Dropping off decorative fir in my area, you need to be prepared for the fact that it can be affected by various pests. Many gardeners know that pests bypass coniferous trees because of the essential oils found in bark and needles. However, there are many parasites that are not afraid of the deterrent smell and can cause serious harm to the plant. Therefore, in this article we will talk about spruce pests and how to deal with them.
Sucking pests ate
The list of parasites is discovered by pests that feed on the sap of the plant, causing significant damage. The resulting damage varies depending on the population of the colony of the same aphid or spider mite, which in large numbers can completely destroy the tree.
Shchitovka and false shield
Quite common pest of indoor plants can also affect conifers. The shield is a small insect that belongs to the superfamily of the worms. The pest has received its name due to the presence of a mini-shell that covers its entire body.
Important! Depending on the type of shchitovki or sham-proofer, the insect will parasitize on different plants (orange shchitovka - citrus; pine spindle-shaped shchitovik - pine).
It is worth knowing that the flags and false shields have a number of differences. Besides the fact that they belong to different families, they also differ in structure (the shell is part of the body of the false guard, and in the scales it is separated).
In this case, your plant can hit spruce defroster. This is a small parasitic insect that affects blue and common spruce. It settles on a tree in groups of 4-8 individuals. A characteristic feature of spruce false shielding is shell color (brown or light chestnut) and very small body sizes - up to 6 mm. At the beginning of summer, the female lays up to 3,000 burgundy-colored eggs, which in the middle of summer turn into larvae and stick to the plant buds or on the lower part of the tree. By October, the larvae become adults and grow a scutellum.
Did you know? In bad conditions, more male scammers are born, in good conditions, women are born. This is due to the fact that males have wings and can fly to other plants, where there is more food.
You can make sure that the spruce tree is struck with a false shield, you can on the following grounds:
- sticky secret (liquid) on the needles and shoots;
- small rounded tubercles on the shoots, which are the adult scutes;
- inhibition of growth of a young plant;
- dropping needles or kidneys.
If children are playing near the tree or pets are running, then it is better to start treatment using proven folk methods. The shield can be removed mechanically by wetting the cloth with alcohol and soapy water. To do this, take 5 g of warm water and take 75 g of liquid soap and 50 ml of denatured alcohol.
Important! The secret that false defenders distinguish is called padya. A black fungus settles on this sweetish liquid, which aggravates the activity of the false shield.
If the colony of false shield has a few thousand individuals, then simple cleaning will not help. For total destruction use chemical means: "Aktara", "Aktellik", "Phosbecid", "Admiral", "Biotlin", "Confido Extra".
In order for the parasite to be completely destroyed, it is necessary to spray spruce from pests several times, while using different insecticides to achieve the best effect.
Spruce aphid
Aphids are the main pests of spruce. Spruce aphids are not frightened by the smell of essential oils, and it settles in thousands of colonies on a tree. This insect has a size of up to 2 mm and parasitizes Sitkhinskaya, prickly and Serbian spruce. Aphid is so small that it is almost impossible to see it without a magnifying glass. Defeat spruce can be identified by yellow spots on the tree. To make sure that the plant suffers because of the aphid, you can use white cardboard or paper, which is substituted under the branch and knock on it a little. Also on the needles and shoots may appear sticky plaque, which attracts ants.
If you observe all the signs of vital activity of aphids on your tree, then it is urgent to begin the fight against the pest. Before talking about the destruction of aphids, it is worth remembering the reason for the appearance of an insect. Aphids eat fir trees, and ants eat sweet excrements of aphids and use them as livestock. From this it follows that, in addition to aphids, it is necessary to fight with ants.
Important! Before pouring or rubbing spruce with soapy water, cover the roots, otherwise the tree will suffer greatly from the substances that make up the soap.
You should always start a fight with folk methods to protect yourself and pets from toxic substances:
1. Using green potash soap, you can destroy a small aphid population. To do this, dissolve a piece of soap in 1 liter of water and rub the affected places with the resulting solution.
2. To get rid of aphids, you can use citrus bark. To do this, 300-400 g of crusts pour 1 liter of boiling water and let it stand for 3-4 days in a dark place (but not in the cold). The resulting infusion need to completely spray the tree.
