[Island Girls]

Hi all,
There I was, congratulating myself that I'd beaten the birds to it this year by putting a net over my cherry tree to stop the little blighters pigging out and when I went up the garden just now, I discovered the tree covered in black insects. Some of the leaves are starting to curl and I just couldn't believe how many bugs there are. I seem to remember my Dad spraying fruit trees with soapy water when I was a kid- would that work or are more serious measures required?
Anyway, any advice would be very welcome and any suggestions as to what the bug is too.
Thing is, it is covered in cherries this year too  
On the plus side, everything is doing really well
Thanks,
Mandy

[Island Girls]

Okay, so I've done bit of research and I reckon it is black fly. Seem to remember it being a prob on my Dad's roses. I've sprayed the tree with soapy water. Do I just need to keep doing this until they have b******d off or continue to keep doing it to keep them away in future?
Btw, small red bugs spotted in the area around the tree too any ideas please?
Thanks,
Mandy

[Gardeningguru]

Okay, so I've done bit of research and I reckon it is black fly. Seem to remember it being a prob on my Dad's roses. I've sprayed the tree with soapy water. Do I just need to keep doing this until they have b******d off or continue to keep doing it to keep them away in future?
Btw, small red bugs spotted in the area around the tree too any ideas please?
Thanks,
Mandy

The red bugs, if they are very small, are probaly red spider mites....

[gobs]

You want to wash them off. Soapy will somewhat deter them a bit, maybe, depends on the ant population around.

Red spider mite, ladybird, red ant? :shock:

[kennykoala]

hi all spray all over tree with white oil (2cups vegitable oil 1cup washing up detergent mix in blender 1minit) 2 table spoons mix with a litre of water.goodluck. I have 27 fruit trees in my orchard this year was my best year for cherrie,s Having trouble with birds so built steel piped frame 8mtx40mtx3.6 high covered with 30mil chuck wire,sick of putting bird netting over all trees,this year should get good results,all my fruit trees are box in by 250ml x 75ml x 1.2 sleepers, I breed rabbits have 60 at the mo,I scrape away surface soil of fruit trees cover with rabbit poo put soil back give them a feed of rose fertilizer agood drink and stand back,have 4 apple trees with 12 grafts just started to learn how to do it great when you see they have taken even better when you get fruit of your grafts,you need someone to show you,good fun.have anice day seeya.

[Island Girls]

Thanks for your advice Kenny. I had already tried the soapy water method to no avail before you posted so I will try what you suggest tomorrow. The tree is still covered :-( Can someone tell me what sort of results to expect please? I mean how quickly should they go away etc. Will I need to keep treating the tree and for how long?
The orchard sounds fascinating. I would love to have that kind of space, but the back garden will have to do for now
Many thanks
Mandy

[peterjf]

hi there diluted washing up liquid and cold water , you need very weak mixture , spray the whole tree , good luck

[Island Girls]

Hi, I sprayed the tree with a weak washing up liquid solution. The black fly have all gone but the leaves on the tree are all curled and not looking too good. Some of the fruit has been affected too. Just wondered if that's it for this year or if it is likely that the tree will recover and we might get some fruit off it. Must confess to be really disappointed    Is there anything I can do to avoid a repeat performance next year?
Thanks for everybody's suggestions
Mandy

[DD.]

Paul, by your own admission you know that you have posted on a very old thread.

If you look at the profile of the original poster, you'll see that they have not visited the site on over 5 years. I think it doubtful that they will answer your question!

[naude1]

Anyone have any additional tips on tackling cherry tree black fly and ants apart from winter sprays and grease bands.

Many thanks

Paul (a newbie to gardening)

[allotmentann]

I think it is very difficult for people to recommend anything other than approved sprays etc. because the site has to abide by the law and many old fashioned or natural remedies are not approved.
Personally, I just try to encourage as much wildlife as possible, then hopefully there will always be a predator for the pest.
I had a very bad black fly infestation on a favourite shrub last spring. I left it a couple of weeks before going out to see what I could do with it, only to find it had completely vanished. So, something found them very tasty.
I am sorry I can't help more, but I really garden very organically so don't use anything at all really.   

[naude1]

Thanks for the tip on cherry tree black fly.  Any ideas on what to put out or plant in the garden to attract some predators for these black cherry tree aphids.

Any views greatly appreciated.

Paul