Spider_mite_on_apple_tree_control_measures

Spider mites are dangerous harmful insects from the arachnid family with an average length of 1 mm.

In suitable environmental conditions, it develops quickly and produces up to 5 generations per year, feeds on plant sap, which is why trees very soon lose some of their leaves and lag behind in development.

Infection of an apple tree by these phytophages can lead to loss of yield, decreased plant immunity and its susceptibility to bacterial, fungal, infectious and viral diseases.

It is necessary to carry out preventive measures and visual diagnostics of trees; you cannot hesitate when a spider mite is detected; you must immediately begin the fight against it. In advanced cases, mass reproduction of spider mites can cause the death of apple trees .

Pest varieties

There are many types of this pest and we will give a description of the most common of them, and also show what a spider mite looks like on an apple tree : photos are given below.

Red fruit mite

Polyphagous, up to 0.4 mm long, so they can only be identified with a magnifying glass. The body of the tick is oval-shaped, reddish in color. Externally, red fruit mite infestation looks like light yellow spots along the veins on the leaves , which then darken and die.

Red fruit mite.

Brown fruit mite

Adult insects are up to 0.6 mm long, the body is flat, brown in color. They suck out the juice from both the buds and the leaves, which is why they acquire a reddish or dirty gray tint, dry out and fall off . Mite larvae molt, leaving silvery marks from their skins on the bark in the moulting areas.

Brown fruit mite.

Gall mite

It lives secretly, inside the tissues of leaves and buds, has an even smaller size of up to 0.25 mm, the body is elongated, white, oval, tapering at the back. form on the surfaces of the leaves - spherical swellings of yellow or dark brown color . Due to damage by gall mites, the leaves turn black, dry out and die.

Gall mite and leaf damaged by it.

Kidney mite

The most dangerous mite that destroys young shoots. A diseased bud cannot grow and either does not sprout or produces diseased ones. The main sign of damage by these insects is large deformed buds .

Kidney mite.

Schlechtendahl tick

A less common pest of apple trees. It is 0.2 mm long and yellow-brown in color. The females of this tick species are very fertile and can lay up to 2 million eggs in their lifetime. Due to the active feeding of insects, photosynthesis processes stop and leaves fall off .

Schlechtendahl tick

Fighting methods

Pesticide

The insect can destroy the future harvest

In the fight against the parasite, insecticidal and acaricidal spectrum agents, which contain harmful active substances, are effective.

The drugs are produced in the form of emulsions, suspensions and powders.

Insecticides

Fufanon is used. The active substance is malathion. It is fast-acting, causing inhibition of insect activity 2 hours after treatment.

Complete death of ticks occurs 24 hours after spraying. Affects adults and tick larvae. Frequency of use – up to 2 times per season.

Trees are treated with solutions based on insecticidal preparations by spraying. They are complex in nature and help not only in the fight against tick-borne species, but are also effective against a number of other harmful insects - scale insects, flower beetles, weevils, codling moths, leaf rollers, etc.

Acaricides

Directional means. They are harmful only to tick-borne parasites. The mechanism of action is contact-intestinal. They have long-lasting protective properties, preventing the reappearance of the pest for 3 weeks. The main active substance is propargite.

The least toxic are Apollo and Omite.

Biological agents

The use of such preparations helps reduce the toxic effect on fruit crops and at the same time protect apple trees from attack by pests. Biological products are based on waste products from fungi that are harmful to ticks.

Unlike pesticides, which lose their properties at high ambient temperatures, biological ones are activated at 18°C, increasing intensity at 25°C and above. In addition, you can spray apple trees 2-3 times a season.

Agricultural technology

Agricultural technology will help get rid of the tick colony on the apple tree. Mandatory activities include:

• autumn plowing of the land;
• destruction of weeds;
• pruning damaged branches.

The collected fallen leaves in the fall must be burned, because... it serves as a wintering place for the eggs laid by the female.

