Attacks by phytophagous pests in the larval stage are a problem that is well known to every gardener. Perennial fruit shrubs, including gooseberries, are especially vulnerable to leaf-eating insects. If measures are not taken in time, hordes of voracious caterpillars will cause irreparable damage to the plantings.
They not only destroy the green parts of plants, which disrupts the synthesis of chlorophyll, but also gnaw out the insides of the fruit. In such cases, you can no longer count on a high-quality and abundant harvest of striped berries. Let's find out how to fight these harmful creatures using agrochemicals and proven folk remedies.
Major pests
Leaf-eating insects mostly pose a danger to plants. Caterpillars tend to damage the integumentary tissues of leaves in order to feast on nutritious cell sap. This provokes disturbances in the natural processes of photosynthesis, as a result of which the leaf blades curl, the green mass dries out, and the plants often die.
For the winter, pests build nests from fallen leaves, hide under old tree bark, or burrow into the upper layers of the soil. With the arrival of warmth, they become more active and move to green spaces, developing vigorous activity, which negatively affects the yield.
A massive invasion of butterfly larvae can deprive a gardener of half the harvest, and in some cases losses reach 80-90%. Let's get acquainted with the most common types of harmful caterpillars found in garden plots, which are the main enemies of gooseberries.
Moth
Moth butterflies have a white-yellow color interspersed with black. In the spring, colonies of its caterpillars cause a lot of trouble for summer residents, destroying young foliage with buds on currant and gooseberry bushes. Pests overwinter under fallen leaves, awakening in the spring at +19.21°C.
When the berry bushes fade, which usually happens in June, the caterpillars turn into pupae, attaching themselves to the leaves with threads of cobwebs. The appearance of butterflies occurs in mid-summer. Sexually mature individuals lay clutches of 250-300 eggs on the reverse side of the leaf blades between the veins. After two weeks, a new generation of voracious larvae is born, which continue to harm green spaces.
Shoot aphid
A sexually mature individual has a different color from greenish to bluish-green and black. Adult pests damage the integrity of leaves, shoots, fruits and suck out the juice. Their activity leads to oppression and severe weakening of plants. The result of their massive invasion is a decrease in growth, yield, frost resistance and a reduction in the life expectancy of fruit and berry crops.
The larvae cause no less damage. They feed on sap, damaging buds and shoots, which greatly inhibits plant growth. The tops of young shoots on gooseberries are covered with twisted leaves. Entire colonies of pests are localized inside such “twists”. In autumn, females lay eggs that remain for the winter.
The predisposing factor for the mass appearance of shoot aphids is early spring warming, which in many regions occurs in mid-April.
If the caterpillars on the gooseberry bushes have eaten most of the green mass, and the affected young shoots have stopped growing, then it is useless to wait for the berry harvest next season.
Gooseberry moth
It is one of the most dangerous pests for the Saxifraga family, which includes currants and gooseberries. This pest has a memorable wing color - against a dark gray background with white stripes, a brown round spot located in the middle stands out clearly.
When gooseberries bloom en masse, fire butterflies, having taken a liking to the flowers of the bush, make clutches in them. If there are no flowers, then they use the underside of young leaves for these purposes, and for late clutches - the ovaries. One female is capable of laying about 170-200 eggs.
After a week, thousands of whitish-yellow caterpillars emerge from them. They live and feed in the ovaries. Moth caterpillars are amazingly voracious. Each pest gnaws at least 10 fruits whole and eats succulent leaves, enveloping them in cobwebs. It’s easy to imagine the damage massive attacks of these insects cause to gooseberries.
The bushes on which they have eaten a large number of leaves and berries begin to rot, dry out and actively shed the remaining foliage. Plantings that have been attacked by pests, covered in sticky excrement and cobwebs, look pretty deplorable. The wintering place of pupae is the tree trunk circles of bushes. They climb to a depth of 4-6 cm, entwine themselves with web cocoons and hibernate.
Sawflies
The species diversity of these flying insects numbers over 5,500 specimens.
The yellow sawfly is interested not only in gooseberries, but also in currants. It is quite easy to recognize by its black head and bright yellow legs on a small body 0.6-0.8 cm long. For the winter, it settles in the upper layers of the soil and turns into a cocoon. With the arrival of spring, it lays eggs on the leaves, which is its main task in life. Having completed it, the sawfly dies.
Insects are dangerous in the stage of adult false caterpillar larvae, which destroy green mass at high speed and in record time. They make many holes on the surface of the leaf blades, and then eat them entirely down to the veins. As a result, the fruits become small, begin to dry out and fall off prematurely, and sometimes the affected shrub does not bear fruit at all. It has been established that it takes only 1.5-2 weeks to destroy all the leaves from one bush of a colony of caterpillars.
The pale-legged sawfly species also poses a danger to plantings. This is a green caterpillar with a brownish spot on its head. Its appearance is facilitated by persistently hot and dry weather. This species destroys the green parts of plants with no less pleasure, gnawing leaves down to the veins. During the entire season, from the moment of foliage formation until the period of complete fruit formation, three generations of insects have time to develop.
Red currants suffer from the first, since they are ahead of gooseberries in terms of bud formation. From the second - gooseberry bushes, while the caterpillars often move to black currant bushes. And from the third - all the gooseberries available within the reach of pests. They prefer to overwinter in old grass or under fallen leaves.
Willow beetle
Its main activity is sucking the cell juice of fruit and berry crops. The harmful flora of this species is characterized by the secretion of sticky honeydew, which attracts saprophytic fungi as a nutrient medium. When they multiply, a black coating forms on the surface of the bushes, due to which the plants stop eating and breathing normally.
