The Colorado potato beetle(Leptinotarsa decemlineata) is the most dangerous pest in potato cultivation. By feeding on the leaves, flowers and stems of potatoes, it causes losses in its yields. If we decided to grow potatoes in our own garden, it is worth learning aboutecological ways to combat the Colorado potato beetle , thanks to which our potatoes will remain natural and untainted by chemicals. "
Colorado potato beetle
Adult Colorado potato beetles can be recognized quite easily There are 10 black stripes on their cream-colored wings, while the pre-cuff is yellow with black spots. They can be seen from early spring. They hibernate in the ground and come out when the temperature in spring exceeds 15 ° C.
Female Colorado beetles layorange eggs on the underside of potato leavesThe larvae hatching from them are rounded, elongated, initially pink, with time they turn orange. They feed on potato leaves, sometimes stripping the plants completely. Pupation occurs in the soil.Within a year, 2-3 generations of Colorado beetle may develop
Preventive measures that allowto reduce the occurrence of the Colorado potato beetleare primarily based on the use of the correct crop rotation on vegetable beds (at least 5 years break in the cultivation of potatoes in a given field), crops in the garden, as well as maintaining a high humus content in the soil by regular organic fertilization, the use of compost and the cultivation of plants for green manure.
When the pest appears, it is necessary to manuallyremove the Colorado beetle larvae and adult beetles , as well as spraying with preparations based on natural ingredients.
Good to know!
Observations of indicator plants are helpful in determining important development stages of the Colorado potato beetle. The Colorado beetle larvae hatch when the elderberry (Sambucus nigra) and black locust (Robinia pseudoaccacia) are fully flowering, and when the cornflower (Centaurea cyanus) starts flowering. The large-scale brood of the Colorado beetle larvae takes place when the flowering and fading of small-leaved linden (Tilia cordata) is observed.
For small crops in gardens or plotsreducing the harmfulness of the Colorado potato beetle feeding can be achieved by spraying plants with fermenting nettle manureTo prepare the liquid manure, we need 1 kg of freshly cut nettle and 10 liters of water.Pour water in a bucket of nettle and let it ferment for 4-5 days. Before using as a spray, dilute the nettle slurry with water in a ratio of 1:10 (10 liters of water per liter of slurry).If we cannot prepare the slurry ourselves, you can buy ready-made nettle spraying in garden shops under the name Nettle Growth Stimulator.
Anotherway to combat the Colorado potato beetle in the garden is to spray tansy extract . We get it by pouring 300g of fresh herb with 10 liters of water, and then wait 24 hours. After this time, strain it and dilute it with water in a ratio of 1: 2.
It is worth knowing that the tansy extract can also be used to combat many other pests, such as: aphids, cotton, blueberry, fruit trees, onion cream, caterpillars.If you cannot prepare the tansy extract yourself, you can use ready tansy preparation available in garden stores.It is called Wrotycz ProBio Ogród.
Bas alt flour is a natural product that is obtained by grinding bas alt rock. Meal is a measure known in horticulture, among others. as fertilizer. In organic farmsfarmers protect the potato plantation by dusting the plants with bas alt flourin the amount of 1-2 kg per 100m² of cultivation. The treatment is best done in the morning, when the potatoes are still damp from dew, and the day is windless and rainless.
We encourage you to use only ecological methods of controlling the Colorado potato beetle in crops in gardens and allotments. However, when there are a lot of Colorado beetles, andecological spraying on the Colorado beetle does not bring any results , it is worth knowing that there are several plant protection products available against the Colorado beetle, allowed for use in amateur garden and allotment crops.
These are Deltam, Karate Zeon 050 CS and Mospilan 20 SP preparations. In particular, it is worth paying attention to the latter, because it fights theColorado potato beetle very effectively , and at the same time it is non-toxic to bees in the recommended doses. It contains acetamiprid - a substance that fights harmful insects, to which bees are not sensitive. In addition, research has shown that acetamiprid does not accumulate in pollen or nectar, so in the natural environment bees are not exposed to the increase in the level of this toxin in their body and food for the larvae.
Mospilan 20 SP can be used in fruit and vegetable crops, and the grace period (minimum time from spraying to harvesting the crop) is 14 days. Forcontrolling the Colorado potato beetle , the grace period is only 3 days.
MSc Eng. Joanna Białowąs