We all know trees are an important part of keeping our environment healthy. Trees add value and beauty to the landscape. Trees also bring insects:
Every year it’s the same story, black, sticky crap all down the side of the home and all over the camper, truck or whatever else that may be parked under the tree including the wood pile. How do you stop it? Some go to the extreme and cut down the tree. We’ll, that definitely stops the mess, but there is an easier, less expensive way that has a better impact on the environment.
Here’s what’s happening: Aphids. Yup, Aphids are causing that mess. Aphids are attacking the tree, that’s what Aphids do. The tree doesn’t like Aphids attacking it so it does what it can to get rid of them. That’s where the mess comes from. The tree excretes sap to trap the Aphids and kill them. That sap drips on everything under the tree. It is sticky, dirty and hard to clean off.
There’s an easy solution: Help the tree get rid of the Aphids and it stops spewing sap.
There are a few options to accomplish this:
One method is to spray the tree with insecticide at the beginning and end of each season. This is the fastest way to put an end to the Aphids. Of course that means having the equipment to apply it and having a day when the wind doesn’t blow all of your efforts away and apply insecticide to everything down wind.
Another method is to apply an insecticide via the roots. If you do not have the equipment to inject the insecticide into the ground, you can mix the product in a bucket and pour it over the ground around the root system. This ground soak method requires a quarantine of the area for a few days. Pets and children should be kept out of the area until the insecticide has had a chance to dissipate; about three days.
Some insecticides can be painted on. Mix the chemicals and paint a band around the tree equal to 1 1/2 times the circumference of the tree. If the trunk of the tree is 10" in circumference, then you paint a 15" stripe around the trunk below the first branch. The tree then carries the insecticide throughout the entire system.
If you have a stigma about using chemicals in your yard because you have children and/or pets, use nature to help the tree. At the start of every season Local nurseries sell Lady Bugs. Purchase Lady Bugs, release them according to the instructions and good ole Mother Nature does the job. This method works but takes time and there is nothing stopping the Aphids from moving to another tree. That is actually a good thing. If everyone in the neighborhood bought and released Lady Bugs at the same time then the entire neighborhood would eventually be Aphid free or at least the infestation would be reduced significantly.
The easiest way to put an end to this problem is to call someone who does this for a living. In less than a day your problem is solved. They have the equipment and insecticides right for the job. Their training and experience in handling the poisons means you don’t have to worry about mixing, applying the poison and then clean-up the equipment.
No matter which method you chose, the pay-off is great. The tree stops spewing sap and starts looking healthy again. This is good for your yard, the birds and the environment. And even better yet, NO MORE SAP!
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