3. Tobacco and tobacco frighten away aphids no worse than insecticides. To get the medicine we soak 150-200 g of tobacco in 5 liters of water per day. Further from the spray we spray the diseased plant.
If the aphid has flooded all the shoots of a tree or your spruce tree reaches a height that cannot be climbed, then insecticides are used. To do this, use the following tools: "Arrivo", "Karate", "Neoron" and "Aktellik". If only one or two branches are affected with aphids, then they can be cut to prevent further spread of the parasite. Since the ants are transported to the tree by ants, you can wrap the lower part of the trunk with duct tape that insects cannot overcome. If this method does not help, then you can use the following drugs: "Delic", "Muracid" and "Anteater".
Root aphid
This pest is very difficult to notice, since the lesion is in the reach of our place.
Important! Root aphid is very different from the usual, and hence the ways to deal with it will be different.
Two types of aphids parasitize on spruce: the honeysuckle (in this case, the spruce is an intermediate plant) and the spruce root. Honeysuckle aphid is interesting because it parasitizes both on honeysuckle and spruce. A female mosquito lays eggs in spring on honeysuckle, and in summer on spruce. In this case, the plants must be in close proximity, otherwise the honeysuckle aphid will not parasitize on the spruce tree.
Therefore, most often the tree will suffer from spruce aphids. This small insect up to 3 mm in length has a color ranging from pale pink to light red. In this case, the female aphid has wings, so it can carry the larvae over long distances. In early spring, she lays in the ground larvae, which parasitize on the thin lateral roots of the plant. After 2-3 weeks, the larvae become adults. By the end of summer, females begin to fly to other trees and lay eggs (this litter almost always dies).
How to understand that the spruce tree is affected by the root aphid? If the plant is stunted, has a sore appearance, begins to wither or dry and there is no parasite on the aboveground part, it means that you are dealing with a root aphid.
To overcome root aphids can be a variety of ways:
- agrotechnological;
- chemical;
- biological.
Let's start with agrotechnological methods that do not involve the purchase of drugs or their manufacture:
- Destroy all weeds near the tree. Especially henbane, corn and chicken millet, since it is on these plants that aphids often develop.
- Disposal of all waste (roots, shoots, leaves) near the spruce.
Chemical methods will help destroy any parasite, but are toxic to animals and humans. For baiting root aphids use such drugs: "Aktara", "Mospilan", "Dantop". There is an intermediate option in the form of safe insecticides of biological origin, namely: "Bowerin", "Akarin", "Guapsin" and "Fufanon". These are fungal and bacterial pesticides that cause paralysis of the nervous system in aphids and at the same time are safe for humans.
Hermes
If you are asked which pests most often parasitize on a tree and eat needles eaten, then you can safely answer that they are Hermes. Hermes are a species of aphid that lives exclusively on conifers. This pest settles on larch, fir, spruce and needles. 
The infected plant is covered with white patches, as if it was powdered with snow. However, this does not happen in winter, but in the middle of spring. White dots are covers that cover the parasite from damage and sudden temperature changes.
Important! At the time of the flight to another place, white covers fall, and parasites are harder to identify, since their natural color is from dark brown to pure black.
It should be understood that if you have several coniferous trees on the site, after the defeat of one plant, the Hermes will move to another, since most species of this parasite are migratory insects. If the hermes has spread to the whole plant, then in the places of the greatest accumulation of the parasite, the needles begin to turn yellow and fall off, the shoots are deformed and dry.
Important! The pest prefers to parasitize on weakened plants or those that grow in unfavorable climates.
Get rid of the pest is quite difficult. It is important to do this before the middle of summer, otherwise it is not enough that the larvae will cause serious harm to the plant, so they can still fly to the neighboring coniferous trees. To begin with, the shoots of the tree are washed out with a stream of water under strong pressure. This procedure should be carried out several times to wash away the maximum number of parasites. After the "water treatment" you need to inspect the tree. If you find huge clusters on certain branches, then they are better to cut and burn. If the whole tree is evenly covered with white dots, then use insecticides ("Fufanon", "Aktellik", "Aktara", "Commander", "Iskra"). In addition to these methods, you can also treat spruce with a suspension of mineral oil (100-150 ml per 5 liters of water). The tree must be processed completely to get the maximum effect.
