[carlotta]

I have aphids (black fly) on a few of my runner beans.

 Today I saw a few ants onbeans where the aphids are. I am not sure if they they deter the aphids or eat them or what. Can anyone shed some light?

[Beetroot queen]

Nope ants are all part of the problem, soapy water and spray. I also add ant powder to the bottom because ours have been so bad this year. French beans are now bug free and long may that last.

[mumofstig]

Read this to understand about ants and aphids 
http://www.antark.net/ant-life/ant-feeding/ant-farming.html

[Auntiemogs]

Read this to understand about ants and aphids 
http://www.antark.net/ant-life/ant-feeding/ant-farming.html

Crikey Mum, I knew they 'farmed' aphids but I had no idea how good they were at it.  Very interesting read, thank you. 

[ryetek]

Read this to understand about ants and aphids 
http://www.antark.net/ant-life/ant-feeding/ant-farming.html

Crikey Mum, I knew they 'farmed' aphids but I had no idea how good they were at it.  Very interesting read, thank you. 

Well you learn something everyday don't you! Thanks MoS.

[grinling]

 i put blobs of jam onto the parts above the aphids, the ants eat the jam and eat aphids for dessert.

[DD.]

Ants don't eat aphids. That's contrary to their objectives in farming them and in what the link that MOS gave.

The last thing I'd do if I had this problem is to go round putting jam on my plants to encourage even more ants!

[Beetroot queen]

My french beans in pots were really suffering, so i put ant powder around the outside of the pots to clear them and then used soapy water to clear the aphids, that helped with those and now the beans are clear.

[New shoot]

i put blobs of jam onto the parts above the aphids, the ants eat the jam and eat aphids for dessert.

I have heard Bob Flowerdew advocating this method and he reckons it works.  Whether the ants eat the aphids, or just stop protecting them as they have an alternative source of sugar, I don't know   

Can't open the link Mum posted as it has set my Norton anti-virus software off on one    Guess its not keen on ants either 

[Ema]

blooming ants are eating everything on my plot strawberries, radishes, rhubarb leaves grrr! and in their spare time they farm aphids on my only oca plant.

Is there a way of killing ants without putting powder all over the plot? I don't have access to boiling water down there either which woul be my first choice.

I've got 2 black and 1 red ants nests and the reds are nasty biters

[angelavdavis]

Can't open the link Mum posted as it has set my Norton anti-virus software off on one    Guess its not keen on ants either 

Me neither - Avast doesn't like it either.  I guess we will never know about the ant/aphid relationship Shoots!

[carlotta]

I went to allotment yesterday and the aphids and ants have now gone  :blink:

All I did was to squish the aphids when I initially found them.  I also which is probably a coincidence planted some tomato plants inside the munty bean frame so quite near the affected beans.....   Maybe tomatoes are a conpanion plant to beans???

Thanks for all the advice and replies

C