Grapes, like any other garden crop, are influenced by parasites and pests. So, on clusters, shoots and leaves of a plant you can find aphids, beetles, fleas and up to 60 species of the most diverse ticks. But most often in the suburban areas and gardens where the vine grows, there is a grape tick. Methods of dealing with this parasite are very simple. We will talk about them in this article.
Meet the felt mite, or itch
Grape mite - a harmful parasite insect that lives everywhere where grapes grow. It is found in Africa, North America, as well as Central and Southern Europe. During the wintering period, it hides mainly in the bark (if there are cracks), in the scales of the kidneys and in fallen leaves. In total, up to 1000 ticks (mainly female) can live in one such affected kidney.
From the moment the buds swell and open, the grape itch moves to the leaves and begins to feed on the sap of the plants. During eating, this insect secretes saliva, which contains a substance that helps to accelerate cell growth and division. As a result, its enzymes in direct contact with grape leaves lead to deformation of the foliage structure. Such a violation of the structure is displayed in the form of large and small ovoid bubble-like swellings that occur on the outside of the leaves.
On the inner side of the foliage affected by the tick, a peculiar white coating appears, resembling fluffy felt. Initially, such a coating has a beige or white color. Later they turn red and brown in places.
What does grape itch look like?
It is almost impossible to clearly see the itch with the naked eye, since the felt grape tick is very small. Only with a multiple increase can you see that the body of the tick looks like a light or yellowish worm larva. The length of the female corresponds to 0.16-0.20 mm, and the male - 0.14 mm. On the abdomen of the insect there are numerous small setae in front and spines with spines in the back and in the middle of the body.
The female tick is capable of producing up to 7-12 generations of parasites during the year. The itch eggs have a transparent structure, oval shape and their size is 0.038 x 0.058 mm. You can find the eggs of the insect, like yourself, under swollen buds and under a white coating on the back of the affected leaves.
Why is it dangerous for grapes to be harvested?
It is known that grape itch from the leaves is able to move to a young ovary, shoots and flowers of grapes. Consequently, other parts of the vine are also affected . If you do not treat the affected areas of grapes in a timely manner, this is fraught with its death and a decrease in yield in general.
In addition, a tick of this type is capable of transmitting viruses that are dangerous for grapes, adversely affecting the ripening of fruits, the state of the root system, leaves, which ultimately can lead to the death of the vine.
How to get ahead of affected grape leaves?
In order to find out if a grape leaf tick has affected your plants in the garden, you need to pay attention to the leaves. In this case, it is worth looking at the back of the foliage, since its front part at the first stage of infection does not have visual deformation in the form of knobby knolls. However, a tick can be noticed by a secondary feature - by the presence of a white terry coating on the wrong side of the sheet.
What is it: pruritus or mildew?
The primary signs of tick infection in grapes often coincide with those of other parasites. For example, itching can often be confused with mildew. Recall that this is a rather unpleasant and dangerous fungal disease for plants. According to preliminary information, it was accidentally brought to France from America in early 1878. From there, it gradually spread to vineyards throughout Europe.
If you pay attention to grapes infected with mildew, leaf diseases of such a plan affect the upper and lower parts. On the surface of the foliage, one can see characteristic yellowish spots the size of a penny or more. On the back of the leaves there is a distinctly visible white fluff - this is a mycelium. It is because of him that inexperienced gardeners make the “wrong diagnosis”. How to determine - is it a mildew or mold deposits?
You can determine the type of parasitic effect on the plant using simple actions. So, if you run your fingers along the white coating that has formed on the lower surface of the sheet and it will be erased, then you are most likely dealing with mildew. If, with such an action, the fluff does not erase, then it is a grape tick. Methods to combat this parasite will be discussed later.
How to distinguish grape itch from leaf phylloxera?
Grape itch is a parasite, which can also be easily confused with phylloxera, or leaf aphid. Previously, it was brought from America, and first appeared in European vineyards. Currently, aphids selectively relate to their own food and prefers to settle on the leaves of mainly Asian and European grape varieties. So, leaf phylloxera affects such grape varieties as White-pink, Altai white, Damask rose, Dubushka and others. Aphids can also appear on some American grape varieties. What do aphids and itch have in common?
