9 ways to get rid of bud mites on currants

Onion and garlic infusion

The kidney mite cannot tolerate the smell of garlic or onions, so to combat the pest, you can prepare a tincture according to the following recipe:

• take 100 g of peeled onion and garlic, chop on a fine grater;
• put the pulp in a 10 liter bucket of water;
• mix everything thoroughly until smooth, cover with a lid and leave for a day;
• strain the infusion through doubled gauze.

Spray the foliage, branches and tree trunks with the prepared solution, starting in early spring. This will destroy the larvae that survived the winter.

This garlic and onion infusion is also effective against aphids and herbivorous caterpillars.

General principles of pest control

Getting rid of the parasite is quite difficult, since its life is concentrated inside the kidney. The surest thing is to destroy many larvae during their migration using poisonous agents, but since the period of their migration coincides with the time of flowering and budding, this cannot be done, since beneficial pollination occurs. Therefore, the currant mite is a dangerous pest and in order to get rid of it, all procedures to combat it should be carried out after the harvest season or before the flowering process.

The fight against ticks consists of the following methods:

• folk;
• biological;
• chemical;
• agrotechnical;
• preventive.

In addition, nature itself provides a chance to fight parasites naturally; each pest has its own enemies. For example, the following insects can help get rid of kidney mites:

• hoverfly;
• encarsia;
• chalcides;
• lacewing;
• carnivorous;
• carnivorous bug;
• ladybug.

Use a gas burner

Another effective method is fire treatment. You need to point the gas burner at the bush, keeping a distance of 10 cm from the branches. Movements should be fast so as not to burn the bush, and directed from top to bottom.

Healthy buds have dense scales that protect them from fire. Buds affected by pests, on the contrary, are open and porous, so the heat will penetrate inside and destroy the bud mite along with the larvae.

Why is the pest dangerous?

The kidney mite is a representative of the class of arachnids, 0.2 mm in size, indistinguishable to the naked eye. Female pests overwinter in currant buds, and here in the spring young larvae emerge from eggs and crawl into healthy buds in search of food. One female lays from 3 to 8 thousand eggs; in hot and dry summers, up to five generations of the pest are hatched on currants.

Damage caused by the bud mite to currant bushes:

• the pest, with the help of a piercing-sucking mouthpart, feeds on the cell sap of the plant;
• most of the affected currant buds dry out;
• the opened leaf plates have an ugly deformed shape;
• insufficient photosynthesis leads to inhibition of bush growth and developmental delays;
• the formation of strong healthy shoots stops, young branches grow thin and twisted;
• the yield drops sharply or the shrub completely stops bearing fruit;
• a small number of set berries ripen a month later, have small sizes and low taste;
• the bud mite serves as a carrier of incurable viral diseases - terry disease, witch's broom (growth).

In the absence of treatment during the period from March to November, due to the rapid proliferation of the pest, 40-80% of the bush buds become infected.

Laundry soap

Soap can destroy kidney mites due to its high alkali content.

Preparation of soap solution:

• rub 200 g of soap, dissolve in 0.5 liters of water and leave overnight;
• In the morning, add 150 ml of sunflower oil to the mass, stir until smooth;
• Dissolve the resulting mixture in 10 liters of water, pour it into a sprayer and begin processing the bushes.

Spraying should be started within an hour after the final stage of preparing the solution. Later, the soap emulsion will begin to separate.

How to get rid of a pest

The bud mite is an insidious pest that spends most of its life cycle inside the buds of the currant bush. Tick ​​control is most effective during the period of migration of tick larvae in search of a new refuge. The main measures to destroy the pest using folk remedies and industrial preparations are carried out in the spring and autumn.

Folk remedies

Adherents of organic farming prefer to fight bud mites using folk remedies that are effective in the early stages of pest infestation. Decoctions and infusions prepared with your own hands are safe and can be used during the flowering and fruiting period of currants.

Garlic infusion helps to successfully fight kidney mites:

• the middle head of garlic is cleared of its covering membranes;
• the cloves are crushed into a pulp using a garlic press, placed in a 10 liter container with warm water;
• the mixture is infused for 5-6 hours.

A filtered solution with a sharp, pest-repellent smell is sprayed onto the bushes and soil around the tree trunk.

Red pepper decoction . Recipe for making the product:

• 100 g of red hot pepper are crushed, combined with 1 liter of water;
• the mixture is put on fire, boiled over low heat for 5 minutes;
• The broth is cooled and allowed to brew in a dark place for 24 hours.

