Spider mite on trees: how to deal with a dangerous apple parasite and save the harvest
The spider mite is one of the pests that suck the juice from the leaves on the trees in the garden. Apple trees are susceptible to attack by this tick, and untimely detection of the pest can lead to a weakening of the culture's immunity and even to its death. The apple mite feeds on juice and most often infects leaves and young shoots.
Content
What is a spider mite
The spider mite is one of the dangerous pests, tiny in size, but damaging many plant species by sucking the juice from the leaves. It is not so easy to detect it at the initial stage of infection, but you can recognize it by knowing how it looks and what traces it leaves.
It harms trees, flowers, horticultural crops, indoor plants and those grown in greenhouses.
Traces of the vital activity of the pest can be seen on the leaves, a thin cobweb and light dots appear on the upper side, puncture sites, and small red parasites can be seen on the lower side.
Appearance and structure of the parasite
The tick belongs to the family of arachnids, the female is slightly larger than the male, the body is elliptical, convex from above, the bottom is flat. The length of the female is 0,4-0,5 mm, the male is 0,3-0,4 mm. Larvae are small, transparent, light green or brown in color with two large dark spots on the sides. Females are orange-red or red, adult parasites have 4 pairs of legs, larvae have 3 pairs.
Life cycle
Life cycle.
The female lays eggs, from which faces appear after 3 days. After several molts, having passed two stages of nymphs, they turn into adults.
Under favorable conditions, from the appearance of larvae to adults takes from 5 to 20 days. Females live 2-4 weeks and during this time they are able to lay hundreds of eggs. During the season, 4-5 generations of ticks appear. Females hide in the upper layers of the soil or in cracks in the trunks for the winter and live there until spring.
Ticks develop especially quickly in dry and hot weather and on plants overfed with nitrogen fertilizers.
Where you can meet
Pests can be found everywhere where there is any vegetation. The spider mite lives in all regions except Antarctica.
Signs of the appearance of a spider mite on an apple tree
At the initial stage of infection of an apple tree with a spider mite, it is not so easy to detect. The larvae of this parasite are very small, and on top of the leaves there are light yellow dots, puncture sites. Over time, the spots on the leaves become wider, and a thin cobweb appears on them, they dry out and fall off. Ticks are very prolific and their number increases over time. It is important to detect parasites in time and start fighting them.
The main causes of tree infection
Spider mites can get on apple trees in different ways:
- ticks are carried by the wind from neighboring areas, and usually attack weakened trees, after being infested by caterpillars or other parasites;
- if a large tree is affected by a spider mite, then it is impossible to completely destroy it, such a tree can be a source of infection for other trees;
- weeds in the garden can be a source of infection.
Why is a spider mite dangerous for apple trees
The tick sucks the juice from the leaves and young shoots, disrupting the process of photosynthesis. Fungal, viral and bacterial infections easily enter through damaged tissues.
Young apple trees affected by spider mites may lag behind in development, adult apple trees reduce productivity, and if the mite is massively affected, the trees may die.
Effective parasite control
To combat the spider mite, various means are used, but their effectiveness depends on the timely treatment started, the extent of damage to the trees and the regularity of the use of drugs.
Chemicals
Special chemical means of combating ticks differ in the composition of the active substance, concentration and method of action on the parasite.
Insekticidы
Chemicals in this group act on ticks and many other garden pests. The most common insecticides used to control tree pests, including mites.
When processing apple trees with chemicals, you need to follow the precautions:
- work in protective equipment;
- observe the concentration of solutions and do not exceed the consumption rate;
- processing is carried out in dry calm weather.
When spraying, many pests die at the same time, but the disadvantage of this method is environmental pollution and the death of beneficial insects.
Akaritsidı
Acaricides are used only to kill mites and are applied to the surface of the leaves. These preparations have a long duration of action, which is a good means of protection against re-infestation by mites. Acaricides do not kill insects that feed on garden pests.
The spider mite develops resistance to commonly used drugs, so it is not recommended to treat it several times in a row with the same agent, you need to change them during the season.
The most popular acaricidal agents are considered by some.
Biological agents
One of the popular biologically active drugs is Fitoverm. This is a toxic extract from the waste products of some fungi, acting on adult ticks. The drug begins its effect on adults at a temperature of +18 degrees and does not decompose at +25 degrees and above, like many other chemical agents.