Did you know? There are species of Hermes, which force the plant to create a "nursery" for their larvae. On the tree grows a strange bump, which resembles the fruit of pineapple. In it live the larvae and feed until full maturity.
Spruce Moth
Spruce leafworm refers to those pests that eat cones of spruce and other conifers. The sheet worm is a small butterfly with a wingspan of up to 1.6 cm and a dark color. Adults appear in late May - early June. Favorable temperature for pests is 20-22 ° C. Before you tune to mop butterflies from a plot, it is worth understanding that it is not the insects themselves that are harming coniferous trees, but their larvae. Thus, the caterpillars of the fir moth are the main pests of the spruce, damaging up to 90% of the cones, from which it is then impossible to collect the germinating seeds. During the mating period, the butterfly lays eggs in the scales of the buds of female plants. In the future, the caterpillars live and feed in the cones.
Understand that a sparrow has settled on spruce can be on the resin on the scales of the cone. Also on the needles appears rusty raid. Looking closer, you can see the fibers that twist the needles. The caterpillars not only damage the cones and spoil the seeds, but also gnaw through needles at their base, after which the tree begins to lose plenty of green cover.
Important! The affected bump after falling off is not disclosed.
If you are sure that the leafworm is parasitic on your tree, then you need to start treatment. Chemicals, biologicals, or folk methods can be used against caterpillars. If you do not want to spray hazardous substances on the site, then try using the drug "Bracon caudiger", which is an insect that destroys the moth larvae. They pose no threat to the tree, or to people or animals.
We turn to popular methods, which can also help in the fight against pests. In spring, spruce need to be sprayed with extract of tobacco or decoction of wormwood. However, this should be done before laying eggs with a butterfly, otherwise everything will be in vain.
Butterflies in the daytime remain sitting on the tree, so another option is duct tape, which is wrapped around the tree. Leafworm lures smell. Around the spruce hang small cans of kvass or beer. Butterflies fly to the smell and fall into the trap. If the above methods do not help, then you should use pesticides, such as "Accord", "Fatrin", "Landing" and their analogues.
Important! Spruce treatment with insecticides should be carried out several times to completely get rid of the caterpillars.
Spider mite
Many florists have encountered this parasite, which can infect almost any plant in the house or on the site. The spider mite is a microscopic arachnid animal that has a size of up to 0.6 mm. Adults are painted in bright red or its shades. The larvae are either transparent or have a light green color.
To understand that a tree is affected by a tick is quite simple: a barely noticeable cobweb appears on the needles, they become covered with yellow spots and eventually fall off. Also, tearing the escape through a magnifying glass can be considered small pests.
Spider mite feeds on plant sap, gradually reducing the resistance of the tree to diseases. The parasite inflicts the greatest damage during a severe drought or if the tree does not receive the required amount of nutrients. The tick is transported through the air, and the main reason for its occurrence is low humidity.
We turn to measures to combat sucking pest spruce. Knowing that the mite likes the dry air, you can plentifully spray the tree with water from a spray bottle, thereby worsening the conditions for the parasite. This method can only help at a very early stage. It is worth considering and folk methods. If the tree is small in size, shoots and stem should be wiped with ammonia.
Important! After treatment with alcohol, only adult individuals and larvae die, eggs remain intact.
A similar method is the treatment of the entire aerial part with soapy water. It should be remembered that soapy water should not fall on the ground near the radical neck. Use garlic infusion. For 1 liter of water, take 2 medium heads of garlic, chop and pour water. We put the vessel in a dark place and insist about 5 days. Next, we breed in half with water and spray the whole plant from a spray bottle. If a tree is large or a tick has a many thousands of "army", then you need to fight with it only with chemistry. The following drugs help to completely destroy the tick: "Fitoverm", "Aktellik", "Fufanon", "Apollo".
