All owners of gardens and orchards know that insects cause irreparable harm to plants. This is especially true of the whitefly, which often damages strawberries. If you do not solve the problem of the appearance of this pest on strawberries in time, you can lose a huge plantation in a matter of days.
Harm from the whitefly
The whitefly, settling in plantations with strawberries, takes all the juice from it. The insect itself is a tiny moth-like butterfly, ranging in size from 1.5 to 5 mm. The whitefly settles on a garden crop on the back of the leaves. It breeds rapidly in warm and humid weather.
The types of whiteflies are:
- tobacco. They are distinguished by the presence of a yellow stripe on the back. They breed at an air temperature of +35 degrees Celsius;
- citrus fruits. They do not live in our regions, as they need a warmer climate;
- strawberry. It is they who cause the greatest harm to strawberry plantations;
- cabbage. They settle on cabbage;
- greenhouse. They live in greenhouses, where they overwinter.
How to identify a pest on strawberries - expert advice
You can determine that your strawberries have been attacked by whiteflies by the following signs:
- on the reverse side of the leaves there are small eggs that are visible to the naked eye;
- if you shake a strawberry leaf, small midges will begin to fly over it (this is the whitefly);
- white bloom appears on the leaves;
- plants wither, leaves become dry and lose their luster.
Effective methods of struggle
I use different methods to deal with this pest:
- biological;
- chemical;
- folk.
Now in more detail about each individual species
Chemical Methods
Here I mean the use of special purchased preparations for parasites:
- Aktar. With its solution, I spray the foliage and cultivate the soil.
- Aktelik. Sold in ampoules and already three days after use, the first result is noticeable.
- Rovikurt. I use this oily liquid for a massive whitefly infestation of strawberries. For 10 liters of water, add 10 g of the drug.
Keep in mind that garden crops must be treated with chemicals several times in a row at short intervals. Otherwise, they will be ineffective.
biological methods
Few people use them, as they include insects that eat whitefly eggs. They do not pose a danger to strawberries and other crops. After that, they themselves leave the strawberry plantations.
Folk ways
Of the folk methods in the fight against whiteflies help:
- garlic tincture. I cook it from 300 g of garlic, grated and poured with hot water. Then I pour the prepared infusion into a jar and put it in a dark place for a week. After preparing it for 1 liter of infusion, I add 10 liters of water and spray the beds with it;
- lemon peels. I pour peels from 20 lemons into a saucepan, pour 5 liters of oxen into it and bring to a boil. With this solution, I process strawberries every three days. But according to my personal observations, this method is far from the most effective.
Pest Prevention Tips
And it’s even better not to wage a hard fight against insect pests that often settle in garden crops, but to prevent their appearance. For this I:
- I regularly spray strawberry beds with whitefly preparations;
- I strictly monitor the appearance of white bloom on the leaves;
- I always remove dry leaves and weeds in strawberries on time so that pests do not settle there.
In conclusion, it is worth noting that the fight against the whitefly is quite complicated and long. This insect causes irreparable damage to entire plantations. It is better not to fight it, but try to prevent it from appearing on your site.
Have you had experience dealing with whitefly in strawberry beds? What methods did you use to deal with it? How effective was it? I suggest discussing all this in the comments below.
Read also: Instructions for planting blueberries seedlings in spring in open ground
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