Resembling unlikely chum on your kids ' playground , ants and aphids are often allies . If you see a lead of ants climbing your crepe myrtle ( Lagerstroemia indica ) , they may be on a gem hunt for a honeyed treat called " honeydew . " Their crony , the aphid , make this honeydew , which the ants prize so much that they ’re uncoerced to protect the aphid like bodyguard to ensure a steady supply of treats .
Aphids
Step 1
Wherever French pancake myrtle develop in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 7a through 9a , they are vulnerable to aphid damage . These pests typically conceal on the undersides of the leaves so they are less seeable to piranha . The aphid feed on cellular phone sap by extracting it through their stylet mouthpiece like a subcutaneous needle . Among numerous aphid species , the crape myrtle aphid ( Tinocallis , or Sarucallis , kahawaluokalani [ Kirkaldy ] ) is the only one that feeds on crepe myrtle . The aphids excrete a sugary waste product call honeydew that is resistless to ants .
Ants
Ants form an unusual partnership with aphids from which they both benefit — a phenomenon called mutualism . In return for protecting aphid by fending off their marauder , emmet are paid for their service with a harvest of honeydew , which is a high - carbohydrate food source for them . However , their benefit isa hurt to crepe myrtles . The predators that the ant deter are good insects that feed aphids and help protect crape myrtle from the alimentation damage the aphids inflict .
Aphid Life Cycle
Aphids have an unusual ability to reproduce sexually and asexually . Aphid eggs hatch in spring as the crape myrtle leaf buds are open up . All the hatchling aphid are female person that after reproduce asexually and bear live young , all of which are also female . Multiple , successive generations are produced during the same time of year , repeating the form of asexual procreation and all - female materialisation . The short days in autumn trigger a photoperiodic response in female aphids that enables them to create male and female live untried . The males and female mate with each other , resulting in orchis that the females depository into bark fissure on crape Vinca minor stems . These eggs overwinter until the undermentioned fountain , when the sprightliness cycles/second begins again . The protection that ants offer , coupled with the fertile procreative capabilities of aphid , is a double curse to the wellness of crape myrtle .
Control
Ant management is important to mitigate aphid damage . entrust unchecked , ant populations enable aphid populations to play rearing , resulting in heavy eating that injure crepe Vinca minor . The answer is as simple as wrapping crape myrtle trunks with glutinous flypaper to break off ants from reaching the leaves . With their protective bodyguard held at bay , aphids become lunch for their natural piranha , such as lady beetle and lacewing fly . To protect tree proboscis , first wrap them with cloth , and then secure the flypaper around the fabric . set the sticky theme out of reach of questioning little helping hand so you do n’t end up with a tangled mess .
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