Harmful insects are dangerous even for apple trees that are unpretentious and resistant to adverse environmental factors. They affect all parts of the plant: trunk and shoots, leaves, inflorescences, roots, fruits. This leads to damage to the crop, loss of leaves, nutritional disturbances, drying out and death of the tree.
Insects are controlled for prevention or when a problem is detected. Treatments are carried out throughout the entire growing season, taking into account the nuances of each growth phase. Let's consider what and how to spray apple trees against pests in the summer.
What pests threaten apple trees in summer?
The main treatments against diseases and pests of apple trees are carried out in spring and autumn . However, even in summer there are risks of insect damage to trees. Gardeners often notice plants with damaged leaves, shoots and fruits.
To carry out the most effective treatment, it is important to find out the type of insect that caused the negative symptoms.
Pests that often attack apple trees in summer:
- Aphid. A small green insect feeds on the juice of leaves, buds, and young shoots. Settles on the underside of leaves and tops of shoots in entire colonies.
- Apple felt mite. A small reddish or black insect sucks juices from leaves and young shoots. A white felt coating with red splashes appears on the back of the leaves, which turns brown over time.
- Codling moth. A whitish-pinkish caterpillar with a brown head, the butterflies are dark gray. Insect larvae feed on apples. The exit of the caterpillar on the fruit is covered with a cobweb containing excrement. Emergence is observed from late spring to autumn.
- Shield. The pest larvae feed on the sap of the plant, causing it to dry out. They complete development at the end of July or beginning of August. After this, the female lays larvae under the scutes and dies. Usually the insect is discovered at this stage.
Shchitovka - Nutcracker and cruncher. The beetles eat the leaves of the trees, and the larvae feed on the roots throughout the growing season. The main symptom is skeletonization of leaves. Without timely treatment, the apple tree dies.
- Apple flower beetle. A brown beetle with a proboscis on its head feeds on buds in early spring. During flowering, the female lays larvae in the buds. At the beginning of summer, a massive influx of adults is observed, which skeletonize the leaves.
Apple flower beetle - Fruit goose. In the summer, the females of these crimson weevils lay larvae in apples and then chew the stem. The fruit rots quickly. In August, beetles fly out and eat fruits and shoots until frost.
Fruit goose - Fruit barbel. A small brown-yellow beetle gnaws leaves in June. Females lay larvae on the shoots, which feed on the wood, causing it to dry out.
- Small maple barbel. Black narrow beetle with long antennae. From May to July it swoops down on trees, gnawing holes in the trunk and branches.
- Leaf roller. The yellow or brown butterfly lays green larvae in crevices in the bark. In spring, pests move to the leaves, wrap themselves in cobwebs and feed on them. Summer is observed from May to the end of July. Some varieties of leaf rollers damage fruits by sticking leaves to them.
Apple orchard diseases
The most common diseases of apple trees:
- Powdery mildew is characterized by a whitish-gray coating on the leaves, sepals, and petals. As a result, the leaves and ovaries weaken, become smaller and crumble.
- Scab is perhaps the most common type of fungal disease. These are translucent oily light green spots on the upper side of the leaf. As a rule, there is a brownish-olive coating. As a rule, apples appear as round, dark, cracked spots.
- Brown spot of an apple tree is small brown-brown spots with a dark rim or light yellow spots without a rim.
- Fruit rot, monilial burn or moniliosis - fast-growing brown spots with white dots on the apple. Moreover, the points grow in concentric circles. The leaves and inflorescences turn brown and fall off.
- Red-brown or yellow-brown spots, as a rule, gradually covering the entire circumference of the branch. Moreover, large tubercles are noticeable on the bark. This is cytosporosis.
Scab
Moniliosis
Timing and frequency of treatments
Experienced gardeners believe that in order to completely protect a plant from pests, it will be necessary to carry out up to 14 sprayings. Most summer residents do not process trees that often.
You can spray the apple tree on a schedule for preventive purposes. In this case, the risk of plant infection is reduced. The harvest is completely preserved.
Some gardeners spray trees when they are already infested with insects. In this case, pests manage to spoil some of the leaves and fruits before treatment. To combat the problem it is necessary to use more serious chemicals.
Spraying by growth phases
If signs of pests are detected, apple trees are sprayed regardless of the schedule.
For prevention, treatment is carried out according to growth phases:
- Immediately after flowering . Plants are treated against diseases and pests. Many gardeners use tank treatments that are a mixture of insecticides and fungicides.
- During the fall of the excess ovary. This happens in the first half of June. To protect the tree from the codling moth, insecticides are used.
- 20 days after the end of flowering. Treatment is carried out against gnawing, sucking pests and scab.
- 5 days after the previous procedure. To protect the apple tree from harmful caterpillars, catching belts are installed.
Subsequent treatments are carried out if necessary or before the expected emergence of pests. Stop using the products 15 days before harvest.