Traditional methods

For processing, you can use folk remedies

• Garlic. The crushed slices (about 50 g) are poured with water (10 l), for better adhesion, laundry soap (50 g) is added and the trees are sprayed from top to bottom along the foliage.
• Tar soap. 100 g per 10 liters of water. The garden is treated with the solution every 7 days.
• Onion. An infusion of onion peels (200 g) and water (10 l) is kept for 60 minutes, filtered and used for spraying.
• Horseradish. Chopped vegetables (400 g) are infused in 10 liters of water for 2-3 hours and sprayed on the affected apple trees.
• Henbane. A poisonous plant (2 kg) is boiled in water for several hours. The amount of decoction is adjusted to a volume of 10 liters.
• Vinegar. Apple cider vinegar (1 tbsp) is diluted with water (1 l) and sprayed on the trees.

Spider mites on an apple tree: control measures

Methods for controlling any insect pests can be divided into several main groups:

• Chemical method;
• Biological method;
• Agrotechnical method;
• Folk remedies.

Each of them is quite extensive and requires detailed consideration.

Chemical method

This method involves the use of special chemicals, insecticides (from the Latin insectum - insect, caedo - I kill). A group of insecticides aimed at killing ticks is called acaricides (from the Latin acari - tick, caedo - kill).

There are about 50 types of insecticidal and acaricidal preparations of chemical composition, and only 15 active ingredients in different concentrations, on the basis of which they are made.

Manufacturers use various formulations, the main ones of which are:

• Emulsion concentrate;
• Suspension concentrate;
• Water solution;
• Water soluble powder.

Typically, insecticides are applied by spraying or dusting diseased plants.

The drug must be prepared in strict accordance with the instructions, isolating children and pets. Failure to comply with safety precautions can lead to poisoning.

ATTENTION! The chemical method of insect control has a number of disadvantages - environmental pollution, residual amounts of pesticides in products, but if you do not exceed the recommended consumption rates and the number of treatments per season, this will not happen.

Insecticides

The most popular insectoacaricides for controlling mites and other insects on apple trees:

• Fufanon;
• Bi-58 New;
• Karate-Zeon;
• Fitoverm;
• Karbofos.

These drugs have stood the test of time and proven their effectiveness.

In addition to spider mites, the drugs on this list reduce the number of scale insects, false scale insects, leaf rollers, codling moths, flower beetles, and weevils. By treating with such insecticides, you prevent the development of a whole complex of pests.

IMPORTANT! Insecticide treatment should be carried out in dry, calm weather to avoid chemical drift!

A favorite drug of many farmers and gardeners, Fufanon CE is a broad-spectrum chemical insectoacaricide. It contains the chemical compound malathion. Its action is more pronounced and faster.

The pests stop feeding within 2 hours after treatment, and die within a day , but the waiting period before harvesting is 26 days, this is the price for the absolute chemical nature of the drug. During the season, following the instructions, you need to carry out no more than two sprayings.

The pesticide acts on both adult insects and larvae.

Analogues of Fufanon are the drugs Karbafos, Kemifos, Novakation , the difference is only in the amount of the active substance, the highest content in the drugs Fufanon and Karbofos (570 g/l).

Acaricides

Specific acaricides are designed to reduce the number of ticks exclusively . Such drugs have only a contact-intestinal effect (they affect by direct contact with insects), so it is necessary to treat the surface of the trees as thoroughly as possible .

Most often, acaricides are produced in the following formulations:

• Emulsion concentrate;
• Suspension concentrate;
• Wettable powder.

The following acaricidal preparations against mites are available on the plant protection market :

• Sunmite SP;
• Omite SP;
• Mauritius VE;
• Demitan SK;
• Zolon CE;
• Dursban CE and its analogues;
• Tzipi Plus CE;
• Apollo KS.

The determining factor in the effectiveness of an acaricide is the duration of its protective effect. The most pronounced effect is provided by preparations based on propargite (Omite SP), providing up to 15-20 days of protection against ticks.

One of the least toxic drugs for warm-blooded animals and humans is Apollo , and Omite is the most harmful.

The main advantage of specific acaricides is their relative safety for natural entomophages . Unlike broad-spectrum insecticides, they do not kill beneficial insects , which can naturally limit pest numbers.

Biological method

The drug Fitoverm CE has a controversial classification. It is based on toxic waste from the fungi Streptomyces avermitilis, so it cannot be confidently classified as either a chemical or biological method of protection. However, most often it is defined as a biological product.

The advantage of this drug lies in the conditions of its effective operation. Most chemical compounds are unable to destroy the pest at low temperatures in early spring. Fitoverm, EC begins to act already at 18 °C, and at 25 °C it doubles its strength . Fitoverm has a short waiting period of 2 days, after which you can begin harvesting. The recommended frequency of treatments per season is 2-3 times.

