What to do if there are moths in dried fruits

What does a fruit moth look like (photo)

How and where to store

How to store dried apples at home so that they do not spoil? Follow the storage rules described above, maintain a stable temperature regime, and avoid temperature changes and fluctuations. In an apartment, it is best to keep dry apples on a glassed-in loggia or balcony. If there are no such premises, then the question of where to store it can be solved with the help of a pantry. If you don't have one, you'll have to use kitchen cabinets.

Features and description of the insect

Name: Fruit moth, subspecies of food moth Lat.:
Sitotroga cerealella

Class: Insects - Insecta Order: Homoptera - Homoptera Family: Electoptera - Gelechiidae.

The development of fruit moths consists of several developmental phases:

The insect is a gray, inconspicuous moth . The body size does not exceed 3 cm with open wings. The period of butterfly activity is evening and dark, but during the day you can also see solitary individuals.

The eggs of the pest are very small, it is almost impossible to notice them. During her short life (up to 2 weeks), one female lays about 100 eggs under favorable conditions available in a house or apartment.

The larvae look like ordinary small white caterpillars with a dark muzzle. After the larva has accumulated enough energy by eating food, it wraps itself in a cocoon and a few days later a moth hatches.

Life cycle of a moth.

Proper drying

To prepare apples for drying you need:

• Wash all fruits thoroughly.
• Cut off all damaged areas and seeds. There is no need to cut off the peel, as it contains a large amount of vitamins.
• Cut the fruit into slices and soak in a salt solution to preserve color.
• Next, drying occurs using any chosen method.

In the sun

Our ancestors always dried fruits in the sun. This is the best way to preserve all the vitamins and minerals in the fruits. Those who live in a private house or have a summer cottage can easily use this method.

Apples should be cut into slices, placed on newspaper or trays and placed in a sunny place. It’s good if the apples are ventilated. Be sure to stir them several times.

In the fall, when it is no longer so sunny, it is unlikely that you will be able to dry apples in the open air. And high humidity will not allow this.

You can dry apples by stringing slices on a thread and hanging some kind of garlands higher. To protect the fruits from annoying flies, you can cover them with a layer of gauze.

If you follow all the conditions for drying apples, then the dried fruits will be ready in five days.

In the oven

For housewives who live in apartments and do not have the opportunity to dry fruits outdoors, the oven drying method is suitable. The fruits need to be cut into slices and placed on a baking sheet. Even better - on a fine mesh. The oven temperature should be no more than seventy degrees. It is better to leave the door slightly open so that excess moisture evaporates faster.

Before removing dried fruit from the oven, the temperature should be gradually reduced. Be sure to stir the slices every hour. The entire drying process takes about eight hours, depending on the type of apple.

Electric dryer

Nowadays, the preparation of dried fruits has become very easy thanks to the advent of electric dryers. This is a special household appliance in which you can quickly dry a large amount of fruit.

To dry in an electric dryer, you need to cut the fruits into thin slices and place them in rows in the dryer. They will be dry in just a few hours.

Microwave drying

You can also dry the fruits in the microwave. To do this, you need to wash the apples, cut them into slices, then soak them in a weak salt solution so that the apples do not lose color. To prepare it, you need to pour four teaspoons of salt per liter of water. Then the slices need to be placed on a baking sheet and placed in the microwave. They need to dry for three minutes.

Pest detection

It is very easy to detect pests in dried fruits. At the bottom of the container in which dried fruits are located, you can most likely find small worms, strange light pellets or traces of cocoons.

However, food moths can breed in other places. It can often be found on walls or cabinets near the feeding area.

Many people often confuse ordinary clothing moths with food moths, although both parasites harm humans: some spoil clothes, others spoil food. There are several varieties of food pests. Most species of food moths have a characteristic light yellow pattern on the wings and are smaller in size.

Moth caterpillars in dried fruits.

Dried fruits for weight loss

An apple often becomes a companion to any diet, because it quickly satisfies hunger and, compared to other fruits, is relatively low in calories. It contains a large amount of vitamins and minerals, so necessary for people who limit themselves in nutrition. Dried fruits are also often used as snacks during diets.

There are even diets in which you can only eat dried fruits and nuts. You can consume two hundred grams of these products every day during the day. Be sure to drink a lot of water with such a diet, which dried fruits are deprived of.