Rules for processing during fruiting
To prevent summer treatments from harming the plant and the people who will eat the fruits, it is important to know a few nuances:
- In summer, spraying is carried out when the sun is not active: early in the morning or at sunset. Otherwise, burns will remain on the leaves.
- During warmer months, it is especially important to adhere to the dosage indicated in the instructions. Hot weather and large quantities of leaves increase the risk of chemical burns. When treating young seedlings, the concentration is reduced by 2 times.
- Already in the second half of summer, many varieties ripen. It is important to complete processing at least 15 days before harvest. Otherwise, the fruits will be poisonous.
- If possible, the number of summer sprayings with insecticides and fungicides is reduced as much as possible, replacing them with folk remedies and biological preparations. The chemicals harm beneficial insects and pets.
- When processing an apple tree, your hands should be protected with gloves. If possible, use a mask to protect the upper respiratory tract.
Plants are treated not only with chemicals, but also with folk remedies. The latter are most effective for prevention and are suitable for pest control with small lesions.
Insects are fought not only by spraying, but also by mechanical means. These include the use of catch belts and manual collection.
Bioinsecticides
This group of drugs, as a rule, is not harmful to animals, humans, and beneficial insects. Moreover, they can be used at any time – before harvesting. Treatment of apple trees with Planriz is possible even during the apple picking period. Bioinsecticides contain live bacteria and fungi. They enter the body of parasites and destroy them.
Effective frequently used biological preparations:
- Boverin;
- Fitoverm;
- Aktofit;
- Bitoxibacillin;
- Lepidocide;
- Bicol;
- Verticillin;
- Summer resident
- Eptobacterin;
- Dendrobacillin.
A special feature of the use of bioinsecticides is a particularly short period of exposure to pests. As a result, repeated treatments have to be carried out after 10-14 days. On the other hand, this method of control allows you to get environmentally friendly apples.
Selection of drug for treatment
There are 3 main types of drugs that are sold on the gardening market and in stores: fungicides, insecticides and biological agents.
Fungicides and insecticides
Fungicides are chemicals that are primarily used to prevent and treat diseases. Some drugs can also affect pests.
Insecticides are chemicals that help control harmful insects.
Fungicides and insecticides are actively used when growing apples for sale, but private gardeners and summer residents are trying to reduce the number of chemical treatments.
However, this does not always work out, because such funds have significant advantages:
- fast action;
- duration of action of one treatment;
- decomposition of all harmful compounds within a certain period of time;
- good solubility in water.
Most of these products are not washed off with water. It is enough to apply them no earlier than 4–8 hours before precipitation. During this time they will be absorbed and will act for several weeks.
But chemicals have serious disadvantages:
- Over time, pests get used to the drug, so the products have to be constantly changed.
- Chemicals are harmful to the environment, many of them are dangerous to animals and bees. If you eat an apple that has recently been sprayed with the drug, you can get poisoned, because the harmful compounds have not yet had time to decompose.
- If the dosage indicated on the package is not followed, there is a risk of harming the plant.
Chemicals are either contact or systemic. The former instantly kill pests upon contact with them. Systemic drugs are absorbed into plant tissue, and until they decompose, the plant remains dangerous to insects.
Attention! Chemicals decompose on average in 15 days. This is important to consider when choosing processing times.
Pest treatment products:
- "Fufanon";
- "Alatar";
- "Aktellik";
- "Karate";
- "Karbofos".
There are other drugs available to control insects. The list shows the most popular ones.
This is interesting:
A step-by-step guide for beginner gardeners: how to plant an apple tree in spring
Fertilizing the garden correctly: how to feed an apple tree in July for a good harvest
Step-by-step guide to planting a closed-root apple tree in summer
Biological agents
Biological preparations are safer than chemicals, do not harm the environment, and are not toxic to humans. Despite this, spraying them later than 2 weeks before harvesting is also not recommended.
The action of biological agents is based on the work of microorganisms, which, when they come into contact with pests, destroy them.
Biological products include:
- "Fitoverm";
- "Lepidocide";
- "Bitoxibacillin."
There are pest control methods that do not involve spraying. Thus, insects that destroy pests help: ladybugs (feed on aphids), some types of mites, etc.
How and with what to treat apple trees
In June and July, it is recommended to treat apple trees when signs of pest damage appear. The list of specific remedies depends on the type of problem.
From worms
Wormy apples are actually attacked not by worms, but by codling moth caterpillars. Unlike worms, their body is divided into sections and has legs.
Reference. Sometimes the larvae of bark beetles, which settle under the bark, are confused with worms. These are also caterpillars, not worms.
To combat worms in fruits, insecticides and biological preparations are used. Spraying is carried out not when the caterpillars have already settled in the apples, but during a mass emergence of pests. Deadlines vary from year to year.
To get rid of bark beetle larvae, branches and trunks of apple trees are sprayed with a solution of iron sulfate (5%). The trunks are treated with garden whitewash.
