Silkworm on an apple tree: how to deal with chemical and folk methods

Each summer resident expects to get as much quality harvest as possible from his garden, putting a lot of effort into this. After planting, the seedlings are groomed and cherished. And the long-awaited harvest has to wait for several years. But the joy of the appearance of the first fruits can overshadow the caterpillars. Very often, the silkworm settles on an apple tree and immediately begins to eat buds, flowers, leaves and damage the fruits. Therefore, every gardener should know pest control methods.

Description of the pest

Many pests pose a danger to the garden. The most dangerous for apple trees is the silkworm. Imago - adults, do not cause harm to plantings.The female only lives for a few weeks. During this period, it manages to lay about a thousand eggs. Egg laying is not afraid of frost, therefore, in winter, embryos are actively formed. Caterpillars appear in spring. It is they who pose a great threat to plantings and are able to migrate over long distances. The caterpillars are very voracious and eat most of the tree:

• kidneys;
• leaves;
• flowers;
• fruits;
• some individuals eat the bark.

Only after hatching, the larva is covered with small fluffs with a large number of bubbles. Due to this, gusts of wind easily carry the pest over a distance. In a month, one hundred larvae can damage most of the plant, so the fight must begin immediately.

Description:

• The wings of a butterfly are painted in brownish-yellowish tones. Their span is 3.2-4.2 centimeters.
• Maximum track length 5.5 cm. Color - bluish-gray with white, blue and orange stripes along the body.

How to fight: methods

The silkworm on the apple tree is a great danger. The best control measure is prevention. Proper measures help protect plants from pests. Methods:

1. Mechanical removal of clutches. This is the easiest way. To do this, periodically inspect the plantations, checking for the presence of nests. The eggs laid are scraped out and burned. You can also bury them in the ground to a depth of more than half a meter. It is necessary to remove masonry with gloves, as there are hairs on the surface of the eggs that can cause allergies
2. Another effective measure is the collection of caterpillars. To do this, glue traps are wrapped around the trunk. Caterpillars, moving through the plant, fall into a trap from which they cannot get out. You can also collect insects with your hands. Gloves must be worn before the procedure. The hairs of the pest can cause sores and redness.
3. Old apple trees are treated with active compounds for prevention. This method is not recommended for young stands.
4. During the flowering period, cocoons are destroyed. This prevents the emergence of adults, which reduces the population as a result.
5. Spraying with insecticides. There is no better or more efficient way yet.

How to deal with pests, everyone decides for himself. To select the optimal method, it is necessary to consider in more detail the viable options.

Biologicals

Use:

• "Dendrobacillin". A fast-acting remedy limited to a few hours.
• "Lipidocid". Sprayed during the growing season. Interval - 8 days. A maximum of 5 liters is consumed per adult plant.
• "Entobakterin". Can be used at temperatures from +20 degrees and above.
• "Bitoxibacillin". Sprayed at intervals of 8 days during the growing season. During the flowering period, processing is prohibited.

The listed preparations are suitable for processing plantings during the appearance of caterpillars. Be sure to re-treat 8 days after the first treatment.

Insecticides

If pests massively attacked the plantation, then insecticides will help to cope:

• Zolone;
• "Antio";
• "Metation";
• Karbofos;
• "Phosphamide".

The proposed preparations are treated when the caterpillars begin to climb into the crown and after the end of insect migration. It is forbidden to process at the time of flowering, as the chemical is harmful to beneficial insects that pollinate the inflorescences.

At the beginning of the spring period, it is allowed to process "Verin-ENZH". It belongs to viral preparations and is not suitable for use at the time of fruit formation. Until the appearance of the kidneys, Nitrafen is used.

Folk methods

At the time of fruit setting and ripening, it is recommended to use harmless control options. Best practices:

1. Coniferous concentrate is used to scare away. To do this, add 4 tablespoons of concentrate to a 10-liter bucket of water. Spraying is allowed several times. They also use an infusion of rotten hay, mustard, wormwood, tomato leaves.
2. If the pests settled in the crown, then a strong stream of water will help knock them off the plant. The insects are then collected from the ground and destroyed.
3. Effectively destroy bird silkworm. To attract more birds to the site, birdhouses are placed on the territory.

To save plantings, it is important to detect silkworms in time and take the necessary measures.

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