The wintering stage of the Morbid Woodland Plant, which is a dangerous pest of fruit and ornamental plants, consists of larvae hibernating in the top layers of the soil, between plant roots. In spring, they forage at the roots, gnawing at the root collar and eating the fine roots. As a result, infected plants wilt and die. In May, the larvae pupate and soon the adults fly out. Beetles forage at night, gnawing characteristic bay-shaped holes on the edges of the leaves. Beginning in July, females start laying eggs at the root base. The hatched larvae feed on the roots until late autumn, and descend to the lower soil layers in winter.The optimum temperature for the development of the larvae is 20-25 degrees Celsius, the maximum temperature is 36 degrees Celsius. There is one generation a year. Fighting swollen bacteria should start 2-3 weeks before the planned planting. For this purpose, you can apply the soil preparation, e.g. Counter 5 GR. During the growing season, when the first larvae damage is detected, the plants can be watered with any of the available preparations. The biological preparation Larvanem can also be used for this purpose, which should be applied quite early, because in optimal conditions (about 25 degrees Celsius), nematodes need about 10-20 days to fully develop. The best time to use Larvane is the months when the first larvae appear (May, July and August). Adult swollen insects can be treated chemically.