From caterpillars
Caterpillars of codling moths, hawthorns and moths infect apple trees in the summer. They eat fruits, leaves and wood.
Fight insects with the following means:
- "Fufanon";
- "Alatar";
- "Fitoverm";
- "Karate".
From aphids and spider mites
Aphids and spider mites are sucking insects that attack the apple tree all summer. Treatments against them are most effective in the spring and after the harvest. At this time, fungicides and biological preparations are used.
Treatment with chemicals while the fruit is in use is not recommended. At this time, aphids are successfully combated with folk remedies (ash infusion or soap solution). Trap belts are effective: female aphids crawl into them to lay eggs.
From scab
Scab is often confused with a pest attack, as it causes spots similar to worm entrances to appear on fruits and leaves. It is actually a fungal disease.
Scab often affects the plant from early June to July. If you don’t start fighting it in a timely manner, the harvest will deteriorate, the plant will dry out and die.
To combat scab, fungicides are used:
- copper sulfate;
- Bordeaux mixture;
- "Fitosporin";
- "Alirin-B" (soap is added to increase efficiency).
How to cover a fresh cut on a tree
Cut branches over 1 cm in diameter must be covered with a thick layer of varnish or garden acrylic paint. Other disinfectants can be used:
- Bordeaux mixture;
- potassium permanganate solution;
- iron sulfate (30 g/1 liter of water);
- copper sulfate (45 g/1 liter of water).
The fresh cut is cleaned with a knife. To apply the protective agent, use a brush (this is more convenient). The procedure is performed in dry, windless weather.
Folk recipes
Folk remedies are prepared from ingredients that can be found at home or in the garden. They are safe for people and animals and are approved for use during the fruiting period.
Homemade preparations are effective as prevention and control if the lesion is small. Such products work especially well against sucking pests.
However, the effectiveness of such substances against some pests is low. The preparations are washed off with water, so re-treatment is carried out after each precipitation. They do not act as quickly as chemicals.
Recipes for folk remedies:
- Decoction of onion peels. Fill the pan 1/3 full with onion skins, and fill the rest with water. Bring the product to a boil, turn it off and let it brew for 2 days. Strain and dilute with an equal amount of water.
- A decoction of bitter herbs: dandelion, wormwood, yarrow, nettle. Fill the pan halfway with herbs, fill the rest with water. Boil the herbs for half an hour, then dilute with 2 parts of water.
- Onions with garlic. Grind 300 g of onion and 200 g of garlic in a meat grinder. Add gruel and peels from peeled vegetables to 10 liters of water. Leave for 2 days, strain. Use for spraying trees.
conclusions
Spring spraying of the apple tree must be done as part of a comprehensive treatment of the entire garden plot.
Preventive spraying allows you to preserve the harvest and protect the garden from the invasion of unpleasant “guests”.
- Spring processing includes 3 stages. The last one is after flowering.
- During the flowering period, any types of spraying are prohibited, as they can harm the inflorescences, or rather, they will not allow the crop to be fully pollinated.
- Fruit trees are treated with chemical fungicides, biological products and combination products.
- Organic farming allows the use of only safe and environmentally friendly traditional methods. These are mainly herbal decoctions and infusions.
- As a rule, the entire garden is treated at once, and not individual trees.
- The procedure is carried out in calm, dry, warm weather, before sunset.
- In addition to the crown, the soil around the tree is also processed.
The gardener himself decides which product to choose: “chemistry”, a biological product or a folk recipe.
Use of catch belts
One of the effective methods of pest control is trapping belts. Their operating principle is based on trapping insects.
The main types of such devices:
- Funnel-shaped. Thick paper or cardboard is wrapped around the lower part of the trunk so that a socket is formed at the bottom, and the upper part of the belt is adjacent to the wood. The structure is attached by wrapping it with thread, tape or wire. The gaps are covered with clay or garden pitch.
- Double-sided funnel. They do the same, but leave the sockets on both sides.
- Glue. The material is tied to the trunk and then lubricated with long-drying glue. Typically, adhesive compounds against rodents or insects are used.
The height of the belt placement varies within 0.5–1 m from the ground. The optimal belt width is 25 cm. It is important that the fishing device does not touch the crown.
Adhesive belts are checked daily. Insects caught in traps are destroyed.
Attention! The disadvantage of trapping belts is that they also trap beneficial insects.
A trapping belt is an effective means of preventing pests and does not harm pets or the environment. It is allowed to be used even during harvest.
Advice from experienced gardeners
Experienced gardeners know secrets that will help increase the effectiveness of treatments and not harm the plants:
- To prevent damage to garden plants by aphids, large amounts of tobacco are planted in the garden. The smell of this fragrant plant repels insects.
- To increase the effectiveness of hunting belts, the material from which they are made is impregnated with insecticides.
- It is not necessary to remove moss and lichen on old trees: they have a positive effect on the condition of the plants.
- To evenly treat trees, it is convenient to use special cylinders with a pump.
