What to do and how to treat bell peppers against pests

Pepper is attacked by a huge number of harmful insects, many of which are dangerous and can destroy the entire crop in a matter of days. To prevent this from happening, you need to promptly identify and fight the enemies of the vegetable crop.

Pepper is a very tasty and healthy vegetable, rich in vitamins and microelements. Unfortunately, not only we think so, but also numerous pests that annually destroy part of the greenhouse pepper harvest. Today we will tell you about the most dangerous of them, and also teach you how to deal with small dirty tricks.

Whitefly

Elderly people and gardeners with poor eyesight may find it difficult to detect whiteflies on their property. Despite the striking appearance of the adults (4 snow-white wings of the insect seem to be sprinkled with flour), the whitefly is a secretive and cautious pest. The length of its body (light yellow color) is only 3-5 mm, and most of the time it hides on the inside of the leaves. Inexperienced gardeners often confuse whiteflies with moths, which for some reason run very quickly if touched, and only then take off. Insect larvae are even smaller and look like transparent blisters or growths.

Peppers are attacked by the greenhouse whitefly. It is discovered by chance - you can, for example, shake a leaf and see a swarm of small midges that take off and begin to circle around the plants. The inside of the leaves becomes sticky and becomes covered with small light spots - these are traces of parasite secretions (honeydew or honeydew). In this nutrient medium, a fungus multiplies, which leads to oppression of the leaves, they become white and yellow (as in chlorosis), and then suddenly turn black and die. Thus, the cause of the death of pepper is not the insect itself, but the fungal and infectious diseases it carries and causes (powdery mildew, mosaic, gray rot).

Sweet pepper diseases and their control

In addition to pests, peppers are susceptible to various diseases. The reasons for their appearance are the same as the reasons for the appearance of insects: improper care, contaminated soil, lack of fertilizing.

The most common diseases:

1. Late blight. Appears as yellow-brown spots on leaves and fruits. Late blight is a fungus. Infection occurs through spores. Late blight often appears in greenhouses, as there is high humidity there. To combat, use ash solution or manganese. Photos of leaves affected by late blight are presented below.
2. Powdery mildew is a virus. Looks like a white coating on the leaves. Dew appears due to an excess of nitrogen-containing fertilizers or non-compliance with crop rotation rules. An excellent way to combat powdery mildew is whey-based sprays.
3. Black bacterial spot appears as small black spots on the fruit and stem. Soap sprays are used as a preventive measure. It is better to remove infected bushes from the garden and burn them.

Colorado beetle

Who doesn’t know this “striped saboteur”? Of course, his main “dish” is potatoes, but in hungry years he does not disdain pepper. Adults, 7-12 mm long, are easily recognized by their black and white carapace and yellow cephalothorax with black dots. The larvae are larger - up to 15 mm, dark brown, lightening over time to an orange or pinkish tint.

It is easy to notice the Colorado potato beetle, but it is much more difficult to defeat it. To this day, no 100% means of protection has been developed - the beetle quickly develops resistance to chemicals, easily tolerates cold winters and is not a delicacy for birds and predatory insects. At the initial stage, bright yellow clutches of eggs are found on the inside of the leaves (one female can lay up to 1000 eggs per season). Afterwards, you can observe the larvae diligently gnawing leaves, shoots and leaf tips. Adult beetles, which live from 1 to 3 years, are also caught doing the same thing. Instead of a pepper bush, a gnawed “skeleton” remains.

Pests in a greenhouse or in open ground

Most pests live both in the greenhouse and in open ground.
However, whiteflies, Colorado potato beetles and mole crickets are most often found in structures. They appear there due to a special microclimate: high humidity and heat. The mole cricket is a powerful insect with a shell about 5-8 cm long.

The pest has a forked tail and large wings. The mole cricket eats the underground part of the pepper.

Open ground is characterized by aphids and spider mites. They arise due to frost, waterlogging of the soil or excess fertilizing. To prevent the appearance of pests, gardeners take a number of preventive and therapeutic measures.

Medvedka

It is impossible to confuse this “mole of the insect world” with anyone else. The repulsive and terrifying appearance of this small insect (up to 8 cm in length) frightens everyone who sees it for the first time. A powerful shell covering the cephalothorax, a pair of long wings, digging limbs and a forked “tail” - this is what the mole cricket looks like, responsible for the death of many plantings. At the slightest danger or approaching cold weather, the mole cricket goes underground. Where she has everything: food, warmth and a sense of security.