There are biological drugs, the main advantage of which is not only the destruction of adults, but also eggs. Such drugs include phytoseiulus predatory mite. Each individual kills 5 adult ticks and 10 eggs per day.
Important! Phytoseiulus is completely safe for people and animals.
Coniferous scarlet
The pest refers to a variety of insects that parasitize both on houseplants and flowers, as well as on vegetables, fruits, and even conifers. The pine bite is white in color, up to 10 mm in length and resembles an oval turtle. Different types of pests can range in color from pale gray to snow white. The activity of a coniferous worm can be seen on a whitish plaque on shoots and conifer needles. As in the case of aphids, a soot mushroom settles on these secretions, causing additional damage to the tree. If the pest population is numerous, then even from a distance the tree will be as if crushed by frost. In addition, the spruce will begin to lag far behind in growth and lose the elasticity of the needles.
Did you know? On the worms lives the mushroom Septobasidium, which not only parasitizes the insect, but also protects it from adverse conditions and predators. The chervets with a parasitic fungus lose their mobility and grow poorly, but they live much longer.
Since the coniferous scarlet can completely destroy the tree, the processing of spruce from the pest must begin immediately. A small number of worms can be removed with a sponge dipped in soapy water. During cleaning, it is necessary to remove not only the pests themselves, but also the whitish plaque on which the fungus develops. A week after the mechanical removal of the pest, you need to spray the whole tree with a solution of green soap. It is necessary to carry out the procedure several times with a break of 10 days.
Chemical preparations "Calypso", "Confidant", "Mospilan", "Fitoverm" do an excellent job with the broomstick. As far as possible, treatment with chemicals should be carried out after mechanical cleaning of the pest. Also, for the best effect of the preparations, it is necessary to re-process spruce. If possible, you should use two or three kinds of insecticides so that the worm cannot adapt.
There are several folk remedies that will help expel the worm:
- Infusion on garlic. 500 ml of water take 1 head of garlic. Garlic is crushed and poured boiling water. The resulting solution is allowed to stand for about 5-6 hours. После этого наносят на иглы с помощью кисточки.
- Оливковое масло. На 5 л воды берут 10 ст. lolive oil and the resulting emulsion sprayed wood.
A coniferous worm in nature has several enemies that kill thousands of pests without harming the plant. These include Anagyrus, Aphitis, Coccophagus, Leptomastix, Leptomastidea. It is quite difficult to find these insects, but the effect will be at the level of chemical treatment.
Pest-eating pests ate
Now let's talk about parasites that do not just suck nutritious juices from spruce, but damage the very structure of needles and shoots. Such pests weaken the tree, making it more vulnerable to diseases and unable to tolerate severe frosts.
Spruce moth
Another name for the pest is the spruce fur cap. It is a species of butterfly wolf that feeds on pine, spruce, larch or fir needles. The spruce moth is painted gray with glimmers of white. The wingspan is up to 6 cm. In spring the butterfly lays eggs between the needles of the spruce. Hatching caterpillars mercilessly destroy greens on a tree. With a strong defeat, the spruce can remain completely without needles.
The activity of the caterpillars falls to the end of spring. The caterpillar feed period is up to 50 days, after which it pupates and turns into a butterfly 15 days later. Each imago can lay up to 300 eggs, which are collected in one heap. You can determine the activity of the spruce moth by using coiled needle and bare branches of a coniferous plant. Also, moth eggs can easily be seen with the naked eye.
Did you know? French astronomer Truvelo brought silkworm butterfly eggs from Europe to America to study. Several caterpillars fled in the process of research. After 30 years, the pest was hit more than 10 thousand square meters. miles of tree landing.
Knowing what damage the spruce moth caterpillar can cause, it is necessary to immediately proceed to the destruction of the parasite. Start by checking and removing shoots with butterfly eggs. If this is not done, then the whole plant will be treated with chemicals in several approaches. When the caterpillars appeared on the tree, chemicals are used, namely "Bacillus thuringiensis". However, it should be remembered that this tool works well only when the air temperature is above 18 ° C. If you do not want to use chemistry, then try to hang on the tree special adhesive rings or homemade scotch traps. Butterflies, falling on them, will not be able to get out.