Before use, the prepared concentrate is diluted with water in a ratio of 1:10.

Herbal infusion . 200 g of dried dandelion grass or wormwood leaves are poured into 2 liters of boiling water and left for 5-6 hours in a dark place. Before use, the concentrated solution is diluted with water in a 1:1 ratio. Berry bushes are treated with the prepared infusion.

Tobacco infusion . The recipe for preparing the product is simple:

• 200-250 g of tobacco dust or tobacco leaves are poured into a bucket of hot water;
• insist for 24 hours;
• filter through several layers of gauze;
• the prepared solution is used to spray currants.

Folk remedies have a cumulative effect and act gradually. The desired effect occurs after repeated treatments.

Industrial products

Mite larvae become active and migrate along currant branches at the end of spring (at +18˚C) during the period coinciding with currant flowering. At this time, pesticides cannot be used; they are harmful to pollinating insects.

Spraying of plants is carried out during the period of bud protrusion and after the end of flowering of the crop, but no later than 21 days before the start of berry picking. Repeated treatment against the pest is carried out in the fall.

Industrial preparations effective against kidney mites:

1. “Tiovit Jet” is a combined product with acaricidal and fungicidal properties, produced in the form of water-dispersed granules, easily soluble in water. To treat currants, 30 g of the drug is diluted in 10 liters of water, the solution consumption is 5-10 liters per 100 m².
2. “Golden Spark” - the drug is produced in the form of powder or liquid in ampoules. The product quickly destroys the pest and does not cause resistance. For spraying, take 40 g of product per 10 liters of liquid.
3. "Fufanon-Nova" is an organophosphorus insecticide with enteric contact action. To prepare a solution for spraying, 12 ml of the drug is dissolved in a bucket of water.

Treating currants with colloidal sulfur gives good results. The event is held in warm weather before the bush begins to bloom. 10 g of powder is diluted in a bucket of water, the solution is sprayed on currant bushes and the soil around the tree trunk is watered.

Bioacaricides are new generation drugs that are safe for humans if the instructions for use are followed. The effectiveness of the products increases sharply at air temperatures above +18˚С. The death of pests occurs 12-48 hours after spraying. Currants are treated with biological products 3 times at weekly intervals, the last procedure is carried out five or more days before harvest.

Bioacaricides that destroy kidney mites:

1. "Akarin" is a biological product with a protective effect of 30-40 days. To spray currants, 4 ml of the product is diluted in 2 liters of water.
2. "Vertimek" is a biological insectoacaricide that penetrates plant tissue, causing paralysis and death of parasites. For treatment, 2 ml of the drug is dissolved in 2 liters of liquid, the protective effect lasts up to 3 weeks.
3. "Bikol" - available in powder form. Preparation of the working solution: 70 g of the product is diluted in a bucket of water.

After harvesting, potent systemic insectoacaricides are used to destroy the currant pest: “Phosfamide”, “Nitrophen”, “Sunmite”.

In advanced cases, it is necessary to apply radical pruning of the bush - all infected shoots are removed. Then the base of the bush and the soil are treated. Full fruiting of the cured currant bush is resumed after 2-3 years.

Pour boiling water over the bush

This method is similar to treating bushes with a gas burner, but in this case boiling water is used.

The process of destroying the kidney mite is as follows. Tie the bush branches into a bundle with twine, without squeezing them too tightly. Pour boiling water into a watering can with a sprayer, then raise the watering can 2 cm from the top of the bush and water the branches.

This treatment should be carried out in early spring before the buds open. On average, one bush should require a whole bucket of water.

Prevention against tick-borne infestation

Black currants affected by the bud mite, in addition to control, include preventive measures to prevent the disease of the bushes. These include:

• when propagating, only healthy planting material should be used;
• in spring and autumn it is necessary to carry out sanitary pruning;
• clean berry bushes from litter;
• the area should be well-groomed, the weed should be removed in time.

Such measures will not be able to protect 100% from the bunch mite, but it will reduce the risk of infection and death of the currant plant.

In order to strengthen the immunity of currant bushes, plants should be treated, fertilized, and watered in a timely manner. For propagation and planting, only healthy varieties that are resistant to parasites should be used. The material for planting should not be contaminated; as a preventative measure, the cutting or seedling should be treated with colloidal sulfur or a special solution of agrovertine. It is also recommended to treat shoots and seedlings with hot water (no more than 45 degrees) for 10-15 minutes before planting.

The larvae on currants cannot tolerate high temperatures, so this makes it possible to destroy the first generation of larvae by raining down the bush.