It is not easy to notice damage to plants - the mole cricket eats the underground part of the pepper and can feast on 10-15 plants in a day. Therefore, the mole cricket itself is usually discovered through winding passages that wind from plant to plant and entrance holes. The mole cricket flies and swims well, does not disdain other vegetables, and even does not mind eating an earthworm. It's not easy to drive her away from the site.

Precautions when working with chemicals

Chemical methods of pest control are considered the most effective, but they are used last, when others are ineffective.

Manufacturers of agrochemicals note that each drug has a waiting period, that is, the period while its active substance is in the tissues of the treated plant. You cannot eat the fruit until it ends. That is why synthetic insecticides and acaricides can only be used during the initial growing season of peppers.

Ants

We are used to admiring these highly organized creatures exactly until the moment they begin to harm our crops and supplies. Garden ants are attracted to the secretions of aphids and the pepper plantings themselves are interesting to them. Ants become “shepherds,” guarding aphids on plants and feasting on their juice. Accordingly, it is impossible to defeat aphids without eliminating a colony of thousands of ants.

Ants and aphids do not like to camouflage themselves - plant stems clinging to them immediately become noticeable. In general, the harm caused by ants comes down to the breeding and “exploitation” of aphids, although they themselves regularly spoil plantings, destroy beds and flower beds and do not disdain plant sap. If ants come to the site, get ready for a protracted war.

How to treat peppers against pests

What to do when there are insects on pepper or in the soil. First you need to identify the pest, and only then decide how to get rid of this uninvited guest.

Biological agents

The action of these drugs is based on the influence of beneficial fungi and bacteria, and certain strains of viruses. These control measures have advantages over chemical means of protection:

• act selectively;
• do not inhibit soil microflora and plants;
• do not get into the fruit;
• can be used during flowering and fruiting.

Disadvantages of biological agents:

• slow action;
• cannot be used during the day, the sun has a bad effect on the result.

Chemical control

Before spraying peppers with chemicals, you need to assess the risks and read the instructions. Most products are toxic. You need to work in protective clothing, a mask, and gloves.

Traditional methods

Pepper seedlings can be treated at home with infusions of onion peels and garlic. If pests appear, adult plants can be treated with folk remedies during flowering and fruiting. The table shows recipes for spraying bushes.

To prevent fungal diseases, peppers are treated with a solution of copper sulfate.

Mechanical treatment methods

Large pests can be collected by hand. Mechanical methods of protection are used when larvae and adults of the Colorado potato beetle appear on pepper . Collect by hand and destroy slugs. Equip traps for mole crickets, slugs, and wireworms. Save from small sucking pests with plain water. Wash the leaves and stems.

Nematodes

The results of the life activity of these microscopic worms are mistakenly taken for pepper diseases. The root-knot, or root-knot, translucent nematode, only 1-2 mm in size, lives exclusively underground. Its presence in the area is usually noticed too late - the parasite has time to satiate itself, give birth to offspring and “retire.”

Initially, the above-ground parts of the plants show clear signs of lack of nutrients and moisture. The stems begin to curl, the leaves turn yellow, their edges curl, growth slows down and stops. “Crop failure,” we sigh, digging up an almost dead plant. And then it turns out that the roots of the pepper have become thread-like (that is, they have simply died), and they have characteristic thickenings - “cones” and “bulbs” of brown and yellow color. Here it becomes obvious that the culprit of the crop failure is the nematode, but it is no longer possible to save the plant.

Pest prevention

The experience of summer residents has shown that it is easier to prevent insects from appearing than to desperately fight them later. Basic Rules:

• alternating plantings in the greenhouse;
• using only healthy, disinfected planting material;
• pre-sowing disinfection of soil, equipment, greenhouse structure;
• preventive spraying of seedlings with folk remedies;
• regular inspection of plantings for pests;
• compliance with the watering and fertilizing regime;
• timely weeding and loosening work.

Spider mite

Another “invisible” pepper pest world. The small arachnid reaches 0.3-0.5 mm in length, and its translucent body seems to be created for camouflage, so it is problematic to see it on plants. Barely noticeable red or orange dots indicate that mites have appeared on peppers or any other crop. The tick acquires this color closer to autumn, when all the juices have already been drunk from the plant.

A tick is most often detected by the results of its vital activity. A small cobweb appears on the inside of the leaf, and the entire plant, including the stem, leaves and flowers, is covered with small yellowish dots. Subsequently, the mites weave a web around the entire plant, and it gradually dies. Spider mites get onto a healthy plant from a diseased one, are carried through the air, carried in with the soil, and even use your clothing as a temporary “base.”