How to avoid insects

To protect dried fruits from numerous problems such as mold or insects, it is recommended to resort to disinfection and sealed packaging.

The main thing in this matter is to work for prevention, because preventing the pest from reaching your supplies is much easier than later removing it and throwing away the products.

Citrus peels are an excellent moth repellent.

Many insects, including fruit moths, cannot tolerate strong odors, which repel food. Placing bay leaves and lavender leaves nearby will help preserve dried fruits. Furniture can be wiped with fir oil or vinegar, all of which repel pests.

It would also be a good idea to place dried lemon, tangerine or other citrus peels in the same place. The main thing is to keep them separately, and not inside bags or jars of apples, so that the latter are not saturated with other people's aromas.

I also use my grandmother’s method to store it in fabric bags. It is not right?

I can’t say whether it’s right or wrong, but from the height of my experience I will say that I switched to plastic jars with multi-colored lids. And my soul is pleased that everything is in order and the dried fruits are in order.

Doesn't the common food moth eat dried fruits?

He eats, and how. They are tasty and healthy for her. In fact, fruit moths are one of the food varieties.

Storing dry apples

To prevent dried fruits from spoiling, you must follow several basic storage rules. It doesn’t matter where the dryer is stored - in the basement or room , the main thing is the following conditions:

• The room should be well ventilated.
• The air must be dry.
• It is advisable that no light enters the place where the dryer is located.

For better drying storage, use fabric bags that will allow air to pass through well. After all, the accumulation of moisture will destroy all reserves. The bags should be made of dense material so that insects cannot get into it.

Under no circumstances should drying be stored in plastic bags or plastic containers, because they do not allow oxygen to pass through, and the drying will simply become moldy.

Whatever fruit is stored in, you must adhere to the following rules:

• The bottom of the vessel must be covered with paper.
• The dryer needs to be laid very tightly.
• If the fruits are stored in glass, then the jar must be tightly closed with a lid.
• Apples absorb odors very well, so they should be stored away from aromatic foods.
• Sometimes you need to check food for insects.

Dried fruit protection

It is necessary to throw away those food supplies that were in the potential infection zone and those in which traces of vital activity were clearly found. Such products contain excrement and remains of the insect cocoon, which can cause complications if they enter the human body.

Proper storage is the best protection.

How to save dried fruits from moths

Clean storage is the key to quality.

Butterflies and food moth larvae love a warm and humid environment (approximately +25°C and 50% humidity). If your house is hot and damp, then removing the fires will become a very labor-intensive task. It is best to thoroughly ventilate all rooms before processing, dry corners, throw away damp cereals, bread, etc.

With any storage method: indoors at home, in the attic or on the balcony, often check the condition and quality of dried apples in order to prevent them from spoiling in time.

By following simple storage and prevention rules, you can keep your harvest intact.

How to store dried fruits

Improper storage of dried fruits is the most common mistake that contributes to the appearance of the parasite.

Before the season, the storage area must be wiped with a disinfectant and washed thoroughly so as not to leave dirt and foreign odors that attract pests.

To avoid spoilage of your favorite products, you need to follow simple rules:

1. The use of paper or cellophane bags is undesirable, as the pest can easily gnaw through their walls. In addition, condensation collects in plastic bags, which contributes to the formation of mold.
2. The best storage containers are glass jars with tight-fitting lids. After the fruit has been poured inside the jar, cover it on top with paper, which will absorb excess moisture.
3. A shaded shelf or wall cabinet is best for storage. Such places should be well ventilated and ventilated, and the temperature should be about 10 degrees.
4. Excess moisture in the closet or on the shelf will help to remove table salt poured into a plate and placed next to it.
5. From time to time it is necessary to check dried fruits in the storage containers themselves. If they feel a little sticky to the touch, then you need to pour them out, dry them a little and place them back in a dry container, replacing the old paper.

Video

We invite you to watch a video about a proven method of storing dried apples:

He has considerable experience in gardening - from sowing seeds and seedlings to harvesting and storing the crop. Each sowing season begins with the search for new ways of growing, because cucumbers can be collected not only from the garden, but also, for example, from... a barrel and even grown on a windowsill in winter. She considers caring for plants one of the best ways to relieve stress.

