roses are soft-bodied sucking insects rarely kill plants in your landscaping, but they will cause unsightly damage and can spread disease in your garden. Many natural predators of Aphids on the roses exist which help manage the Aphid populations, so control of Aphids should be targeted to the aphids and not ladybugs, green lace wings, tiny parasitic wasps and hover flies which are there to help combat the Aphids
95 percent of all bugs in your garden are beneficial and chemical pesticides indiscriminately kill anything they touch, the short-term advantage of using them will be overshadowed by the loss of the beneficial insects. The practice of organically feeding the soil instead of the plants makes for healthy soil. Healthy soil means strong growth and a large population of good organisms that will fight pests and disease.
A banana a day keeps the Aphids away. Whenever you eat a banana place the peel at the base of a rose bush. The rose bushes benefit from the potassium in the banana peel and aphids tend to avoid the bushes with banana peels. The peelings turn dark and are “invisible” on the soil within a day or so.
One of the best methods we’ve found to keep aphids, rust and mildew off roses is to wash the bushes a couple times a week with the garden hose. It physically removes aphids and the spores which cause fungal problems. Make sure to leave enough time for the rose bushes to dry before sunset as wet leaves invite fungal problems at night.
Inspect rose bushes regularly for signs of aphid infestation. Aphids secrete a sweet substance called honeydew and if allowed to stay on leaves it will become a growing ground for sooty mold that is black. Ants love this honeydew and will actually farm aphids and protect them to insure a good source of honeydew. If you see ants on rose bushes, it’s a sure sign of an active aphid infestation.
Insecticide soap and Neem oil will also help control aphids, but beware; they will also kill beneficial insects. A great recipe for controlling Aphids and to make your roses unpalatable to aphids and other pests, spray them with a ½ and ½ solution of Listerine and water. This will be an untasteful solution that will keep Aphids away and protect your roses.
If you follow these simple chores, your roses should give you beautiful blooms from late March through December.
Aphids on Roses