Borage With Afternoon Wilt And What Appears To Be Aphids

BlackThumb · June 9, 2010

At night this plant looks healthy. This is my first year growing Borage; I grew it from seed. I decided to get it because it was recommended as a companion plant for tomatoes to repel tomato hookworm.

My near vision isn't very good but there is some sort of moderate infestation of insects. I think they are aphids as sugar ants seem to be working them. I've tried using neem oil to kill or repel the insects that appear to be aphids, but the neem oil seems to have little effect.

Is it normal for Borage to have such extreme wilt on hot afternoons? It seems to recover fairly quickly after the sun goes down.

I'm debating (with myself) on whether I should keep the Borage plant. It seems to be a breeding ground for what appears to be aphids.

I'm afraid the aphids from the Borage plant might spread and start causing problems for my tomato plants. However on the other side of the coin; perhaps the Borage plant is acting as a sacrificial decoy plant to draw aphids away from the tomato plant.

So any opinions as to what is causing the wilt and how to prevent it? Or should I just ignore and except the wilt?

Any opinions as to whether I should keep the Borage plant or not?

June 9, 2010	#1
BlackThumb Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: SW Ohio USA Posts: 13	Borage With Afternoon Wilt And What Appears To Be Aphids At night this plant looks healthy. This is my first year growing Borage; I grew it from seed. I decided to get it because it was recommended as a companion plant for tomatoes to repel tomato hookworm. My near vision isn't very good but there is some sort of moderate infestation of insects. I think they are aphids as sugar ants seem to be working them. I've tried using neem oil to kill or repel the insects that appear to be aphids, but the neem oil seems to have little effect. Is it normal for Borage to have such extreme wilt on hot afternoons? It seems to recover fairly quickly after the sun goes down. I'm debating (with myself) on whether I should keep the Borage plant. It seems to be a breeding ground for what appears to be aphids. I'm afraid the aphids from the Borage plant might spread and start causing problems for my tomato plants. However on the other side of the coin; perhaps the Borage plant is acting as a sacrificial decoy plant to draw aphids away from the tomato plant. So any opinions as to what is causing the wilt and how to prevent it? Or should I just ignore and except the wilt? Any opinions as to whether I should keep the Borage plant or not?