Causes and signs of pests on peppers

The main reasons for the appearance of insects on peppers are as follows:

1. Flight from other cultures. For example, aphids spread from tomatoes and cucumbers. Pests attack both greenhouse plants and those growing in open ground.
2. Contaminated soil . Often, beginners ignore pre-sowing disinfection work or transfer soil with insect larvae from an open area.
3. Failure to comply with agrotechnical rules. Improper watering and fertilizing, as well as untimely work to destroy the larvae, lead to active reproduction of pests.
4. Unfavorable climatic conditions . Some insects are attracted by heat, others by too wet soil. If you flood the peppers and do not ventilate the greenhouse in time, the conditions will be favorable for the rapid development of diseases due to the influence of pests.
5. Planting density. Sunlight does not penetrate between the plants. The soil does not warm up and insects appear.

Signs of pests are as follows:

• weakened stem;
• pepper quickly withers;
• Late blight, gray rot and bacteriosis appear.

In advanced cases, the diseased plant dies. The insects, along with the infection, continue to infect neighboring peppers and other greenhouse crops.

Slugs are naked

“He’s a pest to me!” you say. He can’t fly, his jaws are weak, he can barely crawl, he collected a couple of slugs with his hands and that’s it – the harvest is saved. Meanwhile, slugs are champions in gluttony, leaving a viscous trail everywhere, and even if they do not eat, they envelop the leaves with mucus. Their body is soft, elongated, up to 50-60 mm long. These mollusks are nocturnal, so their activity is not always noticeable. They love dense plantings, high humidity and soft leaves.

The nature of the plant damage is as follows: round holes are gnawed right in the center of the leaves (less often along the edges). The presence of slugs in the area is also indicated by traces of mucus and excrement. During the day, you should look for them under plant debris on the ground and in cracks in the soil. The natural and terrible enemy of slugs is air temperature above 27°C, and we will talk about other control measures below.

Advice from experienced farmers

In order not to see unwanted insects in their beds, experienced farmers recommend following the following recommendations:

1. Before planting, thoroughly disinfect the seeds and beds. Dig up the soil in advance and add organic and mineral fertilizers to the soil.
2. Plant peppers in a bright, windless area.
3. The best predecessors for peppers are onions, herbs, and legumes. It is better not to plant vegetables after potatoes and zucchini.
4. Water the plants once every 5-7 days. Use settled water for irrigation.
5. As a preventative measure, spray the bushes once every 2 weeks with whey or soap solution.
6. Regularly inspect the beds for diseases or pests.
7. At the first signs of damage, begin treatment immediately.

Scoops

There are more than 100 species of cutworms in nature, and the likelihood that one of them lives on your site is very high. A moth flying into a light does not cause concern, but it may well turn out to be a garden moth. It is an inconspicuous butterfly (wingspan 0.4-0.5 cm) with dark brown wings and a light gray wavy line, as well as 4-6 small kidney-shaped dark orange and gray spots with a white border. With such a “tree” camouflage, you won’t always notice the cutworm even in the evening, and during the day it prefers to hide. The cutworm caterpillar is green with a light green stripe on its side and transverse lines on its back. She also comes to the surface only at night.

The nature of the damage differs little from that typical of caterpillars - leaves gnawed at the edges, sometimes damaged fruits. The peak activity of cutworms occurs in the summer; in the south, two generations have time to form.

Chemicals

Chemicals are the fastest and most effective way to control insect pests. The disadvantage of some is their toxicity.

Attention!

When using, you should read the recommendations and follow the dosage.

One of the popular ones is “Lepidocide”. It helps protect the plant from mole crickets and whiteflies. Spraying pepper is carried out with a break of a week. The drug "Bikol" is especially effective against the Colorado potato beetle. They treat the beds after 6-8 days.

With the help of Nurel it is possible to get rid of a large number of pests. The drug is effective in any weather. You can process it 2-3 times per season. Fitoverm will help get rid of aphids on peppers. It is necessary to dilute 80 ml of Fitoverma in a bucket of water. For 1 hundred square meters you need 10 liters. The solution can be sprayed on plants as soon as insects appear on it.

Aphid

What harm can be caused by a small insect no more than 0.5-0.7 mm long with a tiny proboscis that loves to feast on plant juice? One thing is almost none, but a colony of 20,000 individuals is capable of leaving only dry “skeletons” from the plantings. Plants attacked by aphids practically do not recover, and through open wounds all kinds of infections and fungal diseases enter them, which “finish off” the planting. The result is a complete loss of the harvest.