The larvae overwinter in cracks in tree bark. With the arrival of spring, when sap flow begins, they settle on branches, leaves and shoots. They are distinguished by a high speed of spread, so often the entire bark on the branches of bushes is covered with these creatures.
How to fight with folk remedies?
When the bushes fade and fruits form on them, the use of pesticides can harm the plantings. Therefore, pest control during this period is recommended to be carried out using traditional methods.
Let's list the most effective means.
- Table vinegar. A solution is prepared from it at the rate of 100 ml of vinegar per 20 liters of water. The liquid is poured into the sprayer tank and foliar treatment of the bushes is carried out in the evening hours.
- Mustard powder. An infusion will help get rid of harmful insects: 220 g of dry mustard is dissolved in 10-12 liters of water and the mixture is kept for 4-5 days. Then clean water is added to it at a rate of 1:5. Before treating the plantings, the liquid is mixed with a solution of soap shavings, due to which it will stick well to the leaves.
- Ammonia. The spraying liquid is prepared in the ratio of 20 ml of a 10% aqueous ammonia solution per 20 liters of water. Bushes can be processed throughout the growing season.
- Pharmaceutical camomile. To prepare the infusion you will need 1 kg of dried leaves with inflorescences. You need to boil water, pour in dry raw materials and leave to infuse for half a day. Before use, add water in a ratio of 1: 3 and liquid soap.
It is best to carry out the treatment on the fifth day of flowering of the bushes, since by this time several flowers have already bloomed on them.
- Pyrethrum vulgare. If gooseberries are attacked by moths, Persian chamomile powder will help. It is mixed with sifted road dust, using the mixture to pollinate the affected plants. This must be done twice with a 5-day interval between treatments.
- Wood ash. When sawfly larvae eat the foliage, the bushes need to be thoroughly moistened and then sprayed with ash. You will have to powder the plantings several times, as rain quickly washes the powder off the foliage.
- Common tansy. Planting this grass between shrubs will create a natural protective barrier that repels caterpillars. One plant is planted on 5-6 gooseberry bushes.
- Burdock. The bucket is half filled with chopped burdock, water is poured in and left to steep for two days. The mixture is filtered, a 50 ml solution of soap shavings is added, then used to treat bushes against aphids. Instead of burdock leaves, potato or tomato tops, spurge and dope are also suitable.
Fight with drugs
In early spring, berry bushes can be treated with chemicals. Before the fruit reaches technical ripeness, the toxic components contained in agrochemicals will have time to evaporate without harm to the crop.
Here is a list of drugs trusted by gardeners.
- "Fozalon". Refers to organophosphorus insecticides with enteric contact action. It has high initial toxicity, creates a deep effect, and maintains high efficiency of plant protection at low temperatures down to +12°C. Adults and larvae die within two days after using the drug. Not phytotoxic.
- "Aktara". A fast-acting, highly effective insecticidal agent that is used to spray the vegetative part of plants and treat the soil. Thanks to the active ingredient thiamethoxam, the drug does not accumulate in the soil. Regular use allows you to keep any harmful flora under control throughout the season.
- "Decis". This enteric contact insecticide is used in case of sudden mass attacks of the most harmful insects. It instantly kills any pest from flies, aphids and butterflies to sawflies, butterflies and beetles, with the exception of Colorado beetles, which die within 4-5 minutes. Remains on plants after rain, duration of protection is 14 days from the date of treatment. In one application, migrating insects are exterminated in whole batches.
- "Kinmiks." An insecticidal preparation based on beta-cypermethrin, a low-toxic household poison with a wide spectrum of action. Destroys mature individuals and larvae. The active substance enters the digestive organs, paralyzing insects, as a result of which they die.
- "Sumi-Alpha". A highly effective insecticidal agent belonging to the pyrethroid group. It has broad insecticidal and high lethal activity, repellent, antifeedant, and paralyzing effects. The drug can be used in combination with various types of fungicides or insecticides. The duration of protection is 14 days.
Spraying berry bushes with poisons is extremely effective and guarantees the death of the vast majority of caterpillars. However, this method has disadvantages:
- the use of such drugs can cause intoxication if a person consumes processed fruits;
- It is necessary to constantly change insecticides, since pests eventually develop immunity to the active substances in their composition.
Therefore, it is recommended to give preference to drugs of the latest generation, which are guaranteed not to cause resistance in larvae. Gardeners also advise alternating treatments with agrochemicals with the use of plant infusions.
For information on measures to protect gooseberries from caterpillars, see the following video.
Gooseberry shoot aphid Aphis grossulariae Kalt . - a small sucking insect of pale green color, 1.1-1.9 mm long. Before treating gooseberries against these pests, you need to know that the eggs overwinter on the shoots near the buds, in early spring, in April, the larvae hatch and feed on the sap of the buds, and later on the sap of the petioles of leaves and young shoots. Damaged petioles become bent, shoot growth stops, and lumps of twisted leaves form at the tops, inside of which there are colonies of aphids. In summer, female dispersers hatch, fly to neighboring plants and give rise to new colonies. Shoots damaged by aphids continue to grow, and a lump of curled leaves remains in the middle of the shoot. Gooseberry shoot aphids are often found on black and golden currants, less often on gooseberries.
Control measures. Spraying the bushes during bud break with one of the following preparations: Fufanon, Kemifos, Kinmiks, Actellik, Iskra, Inta-Vir, Fitoverm.