At the beginning of March, a procedure should be carried out to treat dormant buds using fire. To do this, after pruning and sanitary care of the bush, use a gas or blowtorch to process the branches from top to bottom at a distance of at least 8 cm. Movements must be non-stop, which will avoid burning the plant. Fire destroys bud mites or aphids without harming the plant. Fire treatment helps close the upper scales without damaging healthy shoots. Diseased buds have a loose surface, which allows females to lay eggs. During this period, they are defenseless; elevated temperatures contribute to their destruction. It is impossible to completely kill females, but it is possible to reduce activity several times.

Another method of fire treatment is taking a hot shower using a bucket of water. For processing, a watering can with a sprayer is required. Pour boiling water into a container and process the currant bush. Low air temperature and watering height allow drops of boiling water during irrigation to cool to 60-70 degrees, without damaging the plant, but destroying pests and fungal infections.

Control methods include physical destruction of parasites. Such an event should be carried out in the spring, after first inspecting each branch of the bush. If several swollen buds are found on a branch, they are torn off and put into a separate bag, which is burned at the end of the procedure. If there are more than 5 swollen shoots on a branch, the entire branch must be cut and destroyed.

Control measures in the spring using physical destruction are the most effective means, provided they are carried out annually.

Use chemicals

If there are too many mites and you don’t want to bother with folk remedies, you can buy chemicals.

For processing bushes in the spring, “Forbid 4F”, “Vertimek”, “Akktelik”, “Endidor” are suitable. After harvesting, it is allowed to use “Bi-58”, “Rogor-S”, “San-Mite”, “Phosfamide”.

From the beginning of spring until the end of flowering, shrubs can be treated with Karbofos. It is applied both to the branches and to the soil around the plant.

Signs of defeat

The bud mite is most often found on black currants; red and white varieties of the crop are affected less frequently. Old, unkempt bushes are more susceptible to pest attacks.

It is easiest to detect the pest in late autumn after the end of leaf fall or in early spring. Buds with overwintering mites become round and increase in size, resembling a small head of cabbage in appearance. In spring, the outer membrane of the bud bursts, and the bud itself dries out.

Signs of currant damage by bud mites observed in the summer:

• the bushes are covered with sparse foliage, the branches are partially bare;
• the leaves of annual branches are small, pale, yellowish-green;
• the tops of the shoots are hard to the touch and curl;
• instead of full growth, a large number of thin non-fruiting shoots with reddish bark appear;
• Few buds are formed, most of the ovaries fall off before they have time to ripen.

During the period of movement from eaten buds to healthy ones, pests are easily transferred to neighboring bushes by wind, precipitation or through gardening tools.

Life cycle of a tick

As soon as the average daily spring air temperature reaches 5°C, egg laying begins inside the young buds. This process is irregular and lasts 3–6 weeks. During this time, females manage to lay 5–100 eggs. The embryonic development of the eggs lasts 3–15 days, then larvae emerge from them. The nymph stage lasts 10–14 days.

The emergence of the first generation of adult mites coincides with the beginning of currant flowering . With the emergence of a new population inside the kidneys, there are more and more of them. Each bud can contain several females with offspring. A small pest can be clearly seen on a cut only under a microscope .

This is the main problem of timely diagnosis of infection. It is often determined only by external signs on the plant or at the time of mite migration to new places.

When there is a shortage of food, mites quickly move upward along the shoots and colonize new developing buds on young growth. They can reach the top of the bush in 1–2 days. A large number of mites accumulate on the surface of the kidneys in the form of a white coating . When the weather worsens and the air temperature drops, migration stops, and the ticks hide in the bud scales and cracks in the bark.

In winter, bud mites enter a state of diapause and spend this time inside the buds. Depending on the weather, 3–6 generations of the pest appear in just one season.

How dangerous is the currant bud mite?

Based on the level of harmfulness, the currant bud mite belongs to the group of very dangerous pests of garden and berry fruit crops. In one year, 1 female currant bud mite gives 5 generations (2 spring and 3 summer-autumn), which is about 15-40 thousand pests. In the process of development, currant bud mites have adapted to tolerate climatic disasters in protected conditions (buds, shoots, galls, etc.), which complicates the fight against these pests. The developed adaptability is so reliable that if drastic protective measures are not taken, berries (black, red, white currants and gooseberries) can die in one season.

Characteristics of an insect

The kidney mite settles in colonies, its population gradually increases and begins to fill the kidney. The result is the stopping of leaves and shoots in development, infection of the buds, which become sources of viral infections.