Agricultural practices
Female mites overwinter in the soil, in the trunk circle and in cracks in the bark. Therefore, when preparing trees for winter, you need to carry out the following work:
- burn fallen leaves;
- cut cracked, dry, diseased branches;
- clean the cracked bark;
- whitewash the trunk and skeletal branches;
- dig the trunk circle.
Traditional recipes
The value of folk remedies for combating ticks and other pests is that they are not dangerous for the environment and beneficial insects. Folk methods of dealing with spider mites are effective only with a small degree of damage.
| garlic solution | 10 grams of peeled and chopped garlic are added to 50 liters of water, insisted for 3 days, liquid laundry soap is added, mixed, filtered. A tree is treated with a freshly prepared solution from the top down through the foliage. |
| Decoction of black henbane | Fresh henbane grass is very poisonous, it is necessary to prepare and use the decoction carefully. 2 kg of fresh grass is poured with a bucket of water, boiled for several hours, filtered and the solution is adjusted to 10 liters, apple trees are processed. |
| Soap | 100 grams of tar soap are crushed and diluted in a bucket of water. Apply the solution once a week. |
| Hot pepper infusion | 100 grams of hot pepper is poured with a liter of water, brought to a boil, insisted for a day, filtered. For the treatment of apple trees, 8 grams of tincture is diluted in 1 liter of water. |
| Lukovaâ Husk | 200 grams of onion peel is poured with a bucket of water and insisted for 1 hour, filtered and treated with tick-infested trees. |
| horseradish root infusion | 400 grams of finely chopped horseradish roots are poured with a bucket of water and worshiped for 2-3 hours, filtered and sprayed on trees. |
Pest control technology
For preventive purposes, or when ticks appear, garden treatments are carried out from spring to autumn. Proper and timely spraying will lead to good results. For each time, appropriate chemicals are selected.
- When treating trees with chemicals, it is important to take precautions. Use personal protective equipment, avoid contact with skin, eyes of toxic agents.
- Spraying should be carried out in dry, calm weather.
- Spray products from the bottom up, since the mites are mainly on the underside of the leaves.
- Processing is carried out in the morning or evening.
- Children and animals are strictly prohibited from working in the garden.
- Wash face and hands with soap after treatment.
When to process
It is important to observe the timing of processing trees, the amount of the crop and the resistance of crops to pest attacks depend on them.
The first treatment after winter is carried out before bud break, at which overwintered ticks and other pests die. As soon as the temperature rises to +5 degrees and above, the trees and the soil around them are treated with copper or iron sulphate.
The second treatment is done after the leaves bloom, but before flowering. Apply any insecticides or acaricides available to gardeners.
It is possible to spray trees with chemicals only after the fruits have set. For processing, select other insecticides or acaricides that have not yet been used in the current season. If you spray several times in a row with the same product, the mites get used to it.
Processing should be stopped a month before harvesting the fruit. But in extreme cases, with a massive pest invasion, if processing is required, use preparations that quickly decompose and do not remain on the fruit.
After harvesting, but before the leaves fall, they are treated with copper sulfate, urea, or any insecticide. Ticks left for the winter die.
How often do you need to process trees
During the growing season, trees are treated in the spring, before the leaves appear, after the leaves bloom, after the formation of the ovaries, after the harvest.
But in extreme cases, when trees are damaged by pests, treatments are carried out more often, because the tick is able to produce 4-5 generations in a season and cause great harm.
You can use two methods of struggle at the same time, for greater efficiency.
Processing times in different climatic zones
Processing trees in the garden in different climatic zones is carried out taking into account weather conditions. In the southern regions of the country, work in the garden starts early, in cooler regions the dates are shifted. You need to focus on the onset of warm weather in the spring and the blooming of foliage, flowering and fruit picking.
preventive measures
Preventive treatments in the garden give a good result, many diseases and pests are destroyed, and the resistance of apple trees increases. Work in the garden begins in spring and continues until late autumn. Prevention measures include:
- spring tree pruning and spraying;
- top dressing;
- processing before and after flowering;
- cleaning leaves and pruning damaged branches;
- barrel cleaning and whitewashing;
- autumn cleaning and digging of the trunk circle.
Apple cultivars resistant to spider mites
Apple tree varieties that are completely resistant to tick damage have not yet been bred by breeders. Some varieties have good immunity, and they are less susceptible to pest attack. But the stability of crops can be increased if good care is provided: timely preventive treatments, top dressing, watering, pruning and protection in the winter.
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