BEET BUG (Piesmaquadratum) is a bug about 3 mm long, very variable in color. Most often it is dark gray with a blackish pattern. The eyes are reddish. The pronotum has three longitudinal ribs. Adult insects overwinter on the edges of forests, bushes, ditches, etc. In the spring, at temperatures above 3 degrees C, they fly to the beets, where they stop at the edges of the field. After a feeding period, females lay eggs (about 15 eggs per beet leaf). The larvae appear in mid-June. Adult insects migrate into hibernation or initiate the development of the second generation. One generation develops per season.
Symptoms
Larvae and adult insects pierce leaves and suck out the sap, causing discoloration and weakened plant growth. The main harm is that the adult insect transmits the leaf curl virus. Infected plants become deformed and take the shape of a head of lettuce. The losses due to this can be significant.
Host plants
Basically most types and varieties of beets.
Control methods
Chemical control is recommended in areas where budworm has been detected in the past year. This procedure is signaled when adult insects enter plantings and spray beet crops.
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