Found a mistake? Select the text with the mouse and click:

Tomatoes have no natural protection against late blight. If late blight attacks, any tomatoes (and potatoes too) die, no matter what is said in the description of the varieties (“variety resistant to late blight” is just a marketing ploy).

In Australia, scientists have begun experiments in cloning several varieties of grapes grown in cold regions. Climate warming, which is predicted for the next 50 years, will lead to their disappearance. Australian varieties have excellent characteristics for winemaking and are not susceptible to diseases common in Europe and America.

Convenient Android applications have been developed to help gardeners and gardeners. First of all, these are sowing (lunar, flower, etc.) calendars, thematic magazines, and collections of useful tips. With their help, you can choose a day favorable for planting each type of plant, determine the timing of their ripening and harvest on time.

Fighting methods

There are a large number of ways to combat fruit moths.

Do not rush to use chemicals. We must remember that there is a large amount of food in the kitchen, and the contact of reagents on them can cause more harm than from an insect, especially for a product such as dichlorvos.

If, nevertheless, a decision was made to smoke out the pest with chemicals, then it is necessary to protect yourself as much as possible with personal protective equipment, remove all food supplies away, and after the end of the “war”, thoroughly wash all the places where the poison could get in.

So it is better to use simple, time-tested and many years of experience, methods of struggle that will not harm your health.

Heat treatment

Temperature treatment.

If the situation with dried fruits is not hopeless, that is, only adults and no traces of larvae were noticed, then you can try to save the dried apples using heat treatment.

The insect does not like high temperatures. First of all, you need to sort through all the apple slices, throw away any damaged ones, and place the untouched apples on a baking sheet in 1 layer. Then preheat the oven to 70 degrees and place a baking sheet in it for 20-30 minutes.

Traces of vital activity in drying.

The parasite larvae also cannot tolerate low temperatures, which are fatal to them. If it is not possible to warm up the infected fruit, then you can use an alternative method. In winter, you can put the fruits on the balcony; it is advisable that the temperature be from -10 degrees.

If the winter is warm, then you can put the apples on the shelf of the refrigerator or freezer, keeping them there for up to 24 hours. After any type of processing, dried fruits must be placed in dry containers that can be hermetically sealed.

Using improvised means

There are not always any chemical means to combat moths at home, and not everyone wants to use them in the kitchen where food is stored. In such cases, improvised means and folk methods will help in the fight against the pest:

1. Prepare traps from flour and boric acid, which are mixed in proportions of 1 to 3, then poured into a small container and placed on the kitchen shelf.
2. You can lubricate the walls of furniture where moths have infested with lavender oil.
3. Experience shows that an effective means of control is the smell of tobacco, which repels parasites well.
4. Orange peel, which after cleaning is laid out inside the furniture, has a good effect.
5. Ammonia helps destroy eggs and at the same time disinfect the place where they live.

Read more about safe food protection, which will be a very pleasant preventive measure, here.

What to do if dried apples still have bugs

There are many recipes on how to protect your dryer from bugs, as well as how to deal with them. Let's find out what recommendations exist for preparing drying so that any living creatures do not grow in them.

Secrets of drying fruits

Before you start drying apples, you need to carry out a little preventive maintenance. If you prepare your drying using this method, you will not have to look for ways to deal with pests.

1. Cut the apples into slices to dry.
2. Rinse them under running water.
3. Rinse with a mild saline solution.
4. Place in a container filled with water and vinegar.
5. After 10 minutes, the apple slices need to be dried.

If you start the process of drying fruit after such preparatory measures, moths will not appear in the workpiece. This is due to the fact that the procedure destroys the sweet smell, which is what attracts pests.

It is also important to ensure that the dried apples are not damaged by any bugs. Let's look at other methods of how to deal with insects in dry fruit stocks

Laundry soap - help in the fight against bugs

This advice is relevant for those housewives who store dried apples in cloth bags. To cope with a small number of insects, this bag must be washed using laundry soap. At the same time, you should not rinse the soap.

After washing the product, rub it with soap and leave to dry. Pour the drying agent into a dry bag. No insects can stand the smell of laundry soap.

After these manipulations, leave the dry fruits in the bag for several days. Then the apples must be sorted to make sure that there is no pest left.

Temperature effect on bugs

To eliminate pests in drying, you can do the following:

• arrange the apple slices on a baking sheet;
• Dry additionally in the oven at low temperature.

