Is a false shield dangerous? Unlike true scale insects, an overview of the features and methods of controlling insects at home

The list of plants that are affected by the pseudoscutum is extensive: it includes massive trees, shrubs, and flowers, including indoor ones. All of them, being food for females and insect larvae, weaken and lag behind in growth from healthy specimens. There are chemicals and folk remedies that help save plants from the parasite.

Acquaintance with a false shield

False shields and scale insects are the closest relatives. These two families belong to the order Semi-winged insects. A parasitic lifestyle unites them: they are phytophages: that is, they are known as plant pests.

The appearance of the false shield is similar to that of the shield: these are small insects with a rounded body of dark color. But the latter are larger than their relatives: up to 7 mm in diameter. At first glance, it seems that the false shields also have a wax shell, so mixing up both families is very simple. But this is a big mistake, because in the cushion, the role of the shield is played by a layer of the skin that has died off after molting. It rises above the body to provide heat to the insect and the eggs laid by it, therefore it is more convex than that of a real scale insect.
These features are characteristic only for female insects: the life of males with wings and looking completely different is of little significance for studying the fight against a parasite. Very often, reproduction occurs without the participation of males.

If you pry off with a needle the "carapace" of the false scale, then it will move away from the body of the insect. In true it is impossible to do this, because the shield is spliced ​​with the body. This is the main way to distinguish family members at home without a microscope.

Kinds

The family of false shields is diverse: biologists describe more than 1,100 species that inhabit almost the entire planet, with the exception of regions with extremely cold climatic conditions. Of these, 150 are distributed throughout Europe. In the countries of the former USSR, 4 of them bring the greatest damage to wild-growing and cultivated plants.

Acacia false shield

Acacia pseudoscutis, despite its name, is multinivorous. Its “specialization” is mainly fruit bushes (quince, gooseberries, raspberries, etc.) and trees (apricot, pear, sweet cherry, plums). Sometimes the insect lives on a walnut and a pistachio tree. It is a dangerous pest of valuable species of wood, in particular, white acacia.

The body of the female is mainly oval, less often round; It has no segmentation and is a solid bulge of brown shades. On its sides are numerous dots. Males are flying insects about 1.5 mm in length, having one pair of wings. The proportion of males in the population is very small.

Active years occur in the first decade of May. By the beginning of summer, females lay eggs under their own body, protecting future offspring from adverse environmental conditions. One individual can set aside from 1000 to 3000 pieces.The larvae emerging from them bite into the plant, feeding on the victim's juice. They spend the winter on the trunk and branches of the carrier, and in the spring, with the beginning of sap flow, they move to young shoots and no longer move. After links, conversion to imago occurs.

Spruce false shield

The round shell of the spruce false shield is painted in chestnut or brown. Its diameter is only 3-6 mm. 1 mm mm flying males are not common. Females lay red eggs under their carapace, from which pinkish larvae appear.

Young larvae immediately attack the tree in search of nutritious juice, climbing between the scales of the kidneys. Those that transform into flying males choose the lower side of coniferous needles as their place of feeding. In mid-autumn, molting of larvae occurs, after which their body turns brown.

Spruce false shield most often affects common spruce and blue.

Soft scaffold

Soft false shield is the main pest of cultivated plants from its family. It is this species that attacks planting in greenhouses and indoor flowers. Her preferences are very diverse: these are exotic orchids, and tender begonias, and green ferns. According to flower growers, any plant can be infected with a false shield.
The body of the female is oval, tapering to the head of the insect, often with a pronounced asymmetry, convex. Its surface is brown in color with uneven pigmentation: the back of the "shell" is darker. It is not difficult to notice a soft false shield on plants with good vision: its dimensions are 4 mm in length and 3 mm in width.

Thuja false shield

When infected with a thujaceous false shield, yellow sores appear on the tree, increasing in size. If you do not destroy the pest, then the entire trunk will turn yellow and the thuja will die.

Pest life

The lifestyle of a false shield depends on its stage of development and gender. Flying males, similar to flies, live a maximum of several days, usually 2-3 days. Their importance in procreation is small: asexual reproduction in insect populations is a common occurrence. Its mechanism and causes are of interest to researchers.

Larvae settle on the plant in search of a convenient place where you can stick to it and drink juice. Having reached adulthood, the females of false shields are no longer moving. They spend their whole lives in one place, busy reproducing offspring.

Damage and signs of infection

Larvae and adult pseudo-scabs conduct parasitic activity all the time when climatic conditions allow them. At home, the pest damages indoor flowers year-round.

First of all, the damage is associated with the depletion of the plant, because insects suck out juices with nutrients from it. As a result, the “victim” slows down growth. New shoots and leaves grow reluctantly, and the formation of buds may not occur at all. If you do not deal with the fight against false shields, then ultimately the infection will lead to the death of the plant.

The result of the vital activity of false shields is a sticky coating - visible on the leaves and even the glass of the window next to which there is a pot. This substance is a favorable environment for the life of a sooty fungus - a pathogenic microorganism.

Fight

Pest control begins with its mechanical removal. If there are false shields on indoor flowers or on small plants, insects and larvae can be removed with a damp sponge or rags. On the woody shoots they are scraped off with the blunt side of the knife. Large spruce and arborvitae are also doused with water from a hose under high pressure. But such a measure, of course, will not be enough. Therefore, modern insecticides and folk remedies, already tested by time, are used.

Chemicals

To solve the problem, it may take several treatments. Trees and shrubs are usually sprayed 2 times a year: at the time of the appearance of leaves from the buds and at the beginning of July, when the larvae are massively dispersed along the branches.If necessary, the treatment is repeated in accordance with the instructions for the drug. At home, 2–4 treatments with a 10–14 day interval are usually required: pests should be completely eradicated.

Insecticides are effective against false shields:

1. Systemic exposure: Aktara, BI-58, Confidor.
2. Organophosphorus preparations, such as Actellik, Karbofos, Fosbetsid.
3. Also applicable: Arrivo, Bankol, Calypso, Fitoverm.

It should be treated not only the infected plant, but also the neighbors, windowsill, window frame. Replace the top layer of the earth, in which individual eggs and larvae of the false shield could hide.

Folk remedies

Measures to combat false shielding include the use of folk remedies. It:

1. Alcohol (or vodka) is used to wipe leaves and shoots.
2. Soap solution: 15 g of liquid soap or a handful of grated chips are diluted in 1 liter of water at a temperature above room temperature. To increase efficiency, 10 ml of alcohol can be added to the composition, but this is undesirable when treating plants with delicate foliage.
3. A solution of soap and kerosene: 40 g of laundry soap diluted in 1 liter of water, add 5 kerosene drops. The fluid is thoroughly mixed until smooth.
4. Soap and oil solution: it has a similar formulation, only 100 ml of machine oil are taken instead of kerosene. Plants should be cleaned of this composition after 8 folk remedies 8-12 hours after treatment.
5. Infusion of garlic: several cloves insist 12 hours in a liter of water.

Folk remedies are less aggressive for false shields than chemicals. Therefore, they can be dispensed only with small-scale infections and with regular use.

False shields, like real shields, parasitize on many types of plants. The ability to multiply rapidly is rapidly increasing the number of the parasite that draws juices from the victim. You can stop the pest by using chemicals or folk remedies. A positive result will be achieved by a combination of methods of struggle.