[Porffor]

Ok, i know this is REALLY basic but i'm in the middle of an adoption placement (our foster child is having introductions with her new mum and dad) and i'm pretty much tied up from going to garden centres/town etc for a bit. Wondered if you have any magic remedies for flies on my roses... not many roses, or flies but they annoy me!

I'll confess, only time i've ever had roses before was when i first had my eldest and my next door neighbour used to spray my roses for me!! Occasionally i'd cut his lawn when he wasn't well.

Anyway.. any great tips on household products? or am i going to have to go shopping?

Thanks

[gobs]

Just wash them off.

[DD.]

As there's not too many, squish 'em with your fingers!

[Trillium]

I believe others use something called Fairy soap mixed with water and sprayed onto plant pests.

[Porffor]

bug phobic that i am, i'll go for the fairy liquid! Thanks!!

[weeeed]

If you buy a chives plant from the supermarket and pop it in the soil near as pos to the rose you shouldn't have any more problems.

[ColinGrigson]

An old boy I asked about blackfly on roses also suggested Fairy liquid diluted with water , when I asked him if that would kill them he said " don't know but it'll make their bl**dy eyes water "    

[Maryann]

I used soapy water a few weeks back and it seemed to do the trick, only problem was my poor roses so infested with red and green fly that it sort of caked them on....killed them .......just didn't wash them off.

I also found that a product called Organic Garlic Barrier works very well if you use it in time (or even after killing off the problem). It's a New Horizon product and is said to be a natural bio-stimulant that helps plants to grow healthily and become less prone to attack from insects (thats what the blurb says anyway)!!

It does whiff a bit of garlic but doesn't taint the crop and is harmless to kids and pets etc. Smell soon drifts off.

Hope this helps  

[siztenboots]

It goes like this

Raindrops on roses
and whiskers on kittens...

[Porffor]

Thanks all
Will try the chives in future - i've used marigolds near tomatoes in the past and that worked for them