Look at these gooseberry pests and the fight against them in the photo, which shows all the typical signs and methods of eliminating insects:
Elm leaf beetle, or garden looper, or apple leaf beetle Liperus xanthopoda Schr. , is a black, shiny beetle, 4-6 mm long. It has yellow legs and yellow antennae with a dark tip; in the female, the length of the antennae is equal to the length of the body. The beetles gnaw large holes on the leaves without touching the veins. Before treating gooseberries in the spring against such pests, you need to understand that they develop in one generation and are found in spring and summer on all fruit trees, many deciduous trees and many berry bushes. When present in large numbers, it severely damages leaves and causes them to dry out prematurely.
Control measures. Preventive spraying of all trees and shrubs in the garden when buds open and immediately after fruit blossoms with the drug fufanon or its analogues (kemifos, karbofos).
Look at what these gooseberry pests look like in the photo, which shows their appearance and distinctive features:
Treatment of gooseberry bushes against sawfly pests
Treating gooseberry bushes against pests in the spring contributes to the complete destruction of different types of sawflies. You can find out how to treat gooseberries against pests in the spring on this page - further information is given about the types of sawfly and measures to combat them.
Pale-footed gooseberry sawfly Pristiphorapallipes Lep. - an insect 5-6 mm long, black, with whitish legs. The larvae are naked and green. Older larvae overwinter in a dense, shiny, dark-brown cocoon in the soil. They pupate there in early spring, and the first generation of insects emerge in April. Females lay eggs in the leaf tissue along the edges and near the veins on the underside. The fertility of one female is 40-50 eggs.
The egg stage lasts 6-8 days, after which the larvae hatch and gnaw small holes in the leaves. Growing up, the larvae eat leaves from the edges and often completely bare the bushes, leaving only leaf petioles. The larvae often feed on the underside of the leaf, and when disturbed, they quickly roll to the ground. The development of larvae lasts 20-25 days, after which they pupate in light-colored summer cocoons 5-7 mm long on leaves, stems, and in the soil.
After some time, adult insects emerge and give rise to new generations. Over the course of a year, depending on weather conditions, 2-3 generations of the pest develop. The larvae of the last generation go into the soil and pupate. When the pest population is high, currant and gooseberry bushes lose most of their leaves, and the shoots do not have time to become lignified, which reduces the frost resistance of plants.
Control measures. Treatment of gooseberries against pests begins with the collection and destruction of individual larvae. Preventive spraying of berry bushes before flowering with one of the preparations: fufanon, kemifos. kinmiks, actellik, spark, Inta-Vir. In case of large numbers, spraying with the same preparations is carried out in the summer, taking into account the waiting period.
Yellow gooseberry sawfly Nematus ribesii Scop . - an insect 6-8 mm long, yellow, with a black head and transparent wings. Larvae (false caterpillars) are up to 17 mm long, with 20 legs, grayish-green. The last older pseudo-caterpillars overwinter in cocoons in the soil at a depth of up to 5 cm, and pupate there in the spring; two weeks later, during the budding period, adult insects fly out.
Females lay eggs along the veins on the underside of the leaves. Larvae emerge from them, which first skeletonize the leaves, then eat holes, and at an older age they eat the entire leaves, leaving only veins and petioles. The development of the larvae lasts 15-28 days, after which they pupate in the soil, and after two weeks the second generation of the pest emerges. The new generation is the most numerous and voracious; the larvae develop and feed in the second half of June and can destroy all the leaves and even berries on the bushes. The second generation larvae, after finishing feeding, go into the soil for the winter.
Control measures. Spraying the bushes before flowering and immediately after flowering with one of the preparations: fufanon, kemifos, kinmiks, actellik, spark, Inta-Vir. If the number of false caterpillars is large, spraying is repeated in the summer, taking into account the waiting time for the preparations.
Caterpillars on gooseberries: how to fight and how to treat them
How to deal with caterpillars on gooseberries depends primarily on the type of pest. Most often, bud rollers, gooseberry moths, moths and other no less beautiful and voracious butterflies are identified on the bush. Measures to combat them necessarily include agrotechnical measures in the garden plot and the use of special chemicals. Before treating gooseberries for caterpillars, make sure that this procedure will not harm the environment. Start fighting in early spring and respond promptly when butterflies and caterpillars appear.
Leaf roller: how to spray gooseberries against pests in spring
Bud roller, or bud roller Spilonota ocellana F. (syn. Tmetocera ocellana F.) , - a butterfly with a wingspan of 14-18 mm. The front wings are gray with a wide white stripe in the middle and several dark strokes, the hind wings are brownish-gray. The eggs are transparent, shiny, the caterpillar is 9-12 mm long, brown, with a black head and a black chest shield. The pupa is brown, 6-8 mm long.
Before spraying gooseberries against pests in the spring, you need to know that third-instar caterpillars overwinter in white cocoons near the buds and in cracks in the bark. In early spring they emerge from the cocoon, bite into the buds and feed on the rudiments of leaves. After the buds open, the caterpillars feed on the buds and leaves, pulling them together into a dense lump with a web. Therefore, before spraying gooseberries against pests, you need to collect and burn all plant debris that has been preserved since the fall.
Having finished feeding, the caterpillars pupate and about 9-15 days after the end of flowering of the apple trees, butterflies fly out. The flight of butterflies is extended, and the mass flight is observed from the second ten days of June. Each female lays up to 180 eggs, placing them one at a time on the upper side of the leaves. The hatched caterpillars live between two leaf blades, held together by a web, or between a leaf and a fruit, to which they are attached by a web. The caterpillars are yellow-green, with a black head and chest shield. From a young age, they gnaw out leaf parenchyma and fruit skin, which leads to deformation and drying out of damaged leaves and fruits. The leaf roller damages all fruit and many berry crops, as well as forest species.