Aphids almost automatically attract other pests to the garden beds - garden ants. Therefore, the plants covered with them are the first to catch your eye. Damaged leaves curl, shoots dry out, stop growing, and their tops curl. Sweet secretions remain on the stems and leaves (they attract ants). By the way, if you manage to drive away aphids, you will make life much more difficult for the ants.

Pepper diseases

Among the diseases, pepper most often suffers from tobacco mosaic, bacterial spot and late blight, a little less often from downy mildew and infectious wilt, and in greenhouses it also suffers from gray rot (ventilation protects against it).

But under certain conditions, sweet peppers can also suffer from other types of infectious and metabolic diseases. Let's consider this issue in more detail.

The following diseases of pepper are known:

1. Sunburn
2. Blackleg
3. Tobacco mosaic
4. Streak
5. White spot
6. Late blight
7. Brown spot
8. Bacterial cancer
9. Black spot
10. Downy mildew
11. Alternaria blight
12. Gray rot
13. White rot
14. Apical rot
15. Verticillium and fusarium wilt
16. Lythracnose

So, let's look at these diseases in more detail.

Sunburn

In hot summers, peppers can get sunburned if they are placed directly in the sun or if water gets on their leaves in the heat.

Symptoms

Burns on fruits look at first like just a pale area, and then this place turns completely white and becomes a little like paper.

Prevention

You can protect the fruit from this by hanging shading film.

Blackleg

Blackleg

A fungal disease that can affect peppers in the seedling stage. Infection occurs through contaminated soil and equipment.

Provoking factors

1. Planting density.
2. Overmoistening of the soil.

Symptoms

Blackening and rotting of the root section of the stem.

Prevention

1. Compliance with the planting scheme to avoid planting density and the correct watering regime.
2. Pre-sowing treatment of seeds for 10 minutes in a solution of potassium permanganate, with a concentration of the active substance of 0.05% and subsequent washing of the seeds.
3. Till the soil twice with Previkur solution, according to the instructions.

Treatment

1. Removing affected plants.
2. Soil treatment with copper sulfate at 3% concentration.

Read about other methods of dealing with blackleg here.

Alternaria blight

This fungal disease can develop during dry weather on plants grown in open ground or in greenhouses. Read more here.

Provoking factor

Sudden temperature change.

Symptoms

1. At the beginning, dark brown spots appear on the leaves.
2. Later, watery spots form on the fruits, which after rain are covered with fluff, which turns into a dark-colored coating.

Prevention

1. Maintaining crop rotation.
2. Additionally, on protected ground – stabilization of the air temperature inside the greenhouses.

Treatment

Treatment of infected individuals with a 4% solution of copper oxychloride or 10% Bordeaux mixture.

Gray rot

This disease of a fungal nature most often affects fruits, while the root system of the plant is not affected at all. Within a few days the pepper rots completely. Read more here.

Provoking factors

1. High humidity, especially in protected soil conditions.
2. The density of pepper plantings.

Symptoms

Gray spots on the fruits, gradually acquiring a dark gray color.

Prevention

Planting peppers according to the approved scheme.

Treatment

1. Removal of affected fruits.
2. If the process is localized on the stems, coat the affected areas with a mixture of lime and the fungicide Rovral in equal proportions (the composition can be replaced with ash or crushed charcoal).

White rot

White rot on pepper

A dangerous fungal disease that first affects the stems and leaves of pepper, gradually affecting its fruits.

Provoking factors

1. Increased air humidity.
2. Acid reaction of soil solution.
3. Planting density.
4. Excessive application of nitrogen fertilizers.

Symptoms

1. The plant gradually fades, turns yellow and dries out.
2. At high air humidity, spots covered with white mycelium appear on the stems and leaves.

Prevention

1. Maintaining crop rotation.
2. Planting peppers according to the optimal scheme.
3. Liming of acidic soils.
4. Removing crop residues from the field.

Treatment

Treatment of infected plants with copper preparations.

Read about other methods of combating white rot here.

Apical rot

Blossom rot on pepper

This pathology can be classified as a metabolic disease, since it is based on a deficiency of calcium ions.

Provoking factors

1. Insufficient supply of vegetative plants with calcium.
2. Excessive application of nitrogen fertilizers.
3. Uneven watering.
4. Changes in atmospheric humidity.