In addition to adhesive tape, you can use infusions on tobacco or garlic. Constantly inspect the tree and cut the branches with the largest number of caterpillars. Try to inspect not only the spruce, but also other plants in the garden, as there are species of moths that parasitize simultaneously on a large number of different plants. Use gloves when collecting caterpillars, as their cover is emitted by a poison of weak action.
Important! If you do not destroy the caterpillars before pupation, the butterflies ejected from the pupae will destroy all the trees and shrubs within a kilometer radius. In this case, no means of struggle will not help.
Peppered moth
The peppered moth is a pest butterfly that spoils the harvest of fruits and vegetables in the garden or summer cottage. There is a species of this butterfly, which is parasitic on conifers. The pine moth most often harms the pines, but can leave spruce and fir without green cover. The insect has a wingspan of up to 4 cm and is colored in a reddish-brown color with flashes of white.
The pest lays 130-150 eggs on the old needles, which in 10-15 days turn into green caterpillars up to 4 cm long. They eat needles, leaving small "hemp". Each caterpillar during its development can eat up to 100 needles, while at the end of summer the parasite is taken for the destruction of the needles of this year. A puppets pupate and winters in fallen needles under a tree.
Important! With a strong moth lesion, the tree grows bald and dries out.
In order to prevent the favorite coniferous tree from drying out, or even the entire planting, one must begin to destroy the peppered moth. To expel this pest without the use of chemicals, you will need to work hands. You need to start with cleaning all the needles from under the tree in a separate pile. Further, it is desirable to burn the collected dry needles or simply remove them from the site. If you have goats or pigs, they need to be tied near a tree so that they, digging in the ground, find and eat the moth pupae.
In addition, the soil around the tree must be dug up so that the remaining pupae are destroyed. In the spring, when the butterflies appear, spruce is sprayed with drugs (neonicotinoids or peritroids). After the appearance of the caterpillars, baits (made from the bottom half of the bottle) with kvass or beer are placed on the tree, which lure the caterpillars. It should also be understood that the natural enemies of caterpillars and pupae are ants, birds, moles and some insects.
It is because of the abundance of natural enemies that the use of chemicals in the summertime can do more harm than good. Therefore, we recommend processing at the time of appearance of the first caterpillars and over the next 10 days.
Important! Use of insecticides is necessary only in the case when 1 square. m crowns account for at least 2 pupae. Spraying is carried out after the appearance of the first caterpillars.
Spruce sawfly
The spruce sawfly is another insect that greatly damages the spruce needles. As in the case of butterflies, the sawfly lays eggs, from which caterpillars are born and destroy the green of the tree. Sawfly refers to hymenoptera. The parasite has a body length of up to 0.6 cm and a wingspan of up to 1.4 cm. The black color of the body helps the sawfly to merge with the shoots and tree trunk. Caterpillars have a length of up to 1.5 cm and are painted in the color of young needles. At the initial stage, they are colorless and barely distinguishable (size - 0.6 cm).
The sawfly eats only needles of this year, parasitizing on the tree for about a month. The time of abundant feeding of the caterpillars falls on the end of May - the beginning of June. Caterpillars pupate and hibernate in spruce litter. A pest can appear due to favorable wintering conditions for it - a warm, dry winter without severe frosts. Such conditions give an outbreak of mass reproduction, which can affect a large number of coniferous trees in the area.
Important! One pest outbreak gives a huge number of caterpillars in the next 5-7 years.
You can detect sawflies in May. If you notice that there are a lot of damaged needles on the tree (united or completely missing), this is a signal that a caterpillar appeared on the spruce. You can destroy the pest using chemistry, and agrotechnological methods or by attracting natural enemies. If you notice several caterpillars on a tree, hang 1-2 bird feeders nearby. The initial attraction of birds can have the same effect as the use of chemicals. Ants, tachini flies and rodents are the natural enemies of caterpillars. If they do not harm you or other vegetation in the area, then try to lure them to the affected tree, and the result will not keep you waiting.
If the tree is low or the caterpillars massively accumulate in one place, then they can be collected manually or simply cut a branch (after cutting it must be burned). Effective methods are the installation of adhesive plates or tape winding shoots that do not allow the larvae to rise to the needles of the tree.
