Kiana and Ryan are the best!!!

The taro is growing at a good pace, but the aphid infestation is getting out of control. We are using Terro to get rid of the ants and it seems to be working, but the aphids don't seem to be going away. We are currently trying to catch ladybugs to put in the aquaponics system, to eat the aphids. We have caught a few, but there is no significant effect yet.

October 29 2010

Since we have been trying a new method of wiping the leaves rid of the aphids they seem to be doing a little better. You can see from the last pictures and todays picture, that the taro is not as infested.

Our taro plants are infested with aphids but, and are slowly taking all the nutrients out of the leaves. We finally found a solution for this issue, Connor brought in 4 ladybugs today and they are already starting to eat away at the aphids. We also started wiping down the aphids from the taro plants using wet sponges to take off mass amounts at a time. We also keep having to take out all of the dying leaves (from the aphids) so our leaf count is decreasing. Hopefully after our adjustments will aid the problem.

October 25 2010

Choke Aphids and plants aren't looking to well. Plants are growing but are still very infested with aphids and ants.

The plants looks a little bit better than last weeks. But still we are still seeing the lack of nutrients that the plant needs due to the bad side effects on the taro leaves (drying up, turning brown, e.t.c.). As you can see in one of the picture where there are lots of aphids and ants on the plant which are still giving us problems in keeping the plant clean and healthy enough.

Kiana and Lindsey are the Best.

The aphid problem is getting really bad. The second picture shows one of our aphid stricken leaves. We are spraying the plants with organic pesticides but we are also looking for other alternatives. The first picture shows that our plants are starting to turn yellow, brown, and are also getting splotches. The edges are affected the most. The plants are still growing though which is good.

Edited by Kiana and Lindsey

From what you can see, the taro has grown pretty erratically and some have exceeded the lights and went above it. We have a slight bug problem, but are finding solutions to control our bug problem. Plant #1 has 3 leaves and is 30 cm, plant #2 has 1 leaf and is 34 cm, plant #3 has 3 leaves and is 73 cm, plant #4 has 3 leaves and is 35 cm, and plant #5 has 3 leaves and is 25 cm.

Blog update 10/6

The taro in the grow-beds is growing at a very fast rate, increasing steadily with the number of leaves on each plant, as well as their height. There are bugs crawling around our taro, however for the most part they are harmless, only small ants. There are 5 marked plants, the 1st has 3 leaves, the second has only one, 3rd has 3 as well as the fourth, and the fifth has four.