Symptoms

1. Watery spots develop on the tops of young shoots.
2. Then the tops gradually dry out.

Prevention

1. Regular watering.
2. Loosening the soil.
3. Mulching the soil.
4. Pre-sowing bubbling of seeds for 18 hours followed by drying.
5. Feed the plants with a glass of solution for each bush. The solution consists of: two tablespoons of potassium carbonate, two tablespoons of calcium nitrate per 10 liters of water.

Treatment

1. Removal of affected fruits.
2. Spraying plants with a solution of lime milk or 0.3–0.4% calcium chloride.

You can find more information about blossom end rot here.

Verticillium and fusarium wilt

These are two similar fungal pathologies that lead to plant wilting. The only clear difference between them is the localization of the process at the very beginning of the development of the disease.

Symptoms

1. The wilting of plants begins with their lower leaves (Verticillium wilt).
2. The first symptom is yellowing of the top and leaves of the plant (Fusarium wilt).
3. Next, the vascular bundles in the lower part of the stem turn brown (verticillium wilt).
4. The whole plant withers.

Prevention

1. Compliance with crop rotation rules.
2. Growing varieties resistant to these pathologies.
3. Treating pepper seeds half a month before sowing in Fundazol (0.1 g of medicinal substance per 10 g of seeds) or dusting in the same ratio, immediately before sowing, with Trichodermin.

Treatment

Absent.

You can read more about fusarium here. You can find information about Verticillium wilt here.

Lythracnose

This disease affects the base of the stem and the root of the plant.

Symptoms

1. Brown spots appear on the roots of the pepper.
2. Fruit growth is slow.
3. Later, the fruits become covered with watery spots, shrink and fall off.

Prevention

1. Crop rotation.
2. Healthy seed.

Treatment

Treatment is carried out with copper oxychloride (aqueous solution 0.4%) or Bordeaux mixture with a concentration of the active substance of 1%.

Late blight

Late blight on pepper

A fungal pathology common in our latitudes that can affect all plant organs.

Provoking factors

1. Low air temperature.
2. Excessive humidity.

Symptoms

The appearance of brown spots, which are surrounded by pale green tissues.

Prevention

1. Pre-sowing treatment of seed with potassium permanganate solution.
2. Spraying plants with infusions of onion or garlic.

Treatment

Treatment of plants with Bordeaux mixture. Read more about late blight here.

White spot

This is a fungal disease that can destroy up to 50% of the crop in a short time; it develops both in greenhouses and in open ground.

Symptoms

1. Dull white spots appear on the leaves of the plant, surrounded by a dark border.
2. Further, darker dots appear on the surface of the spots, which contain spores.
3. The spots merge into one whole.
4. The leaves are drying.
5. The infection spreads to the trunk and fruits.

Prevention

1. Pre-sowing seed treatment.
2. Maintaining crop rotation.

Treatment

1. In the initial phase of the disease, treatments with Trichodermin and Fitosporin are effective.
2. At a later stage, it is recommended to remove damaged plants from the garden bed.

More information about white spot (septoria) can be found here.

Streak

A viral pathology that affects fruits and the upper part of plants.

Provoking factors

1. Mechanical damage to plants by contaminated tools.
2. The presence of a large number of insect carriers - aphids, mites, thrips.
3. Sowing infected seeds.

Symptoms

1. There are red-brown stripes on the foliage, stems, and fruits.
2. Affected parts of plants become brittle.
3. The leaves are deformed.
4. Plants grow and develop more slowly.

Prevention

1. Sowing healthy seeds.
2. Maintaining crop rotation.

Treatment

Absent. Read about preventive measures against streaking and more here.

Bacterial cancer

Bacterial pathology predominantly affects pepper plants grown in film greenhouses.

Provoking factors

1. Constantly high air humidity.
2. Stable high temperature.
3. Thickened plantings.
4. Application as sprinkling irrigation.

Symptoms

1. Dark brown spots appear on the shoots, leaves and fruits of pepper, edged with lighter colored tissues.
2. The spots merge with each other into an ever-lengthening spot.
3. This spot gradually becomes crusty.

Prevention

1. Double disinfection of greenhouses with methyl bromide: in autumn and spring.
2. Use healthy seed.
3. Using drip irrigation.
4. Maintaining temperature and humidity conditions while growing peppers.
5. During an outbreak, treat healthy plants with copper preparations - copper oxychloride or copper sulfate.

Treatment

Absent, infected plants are removed from greenhouses.

Black bacterial spot

The bacterial infection that causes this disease can affect the stems, petioles, fruits, and leaves of peppers.

