In late summer we collect the most vegetables and fruits. Very often fruits are damaged by pests feeding inside them, and then the crops are unsuitable for consumption and processing into juices, preserves and compotes. During the growth and maturation of the fruit, it is difficult to notice the insects that feed inside them.We only see them when the time comes to harvest.
One of the most dangerous groups of fruit pests arefruit fliesCaterpillars of these butterflies (Torticidae family) damage the fruit by digging inside corridors and eating the flesh. Fruits attacked by fruit bodies often fall prematurely, and those that remain on trees are not suitable for consumption or storage. Damaged fruit is a breeding ground for fungi that make them rot.
The most troublesome types of fruit are:apple fruitLaspeyresia pomonella andplum fruitLaspeyresia funebrana. The apple fruit is a very common pest of apple trees. A caterpillar of this species eats the passage to the seed chamber of the fruit. Worm-eaten fruits fall prematurely, making them unfit for consumption or storage. Since the caterpillar has a hidden lifestyle, it is quite difficult to combat it.Quite good results are achieved when the grasping bands are attached to tree trunks (at the end of June). We put the corrugated paper bands about 1 m above the ground and burn them one week after harvesting the fruit. Also remember to pick and remove infected, fallen fruit.
The plum fruit attack mainly plums, but also apricots, peaches, and in some years even cherries. The feeding method of the fruit fruit is similar to that of the apple fruit. The caterpillar cuts the pavement in the fruit, it chews through the sieve-vascular bundles, disrupting the flow of nutrients from the peduncle to the fruit. The fruits turn purple and fall off quickly. Older caterpillars eat up the flesh at the pit. Pest control outside commercial orchards is difficult, as the effectiveness of the treatment depends on the correct setting of the spraying date. We perform the chemical treatment when the eggs are in the so-called black head; it falls more or less at the time of flowering of locust tree.
Worth remembering
-Fallen fruits:We collect fallen fruits lying under trees, because they are a source of infection for other, uninfected fruits. We also get rid of infected plant organs.
-Faded inflorescences:Remove faded inflorescences of perennials and bedding flowers.
-Black blotch roses:Spray or remove rose shoots infested with black blotch.
Other dangerous fruit pests arefruiting bodies :apple fruitHoplocampa testudinea,pear fruitHoplocampa brevis andtortoiseshellHoplocampa minuta, feeding on plums. The larvae of these hymenoptera bite into the fruit buds and dig into corridors under the skin, then bite into the seed box and eat its interior. The inside of the damaged fruit is filled with unpleasant-smelling larvae droppings. The symptom of fruit damage visible on the outside are the serpentine-shaped scars on the skin.The control of fruiting bodies on apple and pear trees is to spray the trees 5-6 days after flowering, while chemical control of the fruiting body is carried out when half of the flower petals have fallen, using the same preparations.
A very nuisance pest of sweet cherry and sour cherry fruits istrześniówka seedflyRhagoletis cerasi. The fruits, in which the white larvae of this fly are feeding, soften, rot and are not suitable for consumption or preserves. Late cherry varieties are particularly affected. In order to reduce the disease, it is recommended to carefully harvest the fruit, even infected, which we destroy together with the larvae. You can also dig the soil in autumn under a strongly attacked tree and within a radius of 1-1.5 m from the crown. Chemical control is carried out one week after the first flies emerge (more or less at the time of flowering of locusts), spraying only later varieties due to the grace period of the agents used.