Description of appearance

Cecidophyopsis ribis is a very small worm, the body of which is no more than 0.04 mm wide and 0.15 mm long.
The pest settles in the buds of berry bushes, where it goes through all stages of its development. Females lay small oval-shaped eggs, usually in the month of March. These eggs are transparent, but then become white or milky. The parasite leaves the bud house after the currants throw out leaves and flowers.

Since the tick is very small, it is almost impossible to see it with the naked eye. The main way to detect a pest is the appearance of corresponding symptoms.

Life cycle

Ticks hatch from eggs that females lay in early spring. The tick does not leave the bud - its main hiding place - until leaves appear on the bushes. Then the pests move on to the leaves and bark, where 99% of the entire population dies. Surviving ticks move to another permanent place of residence closer to June and lay eggs. Five generations can develop in one bud; at a time, the mite lays a hundred eggs or a little less. If nothing is done, the pest will first destroy the crops, then the currant bushes as a whole and move to neighboring plants. Find out about planting and caring for Aflaut onions here.

In Latin, the name for all varieties of currants is ribes. The Spaniards gave it to the plant even before our era.

Signs of currant mite infestation in the garden

The main and obvious sign of damage to a bush is a violation of the development of leaves and shoots. It appears a few weeks after infection, when healthy bushes in the spring are abundantly covered with foliage and flowering brushes. On mite-affected currants, the branches are half-naked, the leaves are twisted, deformed, and the flower cluster is either absent or very scanty.

Seasonal signs:

1. In the spring, when bud mites are just crawling onto healthy bushes, there are few of them, and the appearance of the plants is almost unchanged.
2. In mid-summer, 2-3 generations of new individuals may appear, infected bushes with almost no ovaries with diseased, deformed leaves. The buds are swollen, burst or dry out. New Year's shoots have defects, the color of the leaf is changed, it feels rough and leathery to the touch. The top of the plant suffers most from the currant bud mite.
3. In autumn you can see enlarged, bursting buds.

Additionally, you can notice the reversion of leaves and doubleness of flowers; these are viral diseases of currants, transmitted by the pest. Such a bush is a breeding ground for infection and will not produce berries next year.

Measures to combat currant mite

Not a single insectoacaricidal drug affects insect eggs. Therefore, treatments with poisons will be effective only during the period of hatching of the larvae.

The following are used as control measures:

• Chemicals.
• Folk, in the form of solutions.
• Biological products.
• Agrotechnical method.

As a biological control method, predator insects are used that destroy the currant mite.

Important! Mass migration of the parasite to new habitats occurs at the very peak of the growing season, when currants bloom or berries are set. At this time, intensive pollination of flowers by bumblebees, wasps, and bees occurs. The use of pesticides is prohibited.

Mite-resistant varieties

Through the efforts of breeders, currant varieties have been developed that are resistant to bud mite damage. Planting several plants with different ripening periods extends the fruiting period of the crop.

Varieties of red and white currants resistant to the pest: Lights of Moscow, Scarlet Dawn, Red Cross, Snezhana, White Versailles.

To reduce the risk of introducing bud mites into the area, it is recommended to purchase planting material from nurseries. Before planting, purchased seedlings are disinfected by placing them in hot water at a temperature of 45˚C for 15 minutes.

The fight against bud mites is a long and labor-intensive process that requires the use of a set of measures aimed at eliminating the pest. To get rid of the parasite, the complete extermination of the tick population at all stages of development is required. Just one missed infected kidney will undo all the efforts made.

Planting currant varieties that are resistant to pest invasion and purchasing planting material from trusted producers allows you to forget about the bud mite forever.

What does a mite look like on currants and why is it dangerous?

Ticks move through the bush only when they change their “home”. They migrate from an already “eaten” bud to a young, juicy one. You can’t just see them on the leaves, and it’s the buds that need to be thoroughly examined. The affected areas are best visible in early spring or autumn, when there are no leaves on the bushes. The bud infested with mites is large in size. It seems to swell and become like a cabbage fork.

Most of all, the currant mite loves chokeberry varieties. But white and red currants, as well as gooseberries, also often suffer from this pest.

The damage caused by small ticks is colossal, incomparable with their size:

• the buds in which the insects lived most often dry out or produce deformed leaves and branches;
• plants slow down their development;
• flowering becomes scarce or the bush stops blooming altogether;
• Accordingly, there is practically no harvest from such bushes.

But the main danger from mites is not only that they weaken plants. Although such exhaustion can lead to their death. Pests also carry an incurable disease - reversion or terry.