Control measures. If there is a large number of pests in the garden, annual spraying is carried out in early spring, during the swelling of the buds, with one of the drugs: Fufanon, Kemifos, Actellik. The treatment is repeated 2-3 weeks after the end of flowering.
Moth: spring treatment of gooseberries from pests
Bud roller Abraxas grossulariata L . - a large butterfly with a wingspan of 38-48 mm. The wings are yellow-white with numerous black spots and stripes. Caterpillars up to 40 mm long, grayish-white, with yellow stripes and a yellow abdomen, have two pairs of abdominal legs, which is why they bend double when moving. Older caterpillars overwinter in special cocoons under fallen leaves. During the period of currant and gooseberry buds, caterpillars emerge from cocoons, climb onto branches and gnaw on buds and young leaves. In June, the caterpillars pupate in cobwebby cocoons attached to the branches of bushes; From the second half of June until July, butterflies fly out. Females lay eggs in small clusters between the veins on the underside of the leaves. After 12-20 days, caterpillars hatch, feed on the leaves, gnawing large holes in them, in the fall they weave cocoons, attach them to the leaves and fall to the ground along with the leaves. The pest is widespread in gardens and, in addition to berry trees, damages apple, pear, plum, apricot, and bird cherry trees.
Control measures. Spring treatment of gooseberries against moth pests begins with collecting and burning fallen leaves with pest cocoons. Preventive spraying of berry bushes before flowering with one of the following preparations: fufanon, kemifos, kinmiks, actellik, spark, Inta-Vir. If there are a large number of caterpillars in the summer, repeated spraying is carried out after collecting berries with the same preparations.
Moth: fighting green pest caterpillars on gooseberries in spring
Gooseberry moth Zophodia convolutella Zell . - a nocturnal butterfly with a wingspan of 26-32 mm, flies at dusk and at night, and hides in the shade of bushes during the day. The front wings are gray with dark brown stripes, the hind wings are light brown, single-color with a silver-white fringe, the pattern of the wings is variable. Caterpillars on gooseberries are 10-11 mm long; younger ones are yellow-white with a black head; older ones are green.
The fight against gooseberry pests begins in the spring, since the pupae overwinter in the soil under the bushes at a depth of 1-3 cm. In the spring, before the gooseberries bloom, butterflies emerge and feed on nectar; their flight lasts 30-40 days. After fertilization, females lay eggs inside currant and gooseberry inflorescences, as well as on ovaries and leaves. Green caterpillars on gooseberries damage the berries, eating away the pulp and seeds. During mass reproduction, the caterpillars entangle the fruits with a web, fastening them into large clumps. Damaged berries rot and dry out, which is why the moth is often called the gooseberry codling moth. Older caterpillars go under the bushes into the soil, weave cocoons and pupate, turning into brown pupae.
Control measures with caterpillars on gooseberries consists of spraying the bushes before flowering and immediately after it with one of the drugs: fufanon, kemifos, actellik, kinmiks, spark, Inta-Vir. Collection and destruction of damaged berries, autumn digging of the soil under the bushes.
The main danger of all cultivated plants is considered to be all kinds of pests that develop on shoots and foliage. Their presence always leads to the withering of the green mass and quite often provokes their death. However, not every gardener can prevent the problem in time and confidently fight it back. The article will discuss in detail what is the main cause of damage to gooseberry foliage, and also describes the main methods of pest control.
Types of pests
A lot of insects can develop on gooseberries; its branched stems become the best habitat for the habitat and production of offspring of many species. However, such a neighborhood should not always cause alarm, since the bush often becomes an object of protection for small creatures. That is why below we consider species that are extremely dangerous for crops, capable of instantly eating foliage and infecting its shoots.
Did you know?Gooseberries are considered a traditional type of vegetation in Europe and Africa, but their first description was given only in 1536 by the French scientist and physician Jean Ruel.
Gooseberry moth
The adult specimen of this pest is a small grayish-white butterfly with a wingspan of up to 3 mm. The wings are often covered with brown stripes and scales, which is their characteristic feature.
In the spring, this pest lays eggs inside the flowers, due to which the young larva almost completely eats the berries from the inside. As it develops, the small larva grows into a green caterpillar with a black head.
During its life, it infects the pulp of the berries, which then prematurely turn red and rot. In this case, the fruits are covered with a characteristic cobweb coating, thanks to which the appearance of the pest can be best recognized.
About a month after the birth of the caterpillar, the moths descend to the root layer of the soil, take the form of a pupa and overwinter in the upper layers of the soil. This insect is characteristic of many fruit crops, distinguished by juicy berries, including currants.
Video: Protecting gooseberries from gooseberry moth caterpillars
Yellow sawfly
A typical sawfly is a red-black or yellow-black insect, up to 7 mm long. This creature appears en masse around the second half of May, after young foliage appears on gooseberries and other fruit shrubs. At this time, mass reproduction of the sawfly occurs, after which the insect lays eggs along the leaf veins.
A few weeks after laying, small bluish-green caterpillars with a dark head appear from the eggs. On top of the main color, insects have black dots located over the entire surface of the body.
The lifespan of the caterpillars is about a month, after which they burrow into the root layer of the soil. At a depth of 5–7 cm, insects form pupae, after which their development continues into the next season.
Moth
The most common pest of gooseberry bushes and currants can be called the moth. This is a fairly large butterfly, with a wingspan of 40–50 mm. The wings of the insect are covered with a bright pattern of various black dots, as well as yellow and brown stripes. At the same time, the head of the butterfly has a dark tint, and the abdomen is distinguished by an ornament of yellow-black spots.
