For several years in a row, I was frankly unlucky: pests destroyed almost the entire beet crop in the garden. But in the process of fighting them, I learned a lot of new things for myself - and now I want to share my experience. So, who can chew on beets - and how to get rid of the pest?
Pest types
Insects
It is insects of different species that bring the most problems. Especially for beets, the following are dangerous:
- Medvedka (she's a hockey stick). A large beetle with a brown hard shell and up to several centimeters long. It has characteristic digging limbs (really stick-like) and developed jaws that gnaw at roots. Adult beetles are dangerous, but the larvae also eat root crops quite well.
- Beet fly. Small midges that live on weeds, but do not mind eating beet leaves. If small translucent caterpillars appear from the bottom of the leaf, it means that the plant is affected.
- Beet bug. Small flat insects (difficult to see without a magnifying glass) that devour beet leaves. Like a fly, it lives primarily on weeds - and therefore it is extremely important not to leave them in the garden in any form, but to regularly mow the border around. A sign that bugs graze on beets are blistery bumps on the leaves.
- Miner mole. A small brown butterfly that is not dangerous in itself. But she leaves a clutch on the leaves - and the caterpillars then gnaw the beets themselves, making passages. The moth itself lives on chestnuts, tomatoes or apple trees - and therefore, when processing begins (I will talk about it later), it is necessary to work from the source of infection.
- Root beet aphid. Small yellow round insects. A sign of infection with them is a plaque on the soil, reminiscent of mold. If the colony of aphids is large, the beets dry up and die.
- Beet flea. Small (hard to see) beetle that lives in the ground and feeds on leaves. The flea is especially active in dry weather - then it eats up whole holes in the beet tops.
- Weevil. A small, black and cream beetle that lays eggs in the soil. There, larvae hatch from them - and they devour the roots of young beets. The beetles themselves are clearly visible, and if there are more than 2 of them per square meter, that's it, it's time to buy insecticides.
- Shield-bearer. Small bugs with a strong shell, eating up leaf plates, but not touching the veins. I always found out about them precisely by this "lace" on the tops.
Nematodes
In addition to insects, beets are often harmed by small nematode worms that live in the soil. A characteristic sign of the lesion is deformed diseased root crops with characteristic swellings.
Fortunately, it is very simple to fight nematodes: it is enough to spill the garden bed with boiling water a couple of days before planting, about a bucket per square liter. I always do this if there is a suspicion that the soil is contaminated - and I have already forgotten when they last ruined the crop.
What to look for
Typical signs that the beet bed is affected by insects:
- the tops dries and turns yellow;
- holes, bubbles, nibbled edges on the leaves;
- vegetables do not develop well;
- the paths of the bear are clearly visible on the garden bed.
Well, the surest sign is visible beetles or larvae on the leaves.
Control methods
The best way to control insects is with insecticide preparations. I mainly use the following:
- "Phosphamide" - I treat it with a solution every 8-10 days;
- "Taira" - once every 2 weeks;
- "Sirocco" - the same frequency;
- "Avant" - about once every 12-14 days;
I recommend alternating the preparations so that the pests do not have time to develop immunity.
Sometimes folk remedies are good - they not so much kill as scare away insects. I use the following effectively:
- ash - either dust the ground around the root crop, or spray it with a strong aqueous solution (at the same time I feed the beets with potassium);
- tobacco dust - I dust the ground and leaves;
- rinsing the leaves of water with a stream from a hose - the masonry is destroyed, small larvae are washed off;
- soda and soap infusion - for a liter of water, a quarter of a bar of laundry soap and a tablespoon of soda ash, mix everything, let it brew for 4-5 hours - and then spray it every 2-3 days.
Mice
I would also like to tell you about voles. These mice are not so dangerous, but they can also thin out the harvest. It is difficult to fight them, because they are mammals - what is dangerous for mice is dangerous for humans. Therefore, I proceed like this:
- I fill the beds with ash. The mice do not like her smell.
- I'm digging the beds for the winter. There will be no holes - there will be no voles.
- I remove everything from the garden to bare ground (except for perennial plants). No food - no voles.
- I don't drive my Murka out of the garden. No matter how funny, but the smell of a cat is enough - and if you're lucky, it will eat a couple more voles.
There are, of course, ultrasonic and electromagnetic scarers - but I don't really trust them. And I don't use the poison just because of Murka: a cat that ate a poisoned mouse can die itself.
Prophylaxis
Just in case, I will also remind you of the measures that will help prevent pests from infesting the garden:
- digging a vegetable garden in the fall;
- removal of all plant residues;
- weeding and loosening;
- compliance with crop rotation.
And from my own experience I will add: never use fresh manure for feeding beets. Even before winter! Only compost that has rotted for at least six months.
Hope my advice will help you keep your beet crop intact.
Read also: Garlic arrows: when and how to remove them
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