Getting rid of aphids on pepper plants
Jun 20, 2009 aphids, brown spots, ladybugs, peppers
First of all I am a little embarrassed that I let the infestation get this bad before noticing. I unfortunately set the grow box to have the sunrise at 1:00am and the lights always were off by the time I got home. Though the cause is not as important as how to get rid of them.
If this plant was outside my local lady bug population would have kept these buggers in check though they seemed to thrive without the vicious predators. For an outdoor plant a quick high pressure spray of water on the the leaves (as well as underside of leaves) would take care of the problem. Though this does not kill the aphids, they will starve to death before they make it anywhere to do any more damage.
This has not been my first battle with aphids, so fortunately I had some insecticidal soap on hand. I sprayed the entire plant from the top and bottom. I removed the major yellowing leaves and did another quick spray. Now if you don’t have any insecticidal soap, or just want to save $5 on buying a bottle here are a couple of proven recipes:
Simple Aphid Killer Spray
- 1 tsp dishwashing soap
- Fill 32 oz spray bottle with water
Directions: Shake and spray liberally on tops and bottom of leaves ensuring aphids are covered completely.
Complex Aphid Killer Spray
- 1.5 tablespoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon Murphy’s Oil Soap
- 1 tablespoon Vegetable Oil
- 1 tablespoon Vinegar
- 1 gallon water
Directions: Pour into spray bottle and spray liberally on tops and bottom of leaves ensuring aphids are covered completely.
Extra Spicy Aphid Killer Spray
- 3 hot peppers chopped finely
- 1 quart of water
Directions: Mix peppers with water and let seep overnight. Strain and pour into spray bottle and spray liberally on tops and bottom of leaves ensuring aphids are covered completely. WARNING:Â You care not to get this spray in your eyes.
US Department of Agriculture Mix
- 2 tsp dishwashing soap
- 1 cup of vegetable oil
- Fill 32 oz spray bottle with water
Directions: Shake and spray liberally on tops and bottom of leaves every 9-10 days, ensuring aphids are covered completely.
If none of these solutions work, squish those buggers with your fingers being sure to include a sinister laugh while doing it. Which even if you are squeamish, this is what you will see if you let them have their way.
Tags: grow lights, growbox, outdoor plants, pepper plants, vegetables
June 21st, 2009 at 8:49 AM
Sadly, once they get in your room, it is more about control than prevention. Thanks for the great recipes.
June 27th, 2009 at 4:26 PM
I've used the USDA's version last year. Worked pretty good.
July 1st, 2009 at 7:47 AM
Red, that is very true. Funny how problem appears to be taken care of then out of nowwhere bugs everywhere… I did have one case of defeating aphids indoors. On a peppermint plant, though I did cut it off at soil level and let it come back
Web4Deb, when my store bought supply runs out think of trying the USDA's as well. But for just a bit of irony almost want to try the pepper recipe so the plant can actually fight back 
July 8th, 2009 at 1:17 PM
Thank you for these "recipes". And I love your blog!
July 10th, 2009 at 2:29 AM
i'm fed up with aphids!!!! i have 3pots of habanero peppers and every time i see those APHIDS i take my spray bottle and spray them off, but a few days later,THEY'RE BACK UGHHHHH. sooo, yesterday i dug out the one pot of peppers of their original planter and cleaned the plants off, then i planted them in a different planter, the other 2 pots of peppers still have aphids on them. if it keeps the little critters off of that plant, i will do the same with the other two. if not, them i'm sure to use one of the solution sprays. the USDA mix looks to be assuring. thankyou, wish me luck
August 3rd, 2009 at 11:52 AM
Last year I used a mix of water and Fels-Naptha bar soap. I use a pressure tank so its a really fine mist. Good luck and hope your peppers hang in there!
August 5th, 2009 at 8:52 PM
Fortunately for me the weather got too warm to keep the plants inside and the next day I say a swarm of ladybugs attacking the aphids. Definately the most effective way of elimiating them.