This method is also relevant if your dried apples are severely damaged by pests. But do not forget to carefully dry it after heat treatment.

But is it possible to store such fruits in the cold? Frosty temperatures are clearly not suitable for permanent storage, but if there are bugs or other insects in the product, you must do the following:

• place them in the freezer;
• set the temperature to -15;
• leave for several hours.

After the procedure, the apples must be transferred to another container, washed and dried. Pack them as before, wrap them in paper and leave them stored in a cool, dry and ventilated area.

When should you not save dried fruits?

Although in some cases you should not rush to throw away all your supplies at the sight of a small number of moths, there are cases when it is best to get rid of all dried apples. When is it appropriate? Undoubtedly, every housewife tries to be economical, but you should not save on the health of your family. If you find mold on the surface of dried fruits prepared for future use, it is better to part with this product.

Why is this so important?

Find out how to remove tape marks here.

Some experts conducted a study and came to the conclusion that if mold has captured several units of the product, its spores have long penetrated into the deeper layers. This means that even if you manage to destroy all individual fruits with visible mold, this does not mean that there will be no pests left anywhere.

Although there is a lot of advice on how to deal with mold, it is not recommended. Even if you manage to quickly destroy all traces of it, an insidious enemy lurks inside and can cause significant harm to the body. Interestingly, mold spores can cause negative symptoms even if you did not eat the moldy product, but simply smelled it.

The video below will go into more detail about some of the tricks for successfully storing dried fruit.

Dried apples have moths, worms, what to do. Should we throw everything away or sort through it somehow?

First big experience in drying and everything seems to be based on technology - batteries, bags, wooden cabinet, dry, ventilated)))

From this article you will learn how to store dried apples at home so that they remain fragrant and tasty for a single month.

Many people probably had to harvest and store dried apples, but not everyone managed to save the harvest at least until winter. In unsuitable conditions, the delicate product quickly deteriorates, moths and bugs appear in it, and drying loses its beneficial properties and vitamins. Follow our advice and everything will work out.

Prevention

Moths can enter human habitation in a variety of ways. Favorable conditions contribute to the fact that even several adult individuals can breed into entire colonies in the shortest possible time. There is no 100% way to protect your home from moths.

But if you carry out simple prevention and follow the advice, you can reduce this risk to a minimum:

1. It is advisable to have a fine mesh on windows and hoods, through which pests will not be able to enter the room.
2. You should buy products from trusted stores in order to exclude the possibility of introducing insects from outside. Also, before purchasing, you must visually check the packaging for leaks.
3. It is better to store food supplies not in packages, but pour them into glass, tightly closed containers.
4. From time to time it is necessary to wipe the shelves with water and vinegar or essential oils.
5. The food storage area must be dry and ventilated.
6. It is better to store nuts or dried fruits in glass containers that are hermetically sealed.
7. And in general, it is better to keep the kitchen and dry fruit storage areas clean. This will prevent the appearance of not only moths, but also other insect pests.

How to store dried apples to prevent moths. Preparing dried fruits for storage

You can check the readiness of dried fruits by squeezing a handful of this product in your fist and rubbing it a little with your fingers.
If dried fruits crumble easily, then they are ready for long-term storage.

But if, after compression, they stick together to form a lump, then the heat treatment must be continued.

First, not completely dried fruits are kept in the open air for 24 hours, and then sent to the oven (temperature should be 60-80 °C) for 60 minutes.

You should consider how to store dried apples to prevent moths or other varieties of dried fruits, since they all have their own moisture index.

It is not advisable to store different fruits together. However, apples and pears do well when stored together.

Selection of containers

Dried fruits that have undergone proper heat treatment are stored safely and for a long time in glass containers with a tight-fitting lid. If vacuum lids are used, then dried fruits can be stored for several years, since the lack of oxygen does not allow pathogenic microorganisms to multiply.

Glass containers are indicated for fruits with a high sugar and moisture content, for example:

• dates;
• prunes;
• dried apricots;
• raisin.

Plastic containers are acceptable for storage, but are undesirable because drying there becomes damp and mold appears on it.

It is not recommended to store dried fruits in plastic bags, as condensation often forms in them, which promotes rotting and mold formation.