The disadvantage of Fitoverm is that, unlike some chemical hormonal acaricides (Apollo), it acts only on adult individuals and does not destroy eggs and larvae.

Aversectin C, which is part of Fitoverm, has a pronounced toxic effect on fish and other aquatic organisms; it should be used with extreme caution near water bodies . Children should not be allowed into the treatment area , since the harm caused to the human body depends on age; it is more dangerous for people under 21 years of age.

ADVICE! To avoid the development of resistance (resistance) in ticks, do not treat with the same drug several times in a row. This provokes the development of defense mechanisms in the insect population. Alternate insecticides from different chemical groups.

Agrotechnical method

This method refers to prophylactic and preventive . To reduce the number of overwintered mites, it is necessary to carry out autumn plowing, destroy weeds, get rid of fallen leaves and remove damaged branches. By burning plant debris, you can destroy the eggs laid by the female mite.

Ticks can also overwinter in cracks in the bark, so you can carefully clean the skeletal branches of fruit trees from loose bark in the autumn-winter period.

To increase the immunity of plants after flowering, foliar fertilizing with complex fertilizers can be carried out.

A radical way to combat spider mites is to trim the affected shoots of the apple tree and then burn them. It is worth resorting to if the spider mite is about to destroy the tree, and treating the affected areas does not give the desired effect.

Folk remedies

An opponent of “chemistry” may also discover that he has a mite on his apple tree: how to treat it in this case? Widespread and favorite among gardeners are folk remedies for fighting spider mites , the recipe for which passes from mouth to mouth:

• Spraying with garlic solution . Peeled heads of garlic (50g) are poured into 10 liters of water, liquid laundry soap is added and the plant is sprayed from top to bottom along the leaves;
• A solution of sulfur-tar soap . 100 g of crushed tar soap is diluted into a bucket of water. Spraying is carried out every week;
• Onion infusion . 200g of fresh onion peels are poured into a bucket of water and left for 1 hour. The infusion is filtered and sprayed on the affected trees;
• Horseradish infusion . Chopped horseradish (400 g) is poured with a bucket of water and left for 2-3 hours;
• A decoction of poisonous black henbane . Use with caution. Pour 2 kg of fresh henbane with water and cook for several hours. Pour the resulting broth into 10 liters of water.

IMPORTANT! These recipes may well bring positive results, but you need to remember that if the number of ticks is high, they will be ineffective and it is necessary to carry out chemical treatment or pruning of trees.

Watch the video on how to treat apple trees against ticks:

Harm from spider mites

Under suitable environmental conditions, the pest is able to reproduce intensively, producing up to 5 generations per year. The main food of the colonies is plant juices. It is for this reason that fruit trees lose foliage, and young seedlings experience developmental delays.

The consequences of the appearance of a harmful insect in an apple orchard are expressed in the form of loss of future harvest.

The mite disrupts metabolic processes in plant cells, which leads to a decrease in the plant's immunity. It becomes susceptible to various bacterial, viral and fungal infections.

Processing times

To protect the apple tree from spider mites and other pests, there is an established order in which spraying should be carried out during the growing season.

Before the buds open

The first spring treatment is carried out to destroy ticks and other insects that have overwintered on the apple tree.

Before the buds open in March, at temperatures not lower than 5 ºC, you can spray the trees with a solution of copper or iron sulfate . Also treat the soil around the apple tree with this solution, because many pests also overwinter in it.

After bud break

The next spraying should be carried out after the buds open and before flowering begins (in May). Treatment can be carried out with any of the insecticides or acaricides mentioned above.

During flowering

Spraying during flowering is undesirable . Chemical exposure during this period can negatively affect the harvest and cause the death of bees and other beneficial insects.

Spraying should be carried out only as a last resort, if you were unable to treat the trees against mites before flowering, and their numbers pose a threat to the apple tree.

During fruiting

The next treatment should be carried out at the beginning of fruit growth (June). The same insecticides should not be used several times in a row.

ATTENTION! You cannot spray apple trees while the fruits are ripening; the last treatment with chemicals should be carried out on average a month before harvest!

Damaged fruits and branches are removed and burned.