Plant growers first encounter moths in early spring. The pest larvae emerge from the root layer of the soil and massively colonize the surface of the gooseberry. These are large caterpillars up to 40 mm long. Their back has a gray-white tint, and their belly is yellow, with all kinds of black transverse stripes. When a favorable period occurs, the larvae pupate on green mass or shoots, after which butterflies appear after about a month.
Around the end of July, butterflies visit the gooseberries again and lay eggs on the back surface of the leaves, from which larvae emerge again. They overwinter in pupae, in the root layer of the soil of the bush, and at least 1 month passes after hatching from the egg until the first pupation. Thanks to this development cycle, the bushes are affected by the pest at the beginning and end of the growing season, which almost always provokes severe consequences for the crop.
Shoot aphid
Important!Aphids are prone to instant reproduction; one female can produce several generations of offspring per season. That is why pest control should be started immediately.
As aphids reproduce, they form eggs; before wintering, they appear as small, dense, black formations. Pests deposit them in the area of young buds. In the spring, young individuals emerge from the eggs and feed on bud juice. This often leads to the death of plants at the beginning of the growing season, especially if the plant has reduced immunity.
Leafworms belong to a small group of butterflies from the order Lepidoptera . These creatures are of medium size; the wingspan of the average representative is 20–30 mm. The main color of an adult insect is of various shades of gray, over which an ornament of alternating spots and stripes of various shapes and sizes appears.
Over the course of 2 months, she lays eggs on the reverse side of the leaf, which allows the formation of up to 2 generations of young individuals. After the onset of cold weather, the caterpillars concentrate near the buds and form a cocoon, in which they overwinter until next year.
Consequences of the appearance
The main purpose of the reproduction of insect pests on the surface of the bush is to provide themselves and their offspring with the food supply necessary for growth and development, therefore, often with mass development they lead to the complete or partial destruction of the green mass of plants.
It is the center of the photosynthetic apparatus, since the leaves contain specific cells that ensure the conversion of solar energy into chemical energy.As a result, the plant is unable to fully maintain its vital functions and metabolism.
In addition, the foliage creates a special microclimate for the shoots, protecting them from intense sunlight.
In case of complete loss of leaves, this can lead to the death of a valuable fruit crop from lack of nutrition or drying out of the shoots.
What caterpillars eat gooseberry leaves
The following insects are considered to be the most dangerous for gooseberry leaves and other fruit bushes:
In addition, bushes can be affected by less dangerous pests that are not capable of causing mass death of leaves, but have a negative impact on fruiting and development of gooseberries. These include spider mites, gall midges, leaf beetles, glass beetles and gold beetles.
Control methods, rules of application
Chemicals
"Inta-Vir"
This product refers to contact chemicals that affect the intestinal and nervous systems of insects. Due to this, within a few hours after application, the caterpillars lose the ability to eat food and die a day after treatment.
The working solution is prepared from 1 tablet of the product and 10 liters of water. The resulting liquid is used to treat the shoots and leaves of the bush at a rate of 2 l/bush. Plants need to be sprayed twice. The first time this is done before flowering begins, the second treatment is carried out within a week after harvesting.
"Decis"
The drug "Decis" enters the body of pests through the intestinal route. A few hours after the defeat, it provokes a blockade of the nervous system, which leads to disruption of the activity of the entire organism as a whole. The end result is the gradual death of insects.
The effectiveness of the drug against all kinds of pests is extremely high and is approximately 8 points out of 10 possible. Prepare a solution for spraying from 1 g of concentrate and 10 liters of water. Depending on the size of the bush, the consumption of working fluid is 10 l/2–5 plants. The plantings should be treated twice, with an interval of 14–20 days, but no later than 30 days before harvesting the berries.
Important!In some cases, “Decis” can cause burns to young shoots, so spray it on 1–2-year-old seedlings with special care.
"Kinmiks"
To prepare the mixture for spraying, dissolve one ampoule of concentrate in a liter of water. The resulting liquid should be brought to 10 liters, and then used to treat leaves and shoots with a flow rate of 1–1.5 liters per bush. Plants can be treated throughout the growing season, but no more than 2 times, with an interval of 14 days. In this case, at least 3 weeks must pass from the last spraying to harvesting the berries.
"Iskra-M"
Prepare a treatment agent at the rate of 1 ml of concentrate/1 liter of water. The entire surface of the bush is thoroughly sprayed with the resulting mixture at a consumption of 1–1.5 l/bush. Such treatments are carried out throughout the entire growing season, twice, with an interval of 20 days, but no less than 20–30 days before harvesting the berries.
"Fitoverm"
Prepare the product at the rate of 1 ml/1 liter of water; the resulting liquid is sprayed onto the bushes at a rate of 100 ml/1 m² of plantings. Such procedures are performed at least 2 times, until the insects and their larvae are completely destroyed, with a break of 14–20 days.
"Fufanon"
To prepare a mixture for spraying plants, you need to dissolve 10 ml of concentrate in 500 ml of water, and then bring the resulting liquid to 10 liters. The working solution is used at the rate of 1–1.5 l/bush, the frequency of treatments should be no more than 2 procedures. The last of them is carried out no later than 20–30 days before picking the berries.
Folk remedies
In addition to highly active chemicals, pests can also be controlled using folk remedies. They are less dangerous for plants and future harvests, and are also not able to accumulate in berries. In addition, their use contributes to the transformation of simple gardening into organic farming.
Did you know?Humanity has been using insecticides for many centuries. Even in Ancient Greece, fumigation with sulfur was used as the best panacea not only for pests, but also for all kinds of infections of fruit species.
Ash
This product is prepared from 10 liters of clean water and 300 g of sifted wood ash. The mixture should be left for about 2 days, then strained thoroughly. Before use, add 40–50 g of liquid soap to the liquid and shake everything well.
