Luxurious strawberry bushes are reduced to dwarf size and characterized by an oppressed appearance, the first leaves grow to normal size and literally after a while they become twisted and wrinkled along with the rest, a silver coating is observed on the underside of leaf leaves - these are external signs of the presence of a dangerous pest on a garden plant, referred to as the "strawberry mite."
Description of Strawberry Mite
The pest of strawberry plantings is common in all regions of cultivation of this garden crop and is characterized by very small sizes (from 0.1 to 0.2 mm), so an insect can only be seen with a magnifying device.
The vitreous-transparent body of an adult tick has an oval shape and is divided into anterior and posterior parts by a transverse groove. Females are 1.5 times larger than males and make up 85% of the total number of adult individuals. In the larval stage, the tick has three pairs of bristly legs; in adults, there are four.
Parasitic activity
As a rule, the laying of small elliptical eggs of the female is carried out on both sides of a young, not yet opened leaf. At a comfortable temperature of +19 ... +25 ° C, the development of one generation of a garden pest lasts from 2 to 9 weeks.
Thus, from mid-April to October, from 7 to 9 generations of strawberry ticks can appear, the optimal conditions for which are high humidity and not too hot temperature. The strawberry tick (see photo in the article) gets onto the berry bushes with planting material through garden tools, shoes, clothes, berry antennae and leaves.
Most plants become infected with such a pest in mid-summer, when there is not enough moisture in the soil. It was at this time that insects feed with particular intensity, so the symptoms of damage to the bushes are most pronounced. With the onset of cold weather, the pace of berry pest development decreases; egg laying ceases at temperatures below +13 ° C. By the end of autumn, males die, and females hibernate for stipules, at the base of plants, sometimes they wait for the cold between the folded plates of young leaves. If a strawberry tick is found on strawberries, how to deal with such a pest? We will consider this a bit later.
The effects of tick activity
In all phases of development, the strawberry tick lives in the beginnings of flowers and on young, only unfolding leaves of strawberries; moves freely within the bush. The consequences of the activity of a small pest are very detrimental to plants: the yield of infected strawberries drops sharply, the leaves become yellowish-oily, wrinkle and die.
Bushes lose their frost resistance and mostly freeze during the winter period. By disrupting the formation of flower buds planted at the end of summer, strawberry mites on strawberries cause enormous damage to the crop not only of the current, but also of the next year, and in favorable times can destroy more than half of the expected fruits. Gradually growing, the harmfulness of the insect reaches its peak in the stands of three to four years of age. How to deal with strawberry mites?
The fight against berry pest should begin immediately, from the moment it is detected. In early spring, you need to collect all the remains of vegetation from the beds, because pests can winter in them. Then burn the collected mass or remove it into compost, having previously disinfected it. Also, it is recommended to carefully pour up to half a liter of hot (about 80 ° C) water on each bush of the plant, after which it is sprinkled, fed and watered.
Tick against tick
It is quite difficult to get rid of a pest because of its inaccessibility to places of its resettlement. The fight against strawberry mites can be carried out by an alternative method, which consists in releasing to the damaged bushes its natural enemy - the mite neoseyulyus kukumeris.
This predator is bred in special laboratories and vegetable
greenhouses and used throughout the summer period. On each leaf of a bush of wild strawberry it is required to produce from 25 to 40 ticks, depending on the degree of damage to the latter. Since this method of struggle is not suitable for everyone, in practice more accessible methods are used.
Strawberry tick: control measures
The effective measure to combat garden pest, in which you can get rid of 90 to 95% of its amount, is to mow the green mass immediately after harvesting. Previously, the site must be weeded from weeds, fed with fertilizers and watered. You should not be late with the terms of such a procedure, since the plant needs to have time to grow the leaf crown before the onset of cold weather. Then you need to make three-time, with a weekly interval, spraying the cleaned area with Akarin or Fitoverm biopesticides at the rate of 20 ml of funds per bucket of water. Effective use of chemicals "Actellic" (15 ml per 10 liters of water) or "Fufanon" (30 ml per 10 liters of water). Processing should be carried out twice within 10-14 days. It is recommended to alternate chemicals, as the tick quickly gets used to pesticides.
Sometimes the result is disappointing
Due to the fact that most of the pests are found at the base of the strawberry bush on half-opened or still undisclosed leaves, treatment with even highly effective drugs can disappoint with an unsatisfactory result. This is due to the fact that it is quite difficult to deliver the working solution to the inaccessible habitats of the tick due to the obstructing thick sheet cover.
Prior to the growing season, with a significant mite infection, all berry stands should be sprayed with 3% Bordeaux fluid. An effective measure in the fight against insects is the processing of cultivated crops with a 70% solution of colloidal sulfur, carried out during the period of foliage regrowth, before flowering and after the formation of fruits.
Folk methods
In the spring, with the growth of the first leaves, during the laying of the buds and twice after harvesting, you can destroy the garden pest with infusion of onion husks. For its preparation, 200 grams of dried material should be poured with a bucket of water, insisted for 4-5 days, filtered.
In the fight against strawberry parasite, spraying a garden plot with a decoction of tomato tops is effective. To prepare it, 1 kilogram of dried green mass needs to be poured with 10 liters of warm water and insisted for 3-4 hours. After this, the infusion should be boiled for 2-3 hours, filtered, diluted with water in a ratio of 1: 2, add 40 grams of laundry soap. Apply for its intended purpose: to process beds with strawberries.
Planting strawberries is recommended to pour a decoction of garlic at the rate of about half a liter per bush. To enhance the effect, it is advisable to cover the treated plants for several hours with a plastic wrap. Spraying with pesticides (for example, the drug "Karbofos") is recommended only after harvesting the fruits. In the process of their conduct, young foliage should be abundantly moistened, since the strawberry mite in its bulk lives on it.
Against a strawberry tick, soil warming is effective. To do this, after harvesting, you must mow all the leaves, after 3-5 days, treat the plot with fire (using a gas burner), and then water the plants abundantly. Further care of the bushes comes down to weeding, feeding and sheltering for the winter.
Preventative measures
In the fight against strawberry pest, it is very important to take preventive measures: plantings should be kept clean, well-lit and ventilated. Do not plant berry bushes in shaded places, as well as in areas with stagnant water.
It is recommended to loosen the soil more often, to spud berry bushes, and to carry out feeding operations in a timely manner. This conditions are favorable for the growth and development of plants and increase their resistance to various kinds of pests, which include strawberry mites.
Recommended activities before boarding
For planting strawberries, only healthy seedlings are required. When using seedlings of our own production, it is recommended that before planting, completely submerge the plants for a quarter of an hour in hot water before planting, then rinse in cool water and plant them in the ground. This treatment should be carried out no later than mid-August: before the winter period, seedlings should grow a good root system, from 3 to 5 leaves and a well-developed growth bud. With early detection of a strawberry tick, both damaged bushes and those adjacent to them should be removed. An effective measure to combat the parasite is crop rotation: strawberries can be returned to their original place no earlier than 4 years later.