aphids on water lettuce

[Chickie'sMomaInNH]

i was curious if anyone has a remedy for keeping aphids off the water lettuce kept in their ponds?

i have 2 bins filled with water and pond plants kept on my deck and i realized that the bins are 2 different colors. one is black like the pond liner and the other is a dark blue. well the last couple of days while i've been potting some of the excess pond plants from the bins i realized that the water lettuce in the blue bin do not appear to have any aphids on them! the black bin has aphids all over them and they are spotty looking. i am going to keep an eye on these 2 bins to see if this changes as the summer goes on.

i am wondering if anyone else would like to do an experiment similar to this or has done anything like this with similar or different results?!

 

[lesa]

I don't have any water gardens- but I have had my fair share of aphids! I find you can really get rid of them, but giving them a good drowning with the hose... Couldn't you just dip that lettuce under the water and "wash" them off? I have had them on one plant, and not on the other a few inches away. No idea why they prefer one over the other. That is so cool that you are water gardening on your deck- would love to see pics and hear more about it....

 

[Chickie'sMomaInNH]

strange that this seems to be the only water plant they thrive on! it is always the water lettuce that gets attacked by them. i wonder if it is because their leaves are harry and not waxy like most pond plants. the aphids seem to have a good grip on the plants so dunking them in the water doesn't always work well.

i just don't have my 'big' pond in the ground yet so i have been using some heavy duty totes filled with water and some small statuary pumps to keep the water flowing. i over bought pond plants early in the season and this was my quick remedy to get them in water to keep them healthy and from drying out. plus i got so many from one lady (she's a business) on ebay that i am selling the extras at my yard sales and to friends and family.

if you are going to get bins to use for this i recommend getting the ones called 'tough totes', they are similar to what i've seen used on fishing boats-very rugged sides that can handle the stress of water. i got a 2 pack of the bins and took one of them, stacked it going the opposite direction and just drilled 2 holes to make it into a small water feature. the Rubbermaid 55 gallon bins just aren't sturdy enough for lots of water in them-they will bow out. you can see it in the pictures i'll post later.

it was also a good way to catch the water from all the rain we have had this year!