This infusion is used to spray bushes throughout the growing season, with an interval of 7–14 days. In this case, the treatment must be carried out at least 2-3 times, no later than 2 weeks before harvesting the fruits.
Tobacco dust
This product is prepared using half a glass of tobacco dust, grated laundry soap and 3 liters of water. All ingredients are thoroughly mixed and left for about 3 days. The resulting liquid must be filtered and then sprayed on the plantings twice, with an interval of 14 days. Such procedures are carried out throughout the growing season.
Vinegar
Mustard
The pungent odor and burning properties of mustard are not tolerated by many insects, including gooseberry pests. Preparing such a product is quite simple: you need to dissolve 100 g of powder in 10 liters of water. Leave the mixture for about a day, after which 40 g of grated laundry soap are added to it before use. The resulting liquid is generously sprayed onto the bushes in several passes, with an interval of 7–14 days. If the gooseberry has suffered massive damage, the concentration of the substance is increased to 200 g/10 l of water.
Ammonia
Ammonia also has excellent insecticidal properties. To prepare the solution, 50 ml of liquid must be dissolved in 10 liters of water, and then add about 50 g of grated laundry soap to the mixture.
The bushes are sprayed generously with the product throughout the season; such procedures are performed in complexes, 2 times, with a break between each of at least 14 days. The last procedure should be carried out no later than 20 days before harvesting.
After treatment with all kinds of plant protection products, it is not recommended to water the plants for 2–3 days, otherwise the procedure will not give the necessary results.
Prevention, seasonal features
As practice shows, timely prevention is always the best measure to control pests on the site. It allows you to avoid mass infections, as well as prevent a decrease in the yield of fruit species.
- To do this you need to follow just a few simple rules:
- It is necessary to carry out preventive spraying of bushes in early spring, before flowering and in late autumn;
- at the beginning of the growing season, pour boiling water over the gooseberry tree trunk (avoiding contact with the plant itself);
- periodically weed the tree trunk;
- provide the bushes with the necessary microclimate and an intensive feeding system;
- at the end of the season, remove leaves and burn all plant debris.
The adult specimen is up to 8 mm long and has different colors. Yellow gooseberry sawfly - red and yellow colors predominate in the color scheme. The pale-legged type of flying insect is recognized by its basic black color and pale spots. Females are slightly larger and brighter than males. Malicious caterpillars are dirty blue or green in color. Each has 10 pairs of legs.
The sawfly overwinters in the caterpillar stage, hidden in a cocoon, in the top layer of soil in the root zone of the bush at a depth of 10-15 cm. With the onset of spring, larvae hatch. When the gooseberries bloom, adults emerge. They land on young green leaves. The eggs are attached to their underside along the veins. The plant is affected focally. With the appearance of the caterpillars and the beginning of their active feeding, holes form on the leaves. The leaves are then eaten whole. If the larvae of the first generation remind little of themselves and may go unnoticed, then the second generation of the pest is more numerous. In a week it can eat all the green crown on the bushes.
Attention! Destroyed leaves are not only a ruined harvest, but also a threat to fruiting next year. The plant does not grow, fruit and growth buds are not formed for the future.
At the same time, the bush weakens. Photosynthesis processes are suspended in it. As a result, the fruits are underdeveloped and small. They do not stay on the bush, turning into carrion. Gooseberries do not produce young shoots. His protective functions are weakened. It freezes in cold weather.
Pseudo-caterpillars are preparing to spend the winter. Young shoots eat the soft skin of the leaf blade from below. As you grow older, your appetite increases. The whole leaves are used as food. Having gained the required weight, after a month, they crawl into the soil. There they pupate. Already during the ripening of the fruits, a large second generation of the pest emerges. The sawfly on gooseberries is bare branches with small fruits, where instead of leaves, leaf veins stick out, similar to pine needles.
To help the harvest
If you do not intervene in the vegetative process or take timely measures, you can ruin the plant. The fight against sawfly on gooseberries should be carried out comprehensively.
- Before the onset of frost, collect fallen leaves and burn them.
- Dig up the soil litter in the root zone to a depth of at least 15 cm. Turn over the layers of soil so that the individuals preparing to winter freeze out. It would be nice to use a pitchfork rather than a shovel for these purposes.
- Make sure that old branches are completely cut off.
- Mulch the soil regularly.
- If for some reason this was not done, the situation can be corrected in early spring, before the buds bloom on the branches. The soil under the bush is loosened, a mixture of 2 cups of ash, ground pepper and dry mustard (1 tablespoon each) is added. The earth is covered with a film. The pest dies under it.
- Use the thermal method: with the onset of spring, treat the slightly warmed soil at the roots with boiling water.
- The resulting deformed berries affected by the sawfly should be picked by hand. Usually, this is done 15 days after flowering. The collected “harvest” is destroyed. The procedure is repeated periodically until the larvae pupate in the soil.
- The same is done with caterpillars. When conducting regular inspections of bushes after flowering, you should pay special attention to the inside of the leaves. To do this, the branches are raised. The larvae are collected by hand or shaken off onto a piece of tarpaulin or film spread under a bush.
- As a deterrent method, it would be good to plant an elderberry bush in the garden or plant tansy between the gooseberry bushes: 1-2 plants for every 6 bushes of the crop.
- The smell of tomato tops and mint is also not tolerated by the pest, as is the “aroma” of diesel fuel, turpentine, and other odorous substances.
- During the summer, adults are caught using light traps. Special tiles and cardboards are painted in bright colors (orange, yellow) and smeared with non-drying glue (from caterpillars).
