Eliminating white aphids from honeysuckle vine

What is the best way to eliminate white aphids from my honeysuckle vine?

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**FULL QUESTION** Dear *Gardening Life*, How do you get rid of white aphids on a honeysuckle vine? I've sprayed it several times with insecticide recommended from our local nursery, but it continues to have aphids. Any advice? *—Rita*

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**FULL ANSWER** Rita, Aphids are a favourite food of many predators such as ladybugs and syrphid flies. Often, if you wait a couple of weeks, these predators will show up and start devouring them. In the meantime, you can wash the aphids off with a good strong spray from the hose. Once the aphids are off the plant, they can’t climb back on. You can also try spraying with insecticidal soap, but be aware that the soap, as well as stronger chemical sprays, will adversely affect beneficial insects, too. In Ontario particularly, there is an aphid (*Hyadaphis tataricae*) from Asia that colonizes the growing branch tips of honeysuckles; this causes clusters of sprouts called witch’s brooms. Treatment calls for pruning out the infested branches and spraying the shrub with dormant oil before the buds break in early spring. Look for honeysuckles such as *Lonicera caerulea* and *L. chrysantha* that are more resistant to aphids. Good luck! *—Karen York, Botanical Editor* Other questions recently answered by the GL team: Eliminating earwigs from clematis flowers Beetle damage to spruce trees Removing whiteflies from hibiscus leaves Building a cactus garden Maintaining redbud trees Maintaining Boston ivy growth Using black walnut leaves for mulch Stopping powdery mildew on maples Planting trees near a swale Growing on a septic field How to battle weeds between flagstone and alternative options Mysterious orange powder on the lawn What to do with end-of-season potatoes on the vine How to control Japanese knotweed What to grow in a dry area The proper way to plant astrantia What is the star flower and how do I manage it? How do I eliminate my ant problem? Preventing red beetles from attacking lilies Vine types to grow on a new pergola Maintaining purple fountain grass Keeping bougainvilllea healthy throughout the winer How to rid invasive green goutweed Good garden uses for fireplace ashes Growing grape hyacinth indoors The best way to convert a lawn into a meadow The proper way to grow rhododendrons Eliminating beetle damage to spruce trees Annual resembling Japanese maple Planting ivy near cedar trees In search of the 'Sundance Kid' sunflower Caring for canna bulbs A supplier for barren strawberry ground cover Winter care for roses Cutting back mauna loa The best time to harvest curly-leaf lettuce Eliminating invasive trumpet Caring for double-flowering hibiscus trees

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