December 28th, 2009 at 6:36 PM
the stuff in the link goes a long way and works extremely well.
May 5th, 2010 at 6:00 AM
The aphid problem on my jalapeno peppers grew out of control very quickly. This morning I blasted them with a spray of water, then applied the Ag Spray thoroughly! Will re-blog with results next week!
June 9th, 2010 at 4:01 PM
[...] Getting rid of aphids on pepper plants (tags: gardening aphids) [...]
February 4th, 2011 at 8:52 PM
It is meaningless to provide a recipe without indicating the final volume of solution. ‘Fill spray bottle with water’(e.g. as in ‘simple aphid killer’) says nothing. That spray bottle could accommodate anything from 400 ml to 6 or more litres. Same applies to the last recipe. What a pity. The entire article is rendered useless.
David
February 14th, 2011 at 11:19 AM
@David Querido, was using the assumption of 32 oz spray bottle. I have updated the recipes above to state this.
March 30th, 2011 at 5:04 AM
Thank you so much, I’ll try these recipes. Has anyone had trouble with wasps on their plants? Last year it was a battle between the wasps and myself. It’s hard to pick peppers while running:)
June 15th, 2011 at 2:24 PM
I’ve just purchased another three pack of pepper plants only to find that they have aphids. Since they are still in the 3 pack tray, would it do any good to make sure the dirt is sealed in then hang the plants upside down in a bucket that has a mixture dish soap, veggie oil or any of the other rememdies (like pyola)? Would a ‘dunk’ job work or be a little more effective for these newbies–since you can dunk them in the three pack?
Thanks,
Karen
June 16th, 2011 at 9:18 AM
Hmm, I wondered about mixing baking soda with vinegar. I am so far away from chemistry–so do not recall if we just get a salt, water and carbon dioxide and a bit of fizzing action?
That said, I think I will add the vinegar, vegetable oil and Murphy’s.
June 16th, 2011 at 1:16 PM
With the gallon of water the vinegar should be diluted too much to get the classic volcano science experiment reaction. Not sure what exactly this combination is meant to cause…possibly a drying agent while not affecting the pH?
July 20th, 2011 at 7:29 PM
I just used the complex spray for my peppers and It is already showing signs of improvement. Just one question though, How often do I spray my plants? Is it everyday till they are gone or once a week? Thanks so much!
July 20th, 2011 at 8:59 PM
Kim, I would spray them every few days for a couple of weeks. Then keep an eye on them since they can always make a comeback and do it quickly
August 29th, 2011 at 4:58 PM
will frogs & beneficial insects also be killed or repelled using the spays for aphids?
August 29th, 2011 at 5:01 PM
this year has been terrible for my garden, aphids galore, rats, leafcutting ants & mold/fungus from all the moisture/humidity in the air. i took care of the rats, mold & am working on the aphids & ants. thank you for your advice on the sprays.
December 13th, 2011 at 5:55 PM
Ha! Thanks for the info….funny and informative
March 17th, 2012 at 5:56 AM
I have had a lot of trouble with my indoor ring of fire peppers. I tried Crysanthymum extract inceticide…seems to nto do a thing. tried soapy water…still nothing..tried individually killing the little critters , but they alway scome back and miss a couple of days and they are all over the plant. Soap spary every day will have to be tried as these little things seem not to care about much.
April 18th, 2012 at 8:39 AM
would canola oil work in place of veg oil
April 21st, 2012 at 9:10 AM
Yes, normally canola oil is sold as “vegetable oil” though not entirely sure why it is called vegetable oil since most “vegetable oils” are created from seeds…
May 6th, 2012 at 12:27 PM
I used the vegetable oil and dish soap combo and my plants perked back up in an hour. I just keep spraying them with the mix. I’ve done it a couple times right after I found the aphids, I will continue to mist my plants as long as I see positive results. Thanks!