Final processing

The last treatment is carried out after harvest and before the leaves fall with insecticides, copper sulfate or urea to kill mites that have remained over the winter.

Active control measures

Treating an apple tree for spider mites is possible using different means. Most often, chemical means of protection are used, but you can try effective folk remedies for destroying the pest, biological techniques, and agrotechnical methods.

There are numerous measures to combat ticks:

1. The use of chemical protective agents - insecticides: Fufanon KE, Karate-Zeon, Fitoverm, Karbofos and acaricides: Apollo KS, Tsipi Plus KE, Zolon KE, Mavrik VE, Omayt SP.
2. They use preparations based on biological plant protection products, for example, Fitoverm CE, Forbid 4F, Aversectin S (effective only on adult insects). Such drugs cannot completely destroy the population, but they significantly reduce its numbers. Typically, biological products are used during the fruiting period as safe means.
3. The use of folk remedies with odorous liquids: garlic solution (50 g per 10 l), sulfur-tar soap (100 g per 10 l), onion infusion (200 g per 10 l), horseradish infusion (400 g per 10 l).
4. Use of sulfur preparations such as Culumus.

Important! Chemicals are used only in dry and windless weather, using personal protective equipment: mask, goggles, gloves, work clothes. Acaricides very effectively destroy ticks and larvae, but these products are allowed to be used no more than twice a season

They are drugs of contact-intestinal action. Waiting period before picking apples – 36 days

Acaricides are very effective in destroying ticks and larvae, but these products are allowed to be used no more than twice a season. They are drugs of contact-intestinal action. The waiting period before picking apples is 36 days.

Considering that mites reproduce at least 5 times, it can be assumed that double treatment with even a potent substance is insufficient. Moreover, you cannot expect that all ticks and larvae will come into contact with the drug.

Therefore, in addition to chemical protection, it is worth using various means, alternating their use. A very effective way to combat spider mites is to use tobacco infusion:

1. A kilogram of tobacco dust is diluted in a bucket, filtered and water is added to 20 liters.
2. Laundry soap is added to the infusion by grating 50 g. This helps the product adhere better to the surface of the leaves.
3. The apple tree is treated with tobacco infusion twice, and repeated spraying is done after a week.

Ticks die when the plant is fumigated with tobacco smoke. This method is effective in protecting seedlings and young trees. But in old plantings one can hardly expect a great effect.

The use of field chamomile infusion gives good results. It is prepared and used in the same way as tobacco dust infusion.

The use of sulfur in the fight against ticks gives good results only at temperatures of +27–32 degrees. There is no point in using the drug in cold or very hot weather; there will be no results. This is due to a certain temperature when sublimation of sulfur begins to form sulfur vapors that kill parasites.

High air humidity increases the toxicity of the drug; treatment is done during dew or after watering.

Means to combat spider mites should be used at strictly defined times:

• before buds open;
• before flowering begins;
• during fruit formation.

Processing must be carried out in the following sequence:

1. The first treatment in March is used to destroy overwintered individuals. A solution of 3% Bordeaux mixture or copper sulfate is used before the leaves bloom, and the tree and the ground around it are treated.
2. The second treatment is carried out in May. At this time, you can use any insecticide or acaricide that is effective against spider mites.
3. The third spraying is usually carried out in June, during fruit growth. At this time, it is advisable to use harmless folk remedies or biological products.

Important! All leaves should be treated not only from above, but also from below, directing the spray jet from bottom to top. The final fourth treatment is carried out in the fall after harvesting the fruits.

Before leaf fall begins, the tree is sprayed with insecticides, 1% copper sulfate solution or urea, to kill wintering insects

The final fourth treatment is carried out in the fall after fruit harvesting. Before leaf fall begins, the tree is sprayed with insecticides, a 1% solution of copper sulfate or urea, to kill wintering insects.

Important! Ticks very quickly develop immunity to any chemicals. Therefore, the preparations for treatment must be changed every time.

How to deal with spider mites on an apple tree

The favorite tree of the Russian people is the apple tree. Every year it pleases the gardener with generous harvests of fragrant apples. But sometimes you have to fight for the harvest. It happens that the apple tree is attacked by various infections, and sometimes by pests. Spider mites on an apple tree can cause a lot of harm. When it appears, it is worth taking urgent measures to protect the plantings and destroy the pest.