Mass damage by sawfly is “treated” with “Chlorofos”, “Malathion” or “Kinmiks”. Use them only at the time of the appearance of caterpillars. Spraying is carried out several times with a small interval in time. After the larvae began to disappear from the tree, you need to do spruce bedding. It is piled up and burned off-site. Soil around the tree dug up to get rid of the pupae.
Stem pests ate
This group includes parasites that develop and live in the wood of the plant itself. They damage the bark and eat up moves in the trunk and spruce spruce. Often, the activity of these pests leads to a drying up of the plant or to serious diseases. In addition to direct harm, damaged wood loses its value and cannot be used in recycling.
Spruce bark beetle
Another name for the pest is the bark beetle-topographer. A dangerous pest is a small dark brown insect with a length of up to 6 mm. If you look at the pest through a magnifying glass, you can see that it is a bit like a May beetle. The topographer often parasitizes on spruce, but can live on pine and fir. Bark beetle appears in the month of April. The pest parasitizes in the lower part of the tree, preferring thick, coarsened bark.
Important! The beetle primarily inhabits sick or dry trees, but a large population can parasitize on healthy firs.
The harmfulness of the bark beetle in the spruce forest can be compared with the activities of the Colorado potato beetle in a potato field. If you do not take up the pest control in a timely manner, then it may well destroy several dozen trees in a season. The cause of the beetle is drought or fire. In general, everything that leads to the appearance of a large number of dry or damaged trees.
Signs of spruce bark beetle activity:
- a large number of small holes in the bottom of the tree;
- patterns on the bark that leaves the pest;
- wood dust around the trunk or on it (chopped wood obtained in the process of making passes).
All these signs make it clear that your eating was at stake. To get rid of the bark beetle use various methods. First, examine your territory and remove dry or diseased plants from it. After the survey, you need to make sure that the tree is healthy and does not need additional feeding. With a small population of bark beetle will not touch a strong tree. Bark beetle topographer is very difficult to destroy. The use of insecticides does not work, as the pest hides under the bark. There is a single chemical drug that gives the effect - "Clipper", but its cost in the range of $ 20 is not acceptable for everyone.
The most effective methods of destruction are injection into wood and traps with pheromones. Only specialists make injections, and they are quite expensive, but you can make a trap yourself. For the trap, you need a funnel with a diameter of 25-30 cm, an average plastic cup, 2 plates with dimensions of 35x45 cm and a pheromone dispenser (purchased in the store).
We make an incision on one plate and insert another to make a cruciform shape. A bag of pheromones is hung from the bottom of the plates. A funnel is attached to the edges of the plates, on the bottom of which a cup is glued. The glass is fixed so that it can be removed and remove insects. Holes are made at the bottom of the glass to prevent rainwater collection.
This method of collecting pests is used in many European countries, as it is the cheapest and quite effective.
Spruce Beetle
Spruce beetle or dendrocton belongs to the family of bark beetles. The parasite is a small black-colored beetle up to 1 cm long. The insect feeds on the bark of conifers. In Russia, only one species is common. The main habitat is South and North America. Luboed chooses single weakened trees with a damaged crown or trunk.
The pest appears at the end of June and continues its activity until the beginning of September. The female makes a hole in the bark and colonizes there the larvae that feed on the bast (the inside of the bark).
Important! The larvae of larvae begin to breed only 2 years after their appearance, which gives more time for their destruction.
Lubooed is not able to quickly destroy the spruce, but his work greatly weakens the tree and makes it vulnerable to frost and disease. Fight with the pest can and should be. For the treatment of spruce used various methods and means. To begin with, cut down dry trees and prune diseased branches. Feed the tree and conduct a thorough inspection. You can fight directly with the pest only with the help of subcortical injections or by spraying the lower part of the trunk with an insecticide. As in the case of spruce bark beetle, Clipper gives a good effect.
There is one popular method that was used before the advent of chemicals. The solution was made from cow dung, lime, animal blood and tobacco. The resulting mixture was coated with the lower part of the trunk of spruce.
