# Aphids...



## potatoes (Jun 25, 2010)

Hi,
I have frogbit, red root floater, water lettuce, and duckweed, all of which have slow moving grey aphids. They are not springtails, and they attack any plant that reaches the surface, including my sunset hygro, dwarf lilies, and vals. They are wreaking havoc on my plants. I have seen several ideas on removing them, such as diatomatious earth and manual squishing. Fortunately, i have an unifected tank. So i have an idea. Can i toss all of my floaters and trim anything near the surface, wait, then add floaters from my uninfected tank? How long should i wait to ensure staggelers and eggs are dead?

The floaters currently cover the entire top of my tank, and the only filter is a powerhead. I fear sending my tank into a cycle or causing an algal bloom if i suddenly remove this layer of nutrient absorbing plants and exposing my tank to all of my light (48watts HO over a 29gallon, which i plan to raise when i get around to it) or, will my myriad of other plants just fill in for the missing floaters?
Any advice is appreciated


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## vicky (Feb 18, 2010)

I crashed one of my tanks twice before I realized removing the floaters caused it. I can remove half of them at one time without ill effect, but much more than that and bad things happen. Your tank might react differently.

I have aphids on some houseplants, but can't remember seeing any on my floaters. Maybe someone else will have a confirmed method. I would try lowering the water level, removing the floaters to a separate container, cleaning the glass and rim as well as possible, refilling, and using no lights for a few days. Then add some new floaters and see how it goes. Hmm, what to clean the glass and rim with. Maybe rubbing alcohol on a cotton ball, making sure to not drip any in the tank. It should evaporate leaving no residue, but is likely toxic to the aphids.

For fun and experimentation, I'd try cleaning some of the infected plants. Even shaking them well in a jar of aquarium water might be enough to drown the little buggers. You could also try some with water and a drop of dish soap, then rinsing several times in plain water. They make an insecticidal soap specifically for such pests, but I suspect dish soap works nearly as well. Just make sure the plants are *really *well rinsed before [if] you add them back.


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## davemonkey (Mar 29, 2008)

Vinegar works great for cleaning aquarium glass.

As to aphids (make sure they really are aphids), they can't live underwater, so how about remove all the floaters and emersed stems, place them in a jar filled to the top with water, cap it, and let them drown. Or, if you have fast-feeding fish, jostle the plants around in the tank and shake the bugs loose into you water and let the fish have a treat. Or just toss all the floaters and get some fresh ones. To compensate for the increased light intensity, shorten your photoperiod by a couple hours for a few days and gradually build back up.


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## potatoes (Jun 25, 2010)

vicky said:


> I crashed one of my tanks twice before I realized removing the floaters caused it. I can remove half of them at one time without ill effect, but much more than that and bad things happen. Your tank might react differently.


Thanks so much for the responses! That is exactly what i fear will happen since the tank only recently stabilized (probably thanks to so many floaters). I am sure they are aphids; I have had gardeners tell me that they are over and over, and they match the description pretty well: they stay put and when they move they are slow, the leaves they concentrate on die, and they are small, grey bugs that look like pictures i see online.

I like the idea of lowering the water level then cleaning the glass. Since my tank is literally covered from wall to wall in floaters, do you think it would be alright if i removed them over a period of time (no idea how long to make the intervals) so the other plants can kick into gear and pick up the slack? Due to the amount i have, i dont think i can clean them all (except the frogbit, i will clean that. They LOVE it, and as a result i have very little because it is barley reproducing thanks to them). I have extra clean floaters i can add the next day (i want to give time for any aphids i knock into the water sufficient time to drown) but i dont have enough to even replace a third of my current amount, and taking that much from my clean tank will probably crash it as well. I will also decrease hte photoperiod, that is an excellent idea.


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## Franco (Jun 25, 2010)

Aphids don't lay eggs except to overwinter. They reproduce parthenogenetically so they are all females. If you kill them all, they wont come back from eggs. I've never heard of aphids on aquatic plants. If they are gray, are you sure they aren't white flies? White flies have little gray nymphs and they are harder to get rid off. Whatever they are, if you miss one, they will probably come right back.
You could just try submerging all of the plants by putting them in a container and weighing them down with something. That should drown them all. Take off the hood and clean it with soapy water (the surfactant affect of the soap will suffocate them.


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## neilshieh (Jun 24, 2010)

i wonder how lady bugs would fair o_o


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## potatoes (Jun 25, 2010)

Thats a relief about the eggs, thanks. I looked at the images, they are not white fly nymphs. If they are not aphids, they are slow, annoying pests that are eating my plants and have given just cause for total war. I removed the plants today and trimmed everything near the surface, so the aphids that are still on the glass or floating in the water now have three options: Drown, starve, or leave. I really hope they dont choose the latter, i already infected one houseplant. There were also adventurers that were on the counter around the tank, which i massacured :axe: I would have tried ladybugs but i couldnt find them in January. 

How long do you think i should wait before adding new floaters? i have no idea how hardy they are or how long they take to starve. My current plan is to put some from another infected tank into a jar and wait for them to die, but i dont want to kill them prematurely from dehydration of something and get a false confirmation that the stragglers are dead. 

I will be testing daily to watch the ammonia spike and let you know. the tank is still plant only, so no big deal.

BTW, i did not do this to the tank at my house that has tons of floaters, the tank i did it too was only 1/3 covered with floaters. Yes, i have a *hopefully* benign case of Multiple Tank Syndrome (Six and counting...)


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## Franco (Jun 25, 2010)

Without anything to feed on they should starve in 3 days or so. The longest lived aphids only live for about 2 months and most north american species only live 4 weeks.
Try to wipe as many of them out of the tank as you can.
I actually breed soybean plants to be resistant to soybean aphids. Aphids are my entire job.


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## potatoes (Jun 25, 2010)

Wow, thats a cool job! I will definatley take your word for it then, thanks. Today I saw significantly less. There were about 10 on the glass in between the water and the hood, and a few clinging to various leaf bits i missed. I promptly removed them. The ammonia rose a bit, its now at .25ppm, but i am sure that will drop pretty soon. I would get a picture for you, but i lack a macro lense and they keep coming out as blurry grey dots. 

And a word of advice: if anyone is in highschool, ask your bio teacher for extra test kits. I got a ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, co2, and dissolved oxygen from mine. Of course its for the tank I set up for my school, but its still pretty sweet


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## Franco (Jun 25, 2010)

I still think it is weird that you would get aphids in your tank but its possible since you said you have a house plant with aphids as well. Try looking for a pesticide at your local garden center that you can water into the soil for your house plant. The home remedies don't work very well for aphids. You need something systemic that the plant will take up and poison the feeding aphids.


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