Effective chemicals
Attention! The most effective control is carried out with the help of insecticides. Basically, treatment is carried out twice: at the time of bud opening and after flowering is completed. If the crop has already been harvested, but the larvae have appeared again, spraying must be repeated.
- As soon as the currants and gooseberries fade, spray the bushes with 50% trichlorometaphos-3 (20 g per 10 liters of water). This will kill the adult adults. When new insects appear, the treatment is repeated.
- Formation of buds: treat the bushes with a solution (10%) of Karbofos. 75 g of the composition per 10 liters of water.
- The first generation larvae are destroyed by Trieslormetafos-3. To do this, 100 g of concentrated emulsified preparation (10%) is diluted in 10 liters of water.
- Intestinal poisons (Paris greens, calcium arsenate) are mixed with slaked lime and sprayed onto the “bare” bush.
- Insecticides: Inta-Vir, Decis, Karate, Iskra, Gardona, Fufanon (1%), Ambush - applied in early spring, even before the plant blooms.
- In addition to insecticides, the following biocompositions are used: Lepidocid (10 l of water and 25 g of the substance), (10 l of water, 90 g of the drug), Dendrobacillin (water - 10 l, drug - 40 g).
Decoctions and infusions
Weakened bushes can be treated with nutritional supplements made from organic fertilizers. When gooseberries and currants fade, treatment with infusions of mustard, yarrow, wood ash, tobacco leaves or shag will be beneficial. For 10 liters of infused concentrate, add 40 g of liquid soap for better fixation of the composition on the crown. If the treatment is repeated 3 times every 6 days, the pest can be defeated.
- Leave dry mustard (100 g of dry powder) in water (10 l) for two days. Dilute with cold water. It is added twice as much as the volume of infusion. The solution also includes liquid soap (40 g).
- You can use tobacco dust. 1 kg is filled with a bucket of water. The infusion is ready for use after 24 hours.
- Dry wood ash is sprayed in the morning on leaves damp from dew (0.5 kg per bush) in late spring or early June.
- If the ovary is small, treatment with entobacterin is recommended (50 g of composition per bucket of water). Or dilute 4 tbsp in a bucket of water. spoons of pine needle extract.
- The fight against larvae can be carried out with an infusion of fresh tomato tops. Method of preparation: 0.5 fresh shoots (40 g dry), 40 g of laundry soap, infused in 10 liters of water for 24 hours. Before spraying, the solution is filtered and diluted with water 1:4.
- Ash lye and a decoction of capsicum (red) are also used as measures to combat the sawfly.
- If elderberry does not grow in the garden, prepare a decoction from it and sprinkle the gooseberries.
- Before the buds open, the bushes are treated with tar: 30 g per 10 liters of water and a little soap.
If you carry out prevention in time, do not lose vigilance, take time to prepare infusions and solutions, then you can do without drastic measures.
From the first days of spring, not only nature comes to life. Various types of pests are active, waiting out the winter by burrowing deep into the soil or hiding under fallen leaves. hungry, thereby causing great damage to garden trees and shrubs. The gooseberry bush suffers greatly from them. As a result of damage to the stems and leaves of the plant, the yield is reduced. For this reason, many gardeners and summer residents are concerned about how to deal with caterpillars on gooseberries. To get an answer to this question, you need to figure out which insects pose a threat to the gooseberry bush.
Types of pests and measures to combat them
Let's look at the most common gooseberry pests that can cause serious damage to the bush. The butterfly insects themselves do not pose a significant threat; the threat is posed by the caterpillar on the gooseberry.
Sawfly
One of the most voracious and dangerous pests of gooseberries. It also attacks black and red currant bushes. This is a flying insect, it can even be called beautiful due to the combination of a black head with bright yellow legs. It endures winter in the pupal stage, and in early spring adult insects emerge from them, whose task is to lay eggs on the underside of the leaves. After 1-2 weeks, caterpillars emerge from them. They damage the buds and leaves, leaving holes in them.
Leaves eaten by caterpillars are not only a ruined crop. The next year the bushes may not bear fruit, since they do not produce growth and growth buds do not form.
If there are a large number of green caterpillars on the gooseberry, within two days the gooseberry or currant bush can become completely bare. After a hearty lunch, when the pests have already eaten the leaves, they calmly crawl into the soil and pupate there. After 2 weeks, the insect appears again, it lays eggs again and the process repeats. In areas where the summer period is quite long, gooseberry pest caterpillars can produce at least 3 generations. Gooseberry bushes, left without a single leaf, dry out and may die.
I was visiting my friend. She has gorgeous gooseberry bushes: large berries, beautiful green leaves are pleasing to the eye. How surprised I was when I visited her again 5 days later. There are no leaves left on the branches, only berries hanging. According to a friend, such a metamorphosis occurred literally in one or two nights. She went to pick the berries and saw that the caterpillars had eaten the gooseberry leaves. After experiencing a slight shock, she realized that it was necessary to take preventive measures in the future.
Angelina, Kuban
How to deal with sawfly
The fight against caterpillars on gooseberries should be comprehensive:
- In autumn, all foliage should be collected and burned.
- The soil under the gooseberry bushes must be dug well. The larvae of insects that have gone to winter will be destroyed as a result of such actions.
- Old branches should be pruned.
- It is recommended to mulch the soil.
- In early spring, when buds have not yet appeared on the bushes, pour 1 tbsp of mixture prepared from two glasses of ash onto the ground. spoons of dry mustard and ground black pepper, and cover with film. In this way you can get rid of pests.
- The thermal method will also help get rid of it. As soon as the soil at the roots of the gooseberry bushes warms up, you need to treat it with boiling water.