Unfortunately, if the methods described above do not help, then severely affected trees are subject to cutting and burning.
Spruce barbel
A beetle that belongs to the subfamily lamine. The pest has a length of up to 4 cm, an elongated body of black color and characteristic long antennae on the head. Spruce barbel common throughout Europe and in some parts of Asia. The parasite damages all types of conifers, preferring spruce trees and fir. The female lays eggs in the bark. The hatched larvae feed on the bark, the bast and the wood itself. As in the case of spruce bastard, the larvae emerge and begin to multiply only after the second wintering. Beetle appears in early May. It starts laying larvae and massively destroying trees from June until the beginning of September.
Important! Spruce barbel often damages other trees, such as maple, birch and aspen.
The harmfulness of the parasite is impossible to describe. The beetle spoils the bark, exposing the lower part of the trunk. The barbel contributes to the desiccation of the shoots in the crown, violates sap flow and leads to the complete drying of the tree. The appearance of the spruce barbel is favored by a large amount of spoiled or dried wood.
In order to drive the beetle out of the plot, it is necessary to carry out a large number of sanitary cuttings and clean the area from rotten and dry wood. In fact, the beetle will parasitize only on diseased trees that have either been attacked by another pest or grow under adverse conditions. Treated with barbel trees are cut exclusively in winter.
The natural enemy of the beetle are woodpeckers, who easily get pests from under the bark. You can attract birds with the help of feeders. This method of control is very effective, since a very small amount of chemical agents can help in the fight against the beetle.
If no methods help, then you should purchase specialized insecticides. It is necessary to use them only in the form of injections, since the surface treatment of the result will not give. The solution is injected into the holes made by the beetle. If possible, pour chemical into all holes in the bark.
Spruce woodcutter
Another insect that loves to eat wood and bark of needles. The wood beetle has a length of up to 2 cm, the color is black or dark brown.
Important! There are aberration specimens that are colored in shades of brown.
The spruce woodcutter damages felled trees, as well as those that have been weakened or susceptible to damage. The pest eats away the bark and gnaws the wood, making it unsuitable for processing into furniture or used in construction.
The woodcutter appears in May and by the middle of June begins to mate. The eggs lay under the scales of the bark, from which after 2 weeks the larvae hatch and begin to eat the bast of the spruce. It is worth remembering that the beetle does not touch young trees, damaging only the old ones or those that are culled for cutting.
We turn to measures to combat insects. It is worth starting with the implementation of sanitary rules: cutting down old and sick trees, harvesting bark, sawdust and parts of wood. Regular monitoring of conifer plantations will help prevent an increase in the beetle population.
As in previous cases, attracting natural enemies - birds. Woodpeckers can reach both larvae and adults from under the bark, reducing the pest population. If no measures help to reduce the beetle population, then the affected trees should be cut and burned.
Pest Cones: Pine Caster
This pest eats frequent conifers. Many people confuse a fire butterfly with the usual moth. In color and size, they are almost identical. The butterfly is painted gray with a brownish pattern and glimpses of white. Wingspan - up to 3.5 cm. Fire attack appears in June-July. It damages the cones and lays eggs in them. Caterpillars have a dirty red color, reach a length of 2.5 cm.
Caterpillars make moves in the cones, feeding on the base of scales and seeds. After the activity of the caterpillars, the cone grows brown and falls off (reddish excrement is visible on the cone). In addition to the generative organ, the moth damages the apical shoots of spruce and gnaws wood.
If fire has settled on your fir tree, then you will observe the following signs of its activity:
- damaged buds and young shoots;
- yellowing needles;
- resin on cones, brown spots;
- eaten scales on the cones, no seeds.
The butterfly does serious damage to the plantings, weakening the tree and depriving it of its ability to multiply. By increasing the population of caterpillars, the spruce can dry out completely.
To expel a firebug from the site, you need to use insecticides. Processing chemicals begin 2-3 days after the start of dusting male inflorescences. Spruce is sprayed with Lepidocide II at the rate of 1 kg per hectare. Re-processing should be carried out a week after the first.
If the processing time of chemicals missed, then you should manually.