In dried apples you can see not only food moths, but also bugs and sugar mites, so they should be stored correctly in cardboard boxes, bags made of thick fabric, glass containers with lids, and plywood boxes. All of them block access for small insects.

Deciding on storage location

Heat and high humidity are the main enemy of dried fruits. Industrial producers store dried fruits in dark rooms with good air circulation at a temperature of 2-10 °C.

In residential premises, creating such storage conditions is quite problematic, so housewives sometimes do not know how to properly store the dryer.

Hermetically sealed glass jars with a dryer are best placed in the pantry or on a separate shelf in the kitchen cabinet, where they are least likely to be looked at. And also this place should be away from the stove or heat appliances.

Some types of dried fruits can be stored in the refrigerator.

But this option is not suitable when the housewife thinks about how to preserve dried apples from moths.

If you need to preserve dried apricots, raisins, prunes, dried peaches or pears, then they can be placed on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator, where they will remain soft longer and will also be protected from moths or other pests.

The best ways to deal with kitchen bugs in bulk products

The most effective of all known methods is the use of an aerosol product called Dichlorvos. After using this product, not a single bug will remain alive.

The method is not the safest to use, but it will definitely help completely solve the problem. The product disappears from the room within several days. You cannot be indoors at this time. It is necessary to think about the place of residence for this period of time even before the start of cleaning.

How to remove beetles:

1. Carry out a thorough inspection of those things where insects may be located, and remove these items from the room.
2. Throw out the entire stock of cereals, wash the jar in which they were located, and all the dishes in the kitchen.
3. Wipe the baseboard, floor, every cabinet.
4. Wear protective equipment and treat the room with Dichlorvos. It is important to treat every hard-to-reach crack, since these are the places where insects can be found.
5. After ventilation, all surfaces must be thoroughly washed.

An economical method (how to sift so as not to throw away)

The flour must be sifted using a fine sieve. This will make it possible to get rid of larvae and eggs.

When the product is sifted, it is calcined in the oven for 30 minutes. For flour, 50 degrees is enough.

After these steps, the flour will become suitable for consumption.

Bugs in flour: how to get rid of them using heat treatment

There are several methods to resolve the issue:

1. Using the oven. The procedure takes 30 minutes. Semolina and flour should not be exposed to temperatures above 50 degrees. For other types of cereals, this figure can reach from 110 to 200 degrees.
2. Exposure to ultraviolet radiation. The products are evenly laid out on a clean, flat surface and left for 2-3 hours. The beetles will leave the food if they cannot withstand exposure to ultraviolet rays.
3. Exposure to low temperatures. The cereal is placed in the freezer for a day. A balcony is suitable for these purposes. You can take food outside if it is a private house when the air temperature is at least 15 degrees below zero.

Pests often hide in furniture and other rooms. Therefore, the entire apartment, especially the kitchen, must be treated with additional methods.

Small bugs in the kitchen: how to get rid of borax

Boric acid has a poisonous effect. Individuals absorb the poison and bring it with them to the nest, as a result of which the entire colony of pests dies.

To make bait, borax is mixed with sugar and flour. Semolina, egg, honey can be added, after which the bait is laid out on sheets of paper and placed in the place of the greatest concentration of beetles.

How to get rid of bugs in cereals using water

If you need to prepare a dish urgently and the grains are spoiled, use salted water. The cereal soaked in it will remain at the bottom, and light bugs will float to the surface. After this, it is recommended to heat the product in the oven and sift.

Attention! The method is not suitable for removing insects in flour.

Water will help not only when manipulating directly with products, but also during the cleaning process. To do this, all furniture must be washed with water and vinegar. Per liter of liquid you will need 1 tablespoon of the product.

The best option is to treat shelves and corners with boiling water. But not every surface can withstand high temperatures.

How to get rid of cereal bugs in the kitchen: additional methods

In addition to traditional methods, there are folk methods for solving the problem:

• Fragrant herbs. Bugs cannot tolerate plants with a strong odor. To do this, small bags containing wormwood, chamomile, and lavender are placed in the cabinet, especially in the corners. You can also use garlic, cloves, and nutmeg.
• Sunflower oil. After heat treatment, you can pour a little sunflower oil into small caps. This will help trap insects. Then you just need to pour out the oil.
• Pheromone lures. These control agents can be purchased in specialized stores. The bait attracts the surviving individuals.