load pix into a reply.. using the camera/photo below the box you type in ...

ken

Hi, sorry I typically load images to imgur.

@LoneJack Zn 6a, KC @ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

There could be a fungus situation too as I noticed some white puff things on the soil

Hard to tell. If it is BMV then it appears to be in the early stages. The dark green banding on the veins on the first leaf may show some of the symptoms.

Thanks @LoneJack Zn 6a, KC, I might just cull the plants as much as I don't want to.

There's a lot of clover on our lawn, so BMV is plausible. I'm worried about growing cowpeas now.

Did you check the underside of the leaves for spider mites? In the first photo there may be a bit of stippling.

@lgteacher I've definitely been dealing with aphids, but haven't seen any webs from the spider mites

Sometimes the spider mites can do a lot of damage before they start making webs. I speak from experience. http://ipm.ucanr.edu/home-and-landscape/beans/

The "sticky" is likely honeydew (excreta) from the aphids.

Neem oil has virtually no immediate knock-down effect on insects. It's efficacy is based on it's being an anti-feedant, an oviposition deterrent (anti-egg laying), a growth inhibitor, a mating disruptor, and a chemosterilizer. Azadirachtin, a tetranortriterpenoid compound, closely mimics the hormone ecdysone, which is necessary for reproduction in insects. When present, it takes the place of the real hormone and thus disrupts not only the feeding process, but the metamorphic transition as well, disrupting molting. It interferes with the formation of chitin (insect "skin") and stops pupation in larvae, thus short-circuiting the insect life cycle. It also inhibits flight ability, helping stop insect spread geographically; but, not all products containing neem are created equal. Steam and solvent extraction limits the effectiveness of azadirachtin, neem oil's active ingredient, and I'm not sure how the vehicle in combination insecticides (like neem oil + pyrethrin), but I can't imagine it not having some effect on the organic molecule.

What are you depending on as a grow medium?

Al

@tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a) I've been dealing with aphids; they haven't disappeared but they aren't spreading too much.

I've been using a combo of standard potting soil with coco coir as an additive.

What kind of potting soil, and what would you say the ratio is between the two, potting soil: coir? Also, how deep is the pot the beans are in?

Al

@tapia, good to know about Neem oil not having no immediate knock-down effect. I’ll still use it for the long-term impact but what would you recommend for the immediate effect for unground plants abs flowers?

I've been using Bayer 3-in-1 Insect Disease and Mite control, but the systemic insecticide it included (Imidacloprid) is no longer listed as one of it's ingredients, so when I run out, I'll be searching for another product I can use both as a fixative and prophylactic. I might end up going to an Imidacloprid soil drench and a spray of the fungicide Tebuconazole, which is still included in one of the Bayer products, but I forget which. The 3-in-1 product is (was?) very effective.

Al

I'm reluctant to use systemics since we have a lot of bees, but at the same time I want to use something that's potent (to give my plants a chance to recover). Neem oil's long term effects are good, but I want shorter term results.

With such young plants, it's safer for the plants to wash off the aphids instead of using pesticides.