- It is necessary to regularly inspect the bushes for the presence of caterpillars. If they have already settled there, the larvae are collected by hand and destroyed.
On a note!
It is recommended to plant tansy between gooseberry bushes or elderberries next to them. These plants repel insects with their scent. They also cannot tolerate the aroma of tomatoes, turpentine, diesel fuel and other substances with a strong odor.
Ognevka
The gooseberry moth is a dangerous insect that can destroy almost half the crop. The butterfly is small in size and distinguished by its gray forewings, which have brown stripes. The female lays her eggs in unopened buds and ovaries. The caterpillars that emerge from them begin to eat the flowers.
On a note!
Small caterpillars are also frequent guests in gooseberries. Their favorite food is the core of fruits; they literally gnaw everything inside them. As a result, the fruits change color and dry out.
With their web, caterpillars entwine not only foliage, but also berries and flower stalks. If caterpillars eat gooseberries, what to do in this case: use available methods to destroy them.
How to deal with moth
Agrotechnical methods can be used to destroy moth caterpillars. Since the insect spends the winter time in the soil directly under the gooseberry bush, you should definitely dig up the ground regularly. As soon as autumn comes, it is recommended to carry out hilling at a depth of 10-12 cm. The following measures also need to be taken:
- Plant mint and tomatoes around or next to the plants.
- A reasonable solution is to attract natural pests to the site - ground beetles. These beetles happily eat sawfly and moth larvae. To attract them, it is enough to place roofing felt or roofing felt under the bushes, which serve as shelter for them.
- When planting gooseberry bushes, it is necessary to leave enough space between them for good air exchange. We should not forget that gooseberries love the sun.
It is good to treat gooseberries against caterpillars using old proven methods. They are as follows:
- Spraying with wood ash. You need to take 3 kg of it, sift it and fill it with 10 liters of water. Leave the prepared solution for 48 hours, after which it is filtered and sprayed on the gooseberry bushes.
- 12% dust solution. They use it to cultivate the soil near bushes. After a week, dust (50 g) is scattered in powder form, it will help consolidate the effect.
- Infusion from tomato tops. Every 7 days they should spray the gooseberries against caterpillars.
- Coniferous branches. You should collect them in an amount of 200 grams, add two liters of hot water and leave for a week. Before spraying, the mixture is diluted with water, maintaining a ratio of 1:10.
- Mustard tincture. 100 grams of powder are diluted in a standard bucket of water and infused for two days. After this, the resulting solution is filtered, diluted in a ratio of 1 to 2 and the spraying process begins.
On a note!
Shoot aphid
Refers to a common type of pest. Her eggs remain on the shoots in winter. With the onset of spring, larvae appear and feed on the sap of young leaves. As soon as insects fly out of them, they settle on the top of young shoots, slowing down their growth. The leaves become deformed, resulting in a lump of them forming at the tops. Thus, the aphid creates a “house for living” for itself. Gooseberries affected by aphids grow poorly and buds appear late.
How to deal with aphids
If this type of insect is found on a gooseberry bush, it is recommended to use boiling water and pour it over the plant. The following methods help in the fight:
- Garlic. It needs to be crushed in the amount of 300 grams, poured with 10 liters of water, let it brew for a while, strain and process the bushes.
- Onion peel. Leave onion peels (200g) in 10 liters of water for 5 days, then spray the plants.
- Burdock. The leaves are crushed, left for 2-3 days and the bushes are treated.
My gooseberry bushes were infested with aphids. I used garlic. I made a solution as written above and sprayed the bushes with it. It helps a lot. In the fall, I sprinkle ash under the gooseberries.
Olga, Vitebsk
The caterpillars of this insect completely infect gooseberry foliage. They spend the winter under fallen leaves, and in the spring they emerge from cocoons and eat them. Only cuttings remain on the bush. After flowering ends, they pupate and are attached to the leaves by a web. After 3-4 weeks, butterflies appear and lay their eggs on the inside of the leaves. New larvae soon emerge from them, and the process is repeated, after which they go to winter.
How to deal with moth:
- Just as with other insects, you should remove and burn the leaves and dig up the soil.
- For processing, decoctions of shag and chamomile tinctures are used.
- To destroy them, it is recommended to spray them with karbofos twice. The first time, as soon as they appear on the bushes, the second time – 20-30 days before harvesting.
Chemicals
Insecticides are considered the most effective drugs. Treatment of gooseberry bushes should be carried out 2 times per season. The first time is as soon as the buds open, the second time is after flowering. If the larvae appear after harvesting, the spraying procedure must be repeated. To do this you need to use the following recipes:
- Dissolve 20 g of 50% trichlorometaphos-3 in 10 liters of water. Treatment is carried out at the moment of bud opening and after flowering. If new pests appear, the procedure is repeated.
- A solution of 10% karbofos. 75 grams of the composition are dissolved in 10 liters. Treatment is carried out during the formation of buds.
- Ready-made products: Karate, Iskra, Fufanon, Decis, Gardona and others. They should be used in early spring, before the plant blooms.
On a note!
A product called “Bitoxibacillin” has proven itself well. The drug is excellent against all types of pests. It is somewhat aggressive, but when used correctly it is excellent at killing caterpillars. It does not harm plants and does not affect productivity.
I have 5 gooseberry bushes at my dacha. Delicious, juicy fruits and no pests. But how surprised I was when I noticed the caterpillars after I had already picked the berries. They destroyed the leaves with such fury that I became scared. I bought the following products: Commander and Iskra. First I treated with one, and after 2 weeks with the second. She poured ash under the bushes.
Valentina, Izhevsk
Now you know how to get rid of caterpillars on gooseberries using accessible methods, without much financial cost or effort.