Provoking factors

1. A sharp drop in temperature.
2. Increased air humidity.

Symptoms

1. Dark spots on the petioles and stems of the plant.
2. Numerous watery spots on the foliage, gradually increasing in size, with a light central area and a darker periphery.
3. Small dark spots on the fruit, slightly convex, oily, gradually increasing in size, which eventually become ulcers, with greenish tissue along the periphery.

Prevention

1. Healthy seed.
2. Crop rotation.
3. Pest control.

Treatment

Absent.

Downy mildew

A dangerous fungal disease, the second name of which is peronosporosis. The pathology is characterized by its widespread distribution, regardless of climate zone.

Provoking factors

1. High air humidity.
2. Heat.

Symptoms

1. Numerous dots appear on the leaves at the very beginning.
2. Later they turn into spots of light yellow color with an angular shape limited to the veins of the leaf.
3. Then the spots merge, the color changes to brown.
4. A finely pubescent coating appears on the lower surface of the leaf blade.
5. The leaves dry out and fall off in severe cases.
6. Plants are stunted in growth, fruits are underdeveloped.

Prevention

1. Compliance with crop rotation rules.
2. Growing infection-resistant hybrids.
3. Removing infected plants.

Treatment

Treatment with Kuproxat or Oxychom in the initial phase of the disease.

Tobacco mosaic

The pathology is caused by the tobacco mosaic virus, which is quite widespread in nature.

Provoking factors

1. Insufficient lighting of peppers.
2. High ambient humidity.
3. Mechanical damage to plants.

Symptoms

1. A variegated, mosaic color appears on the foliage.
2. Then the leaves turn black and fall off.
3. Plant growth slows down.
4. The fruits are deformed, small in size and covered with yellow and brown spots.

Prevention

1. Healthy seed.
2. Soak the seeds before sowing in a solution of potassium permanganate for 30 minutes.
3. Correct crop rotation.
4. Water the seedlings every 21 days with a light pink solution of potassium permanganate.
5. Feeding plants with microelements.
6. Spraying vegetative plants with a solution of milk in water, ratio 1:10, plus 3–4 drops of iodine solution. Then cover the peppers with film.

Treatment

Absent.

Brown spot

A dangerous fungal disease, the second name of which is cladosporiosis, which affects the foliage, petioles, stalks and ovary of sweet peppers.

Symptoms

1. Light spots on the undersides of the leaves of the lower part of the plant, gradually turning brown and covered with bloom.
2. Further, these pathological formations move to the upper sides of the leaves.
3. The disease spreads to the upper part of the plant.
4. The affected plant dies.

Prevention

1. Timely thinning of pepper seedlings.
2. Compliance with the planting scheme.

Treatment

Treatment of infected plants with garlic infusion or copper sulfate solution at a concentration of 0.2%. You can find more information about this disease here.

Thrips

Bladderlegs, or fringed-winged insects, is also the name of the family of these small insects (0.5-1.5 mm) with an elongated body and striped abdomen. Their head is of an unusual shape - conical, as if sloping down. The antennae are small, clearly segmented. Two pairs of thrips wings seem to be fringed - small hairs give them such a resemblance. Insects can be distinguished by the nature of their flight - they seem to flutter from one plant to another. It is very difficult to see them on the site - small translucent pests can easily be confused with plant seeds or specks.

Both thrips larvae and insects suck cell sap from plant tissue. In these places, yellow or discolored spots, stripes or streaks appear on the surface of the leaves, which die off over time. And the leaves fall. Thrips eat almost all plants and, at the same time, are carriers of diseases dangerous to peppers.

Pepper pests can be controlled in different ways. And although this culture is too attractive for most well-known “crop hunters,” the main thing in this fight is to identify and destroy them in a timely manner, and then nothing will threaten your pepper.

Folk remedies

First you need to try to get rid of pests on pepper using folk remedies. Gardeners recommend sprinkling the bushes with dry wood ash, and also spraying them with a solution based on:

• salt – 1 kg per 10 l;
• mustard – 10 g per 10 l;
• red hot pepper – boil 100 g in 1 liter for 2 hours.

Bell peppers can be treated with an infusion of burdock leaves. An extract based on garlic or onion peels works well against pests. A solution of soda will help make slugs leave the bushes. To do this, you need to dilute 50 g of powder in 5 liters of water. Sprinkle the mixture over the peppers.

Attention!

After one application, pests may remain on the bushes. Gardeners advise repeating spraying 3-4 times with a break of a week or 10 days.