Topic: Broad Beans and the dreaded BlackFly

[1066]

Afternoon all  ;D  Ok, this afternoon's question is what should I do with my (not so) lovely Aquadulce BB's - they were planted about a month ago, and are about 6" high and last week I noticed they had succumbed to the dreaded. I sprayed them with a weak solution of soapy water, and since then they are still not looking happy - and some have started to flower!

So I went and bought 12 BB's from a local garden centre / farm shop - lovely healthy plants and planted them in a different area of the plot.

So should I just give up on the Aquadulce BB's? I reckon I should dig them up, my OH (the non gardener  ::)  :o ) reckons I should leave them in

Thanks
1066

PS I can't actually believe they have succumbed to blackfly in the 1st place!! Humph  :-X

[Unwashed]

I've never bothered doing anything.  It's a shame the BB aren't a bit taller because you could have pinched the tops out - the blackfly only go for the tops apparently.  I had blackfly badly on my runners last year and I just left them to it - ladybird larvae mopped them up in a matter of days and I can say it bothered the beans.

[Robert_Brenchley]

I've had odd aquadulce plants completely smothered in blackfly, and they've carried on and produced a crop anyway. Are you sure something else isn't harming them?

[OberonUK]

Have you considered planting nasturtiums close by - blackfly love them - plant them as a sacrificial offering, in the hope that the fly will go for them and not the beans.

[Unwashed]

Aren't there varieties better suited to planting now than Aquadulce?

[BarriedaleNick]

BB and Blackfly are made for each other!!
I always overwinter my broadies and blackfly seems much less of a bother...not a lot of help to you now!!
I am betting your new lot will get blackfly as well  :(..

If they get hold early on then they are tricky to get rid off but if you can control the numbers then natural predators will clean the rest up..
I use a bit of neem oil in soapy suspension or just blast them with a hose while rubbing the affected areas - it wont get rid of em all but it will stop em destroying the crop - i'd leave em unless they are totally covered and on their way out..

[1066]

thanks for the replies and suggestions

Yes I'm sure it's only blackfly. They were sown in winter in pots and then planted out. Which is exactly what I did last year - all be it I'm a bit later this year - which might have something to do with it  :-\

I had thought about pinching out the tops as well but thought the same - too small!

I'll try a few nasturtiums - but by the time they germinate and get growing it will probably be too late. I have sown summer savoury as a companion plant  :-\

Oh well, lets hope the 2nd batch do better!

[Paulines7]

My broad beans are about 2 ft high now and have plenty of flowers and young beans.  However, this evening I noticed one of the plants was covered in blackfly on the top 6 inches.  I decided to cut it off as it was such a heavy infestation on just the one plant.  Tomorrow, when the light is better, I will inspect the others and see how I am going to deal with them.  If there are just a few I will get the cellotape out but more than that and I will have to try soapy water or a hose.

1066, did you get blackfly on the second batch you planted?  Mine have been in since March.  I started them off indoors in January so I am pleased that they have been blackfly free until now.

[earlypea]

Me, I've been smothered in blackfly for over a month.  3 varieties, different ends of plot, autumn sown and march sown.  Seems I cannot win, same as last year.

I've given up spraying.  Picked out the tips a while back, which did actually reduce the population a bit.  At the same time I have been smothered in ladybirds and larvae, but they never seem to outrun the foe, probably saving some for lunch tomorrow.   

Curiously, some plants are now clean and others are still swamped on plants sitting next to each other.  It really is a mystery.

I have to disagree that they don't damage the yield, they smother the flowers not just the tips and no beans on those set.

One question - they also nestle on the nearly ripe beans - are they sucking the life out of them?  Will they mature fully?

[little pud]

thought they were winter variety?

[1066]

1066, did you get blackfly on the second batch you planted?  Mine have been in since March.  I started them off indoors in January so I am pleased that they have been blackfly free until now.

sorry I must have missed your question  :-[
Anyway, yes I did get a few on the  2nd batch but not as badly. And to be honest the 1st batch have now sort of pulled through and look better than the 2nd batch (how weird is that). But they are still tiny, have flowered and are producing pods but nowhere near as healthy (tall and bushy) as they should be. Oh well, next year........

And Little Pud - yes they were over wintering ones, which are meant to be better for not getting the dreaded black fly

EarlyPea - what you say about yield is interesting, I wonder what others think?

1066  :)

[Psi (Pronounced 'Si'!)]

nettles nearby I hear works.  Leave them and let the ladybirds deal with them.  Eradicate ants nearby - they farm the black fly.

[earlypea]

nettles nearby I hear works.  

They do say so and I leave a big patch because it's supposed to host beneficial insects, but actually the biggest clump is right next to one of my BB beds so doesn't always work.  Besides my entire plot is heaving with ladybirds.

I don't think it is possible to eradicate ants, without using something offensive on the soil.  (tried the ant nematodes with no success last year)

Answering my own question above - the blackfly on the pods are feeding there and they are developing in a twisted fashion  :-\

Never mind - been eating oodles of peas and plenty more to come.  Don't even like BBs that much, growing them for someone else as its their all-time favourite.  I'll be cropping baby BBs middle of next week I reckon, sick of the sight of them all encrusted with black.

[chriscross1966]

I noticed some blackfly on my first set of BB's.... I'bve tracked down the ants and dusted the nest and Dr Bonners soft soap a few drops in a pint sprayer seems to have done for most of the blackfly (worth having a pack around the place for how insane the literature on the label is BTW) Once I'm back from Glastonbury I'll be on the warpath after any other ants I find, don't mind the red ones but the black ones will not survive my attentions long....

chrisc