Besides the fact that grapes are an object of attack of both parasites, leaf diseases of this type have some other common features. For example, with damage and itching, and aphids on grape leaves, you can see deformed areas, similar to swelling or bubbles. Such swellings are called galls. And it is in them that the phylloxera larvae develop. In advanced cases, swelling is formed not only on the leaves, but also on the stems, cuttings, and also the antennae.
Unlike aphids, the itch forms smaller and rarer swellings. In phylloxera, they are more frequent and larger, resembling blisters or warts. If desired, they can be crushed with effort by fingers.
Grape Tick: Control Methods
In order to get rid of the tick, it is necessary to deal with it in a timely manner. However, the whole difficulty in the persecution of an insect lies in the fact that it settles on the back of the sheet, and not on its surface. Therefore, using specialized chemicals, it is necessary to spray the foliage from the back. Experienced gardeners recommend the use of colloidal sulfur for this purpose .
This will require approximately 10-50 g of sulfur. You can also use drugs from grape ticks such as Fufanon, Neoron, Karbofos, Tiovit-Jet, Fiori, Talstar, Kinmiks, Omayt, Vertimek, Actellik " other.
In addition, unopened kidneys must be sprayed with a solution of Nitrofen diluted in water, taking into account 200 g of a chemical substance per bucket of water. Further, it is recommended to handle open buds. This is best done at the time of stretching the kidneys. At this very time, they reach a length of about 4-6 cm. It is recommended to process them with sulfur solution. It is prepared at the rate of 100 g of substance per bucket of water.
How many times do you need to process grapes?
The processing of grapes from diseases and pests should be carried out depending on the degree of infection of the plants, as well as on the type of pests and diseases themselves. So, to save the grapes from the tick should be, applying a double treatment with an approximate interval of 10-12 days.
And for the best result, it is worth processing grape leaves on both sides twice a day. Recommended spraying time is 10:00 (first) and 22:00 (second).
Preventive measures to combat itching in the garden
Processing grapes from diseases and pests is, of course, an important point in getting rid of grape mites. However, timely prophylaxis of infection with this parasite is much more important. In addition, it is very simple. Firstly, it is necessary to monitor the destruction of autumn foliage and clippings of vine branches and vines. Secondly, in preventive measures it is recommended to process grapes in the hot summer with such preparations as BI-58, Neoron, or Akarin.
What pests are dangerous for grapes?
In addition to such a parasite as a grape tick (we described the methods of combating it above), other pests can be found in the garden. One of the most abominable and unpleasant insects is the leaf beetle, or grape flea. He is dangerous in that, in addition to grapes, he is not averse to eating other plants.
Visually, it looks like a miniature black cockroach and with a body length of no more than 3-4.4 mm. Oviparous. Eggs are laid by the female beetle and fastens them 10-30 pieces on the inner side of the leaf.
The fight against leaf beetle, as well as the fight against grape itching, is associated with the treatment of plant buds with special insecticidal solutions. For example, Fufanon and Spark are used for this purpose.
The second harmful parasite resembles a butterfly - it is a grape mining moth. It is capable of producing up to two to three generations per season. It feeds mainly on leaves, which, like other pests, lays eggs. Small caterpillars later crawl out of the eggs, which creep along the entire perimeter of the leaf and, in the process of their movement, make elongated passages called mines in it. To eliminate moths, as a rule, systemic insecticides are used . For example, it can be "Confidor".
Another well-known insect pest is the mosquito. Its size is only 2 mm. The mosquito in itself is not harmful. Great damage is brought by its larvae. An adult insect can lay up to 100 eggs at a time. After about 9-10 days, larvae appear from them, which begin to eagerly eat grape leaves. In places of life of the larva, wart-like swellings form. You can also get rid of a mosquito with insecticides.
In addition, other pests can be found on the leaves, stems and roots of grapes, for example, weevils, goldfish, leafworm, ticks, thrips, worms and cicadas.