Problem with Sycamore tree giving off a sticky residue

Question

My disabled son parks his car in his front garden, the tree is in the next door garden however it drops millions of tiny pieces of foliage with a very sticky residue. his happened throughout the spring and summer , these pieces have on a number of occasions covered his car so much that they have glued the doors so they will not open and made a terrible mess of his body work. it is almost impossible to clean the car. DO you have any advice about what this problem is caused by?? Is there anything that can be done to stop this problem??? He has decided that his car is in such bad condition that he is having to replace it and he cannot really afford to. But is now afraid that the same thing will happen again next spring and summer

I hope you can help us :-Note the tree is owned by Wigan Council
Regards Bill Cartwright

Answer 1

Maybe if you show this column to the next door neighbor they will do something about the sticky situation.
Among other pests, this tree is susceptible to the sycamore aphid Drepanosiphum platanoidis which sucks sap from buds and foliage, producing large quantities of sticky honeydew that contaminate foliage, cars and garden furniture beneath.

A certified arborist plant health care specialist or landscape pest control company can provide a definitive identification of the condition and offer a program for control. This can be an insecticide spray of the foliar canopy, or a stem injection with a systemic insecticide, or a soil drench with a systemic to be taken up by the roots and translocated throughout the foliar crown.