METHODS OF DEALING WITH THE COLORADO POTATO BEETLE

With the beginning of spring, summer residents begin a period of intensive work. And first of all, gardeners have a “headache” - insect pests and the fight against them.

There are a large variety of insects on the planet, the “task” of which is to harm humans.

One of the most widespread and most unloved types of pests is the Colorado potato beetle. Thanks to their efforts, the plot of any gardener is devastated.

The Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata) is perhaps the most active insect species that eats potato leaves and more.

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Where did the Colorado potato beetle come from?

Let's consider meeting a person with this pest. The history of the Colorado potato beetle originates from its appearance in potato fields in the middle of the 19th century in the eastern part of the USA.

In 1859, crop damage by these pests was first noticed in the state of Colorado. It was from that place that the long journey of the Colorado potato beetle began to other countries of the world.

Europe was intensively cultivating potatoes and the appearance of harmful insects, such as the Colorado potato beetle, was just a matter of time. On our open spaces the beetle appeared for the first time in 1949.

After its appearance, scientists were surprised to learn that Colorado beetles are settling in water, and not only by air.

But let's dwell on the conquest by the pest of a new continent and see which type of beetle is this pest. The length of the Colorado potato beetle ranges from 9 to 12mm, it reaches a width of up to 6-7mm and has a strongly convex body. The short oval-shaped beetle has a reddish-yellow color; there are black stripes over each elytra (5 pieces each). Colorado beetles can easily fly, as they have webbed wings.

The life of the Colorado potato beetle was devoted to years of fruitful study. After a long hibernation in the spring, they begin to go out and immediately “choose a house for themselves” on potato seedlings, and there they mate. Each hearth belongs to just one female. An interesting fact is that the beetle can generate on irrigated land

Central Asia up to 4 times! And we have only one generation develops. The Colorado potato beetle lives on average one year, but there are exceptions and its life span varies up to 2-3 years.

An interesting feature of the pest beetle is the variety of its resting forms. While common insects have only one form, the Colorado potato beetle has six of them:

winter diapause;
winter oligopause;
summer dream;
long summer diapause;
repeated diapause;
superpause (perennial diapause).

It makes no sense to describe each of the diapauses, because it already becomes clear that such plasticity of the beetle allows it to overcome various life adversities.

But only here the farmer suffers from this in the first place, because the fight against the pest becomes extremely difficult.

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What does the pest beetle feed on?

Colorado beetles are pests of plants of the nightshade family. Their favorite dish, as you know, is potatoes. Only on this, his taste preferences do not end, and he eats with great joy other decorative, medicinal or weedy nightshade: belladonna, prickly and bittersweet nightshade, and even dope with bleached they do not disdain!

Beetles are so adept in the search for a new food, that already some of them are switching to tomatoes, even in some places they are switching to bodyak, cabbage, mustard ...

He eats plants that are unaccustomed to his diet, the beetle is not due to the fact that he is excessively hungry, but only because he needs moisture. They do not even eat the leaves completely, just nibble at the edges.

For a century and a half, the Colorado potato beetle has given preference to the solanaceae, which promises that it will not be soon addicted to other cultures.

Although other cultures are not affected by insects, it does not interfere with carefully processing the concentrated breeding areas of beetles.

How to beat the Colorado potato beetle?

Beetle, in addition to having the ability to physically survive for a long time, is able to withstand a long starvation. Thereby presenting for farmers the difficulty in the fight.

However, experienced gardeners use a large assortment of anti-pest agents, such as plant extracts or water decoctions. They tend to scare or destroy insects.

Separate reception of the Colorado potato beetle almost did not win. According to experts, it is necessary to apply a set of activities.

If the number of beetles is not critically large, then it will be enough to collect them with your hands, not forgetting to remove their larvae. Food bait is also suitable for catching these pests.

In addition to popular methods to rid the vegetation of the Colorado potato beetle, it is necessary to remember about the correctness of crop rotation, digging the soil in spring and autumn. It is also necessary to clean the tops in time, so that the beetles do not have where to winter. Amateur gardeners often plant garlic, beans, calendula, and beans near potatoes.

But among the many ways of pest control, the most necessary and effective is the treatment of plants with chemicals. Experienced farmers and gardeners lovers recommend the use of "Prestige" - as one of the best means to combat the Colorado potato beetle.

"Prestige" is used not only in the fight against the beetle, but also to protect plants from disease. You need to know that they can process only those potatoes that will be harvested in August. Only then will the poison have time to neutralize, because for complete elimination of chemistry it will be enough for 60 days.

That is why potatoes are recommended to be planted in the second half of April in order to start applying Prestige with confident calm.

The drug has an anti-stress effect, which makes the plant more resistant to abiotic and biotic effects of the environment. The component component imidacloprid (140g / l) has contact and systemic effects.

The advantages of the "Prestige" are great, it is:

high workability;
anti-stress effect;
improving the quality of the product itself;
underestimated toxicity and others.

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How harmful is the Colorado beetle?

Several factors can determine the harmfulness of the Colorado potato beetle. One of those is the preference of the beetle and the larvae of one or several plants, more often potatoes.

The fecundity of these oligophages (the kind that stretches to a specific food object) is extremely high. One female of this type can lay about 700 eggs (there is a true and unique fixed figure - 3382 eggs!). By the end of the season, there may be up to 30 million pests.

Due to the incredibly fast breeding of the Colorado potato beetle, the matter can affect the entire crop and it will die if you do not fight against the beetle in a timely manner.

The Colorado potato beetle is a fairly dangerous pest that causes harm to the family of the nightshade, and not just the potato. The larvae of beetles and adults eat the leaves and bush of young seedlings completely.

Summing up, we can safely say that the Colorado potato beetle is the most basic potato pest! For those who are not lazy and grow it on the site, the beetle is an eternal problem.