Grapes are prone to many infectious and non-infectious diseases, and it is also often attacked by pests. In this article we will tell you about which insects are the pests of grapes, and about the basic measures to combat them.
Spider mite
In addition to grapes, the spider mite parasitizes another 200 species of various plants. He feeds on the juice of the grape leaves, usually settles under the leaf and lives there until he has destroyed all the nutrients in it. Then the mite moves to another grape leaf, and so on. The leaves, infected by the pest, turn yellow or turn red, and then turn brown and crumble. Young shoots of the injured branch grow worse and grow slower than usual. The tick also affects the grapes themselves: they become more acidic, sugar content decreases.
The name of this insect arose due to his "habit" of braiding his place of residence with cobwebs. According to this characteristic, its location can be easily determined in order to take the necessary measures in time. To protect the grapes from pest mites acaricides are used (preparations Sanmayt, Neoron, Aktelik, Omayt and others), as well as insecticides containing sulfur.
Grapevine
This pest, scientifically called "phytoptus", affects only some varieties of grapes, most often hybrid. On the upper side of the grape leaf, affected by the itching, there are tubercles, and below - the corresponding cavities covered with hairs. A direct consequence of the "work" of the itching is the deterioration of the photosynthesis of the leaf, and over time the leaves turn red and fall off. However, on the bunches of grapes the zuden does not parasitize.
Spring processing of grapes from such pests as a spider mite and grape itch is best carried out at the end of May, combining it with measures to combat leaf rollers, which will be discussed below. For more effective protection of grapes from leaf-eating pests, use insectoacaricides.
Phylloxera
Phylloxera is the most dangerous pest for grapes. It is a species of aphids - tiny insects that feed on plant juice, and settles only on grapes. There are two types of phylloxera - gallic (leafy) and root.
The first species lives exclusively on leaves, settling on the bottom of a leaf of grapes. At the same time, blisters appear on it, called galls, in which the phylloxera is actually living. If you do not fight it, infection can go from the leaves to the antennae, cuttings and stems of the grapes.
The root phylloxera affects, respectively, the root system of plants. With its sharp proboscis, its larva pierces the tissue of the stem or root and pushes out all the nutrients (carbohydrates, fats and proteins) converted by enzymes of its saliva into a consistency adapted for its digestion.
Spraying grapes from pests is just one of the methods of combating phylloxera. In addition, the use of special insecticides (Confidor, Aktelik, etc.), the cultivation of soil by fumigants, and the cultivation of grape-bearing soils resistant to phylloxera (clay, silty, solonetsous or sands) are also popular means. And the most effective method is quarantine - it cuts down all the foci of infection in the quarantine zone.
Sheet Sheets
Unlike beetles - pests of grapes, sheetworms - this is not harmless butterflies. They damage the grapes, which then begin to develop harmful microorganisms, causing rotting of the plant. In our latitudes, the following three types of leaflets are most common:
- grozdevaya - brown or brown butterfly, affecting mainly berries and ovaries of grapes;
- two-year-old - a small insect of gray-yellow color, causing great damage to the inflorescences and young ovary of grapes;
- grape - medium sized butterfly, eating up young leaves of the grape in spring.