What to do if midges appear on the cabbage

Mussel cabbage is a serious problem for gardeners. The appearance of small insects can negate all efforts and leave without a crop. The secrets of growing cabbage are not only knowledge of the timing of planting, watering, but also the ability to recognize pests and take timely measures to destroy them.

What midges can harm cabbage

There are a lot of insects who chose cabbage as an object of nutrition. The most harmful is gluttonous offspring, which affects the root system, leaves. Damaged vegetables have an unsightly appearance and are not suitable for consumption.

Cruciferous fleas

If the cabbage midge is black, then with a high degree of probability it can be argued that the cabbage settled cruciferous fleas. The bugs are distinguished by dark blue, green, black color and crumbled dimensions of an elongated body of 2 mm. They are characterized by good jumping ability, which is why they are also called fleas. Adult individuals winter in the upper layers of the soil, in weeds, under plant debris.

With the arrival of heat, when the air temperature reaches 10-15 ° C, they are selected outside and begin to search for food supply. At first, they feed on weeds, with the advent of cultivated plants in the beds, they switch to them. Black midge on cabbage eats young leaves, which is why they become similar to sita. In cases of mass invasion, only streaks remain from the plant in 2-3 days.

Not only adult fleas bring harm, but also their larvae. The female lays eggs in the ground, of which in a few days caterpillars appear, which begin to eat around the roots of the plant. An exception is only the appearance of a light-footed flea - its oviposition is on foliage.

Cabbage aphid

Mice on cabbage can turn out to be aphids. There are many types of this pest with and without wings, but despite their external differences, they all harm the cabbage. An active peak in harmfulness begins in the second decade of July. The color of insects is predominantly light green in color, the body size of 2 mm is covered with a waxy coating.

In the spring, wingless females crawl out of the soil from overwintered eggs, which begin to actively feed and lay eggs. This generation is not characterized by migration and wingless females do not need fertilization. Each female lays up to 40 eggs. After going through all phases of the development of the larva, in May, June, winged female individuals appear, which are settled on nearby cruciferous plants. From 10 to 16 new generations of cabbage aphids appear in a year.
Cabbage aphid harms the plant at all stages of development. The sucking mouth apparatus helps to suck out juices from leaves and stems as much as possible. With saliva, insects inject an enzyme that provokes the development of diseases. Cabbage aphids carry about 20 viruses. In the affected plants, photosynthesis and the concentration of nutrients are reduced, which leads to drying and the death of the damaged area.

Parasitization of aphids causes the head to stop developing and forms seeds in the testes. Crop loss can reach 50-90%.

How to deal with cabbage midges

The appearance of pests in the vegetable crop cannot be ignored and urgent measures should be taken to save plants and crops. In addition, insects after the destruction of one crop can migrate to neighboring beds.

What to do if midges appeared on cabbage:

• treat the cabbage with infusion of wood ash or sprinkle each bush with dry ash;
• spray or wipe the leaves with tobacco, soap, solution, infusion of tops, herbs;
• treatment of plants should be carried out in dry weather in the morning or evening hours, if precipitation followed, the procedure must be repeated.

In the case when more than 15 individuals inhabit each plant, insecticidal preparations are used. You can use chemicals no later than 20 days before the planned harvest. Choosing how to process cabbage from midges, you should pay attention to the effect of the drug. Given that the cruciferous flea larvae can be on the roots in the ground, it is advisable to use agents acting on the root system to combat this pest.

Important! When working with insecticides, personal protective equipment should be used: a cotton-gauze bandage or respirator, goggles, and a dressing gown.

How to spray cabbage from midges and aphids:

• "Actellik" is a universal organophosphorus agent for the destruction of garden pests. Available in the form of an emulsion, powder. It has a high penetrating ability, acts on insects by the contact-intestinal method. After processing, midges die within 20 minutes. The action of the drug is stored on the leaves for 7-14 days.
• "Spark" - an insecticide is available in the form of tablets that are mixed with water. The prepared solution is sprayed with leaves. One tablet is enough to prepare 10 liters of the working mixture.
• Angio is a systemic preparation based on two active chemical components. It has an instant killing effect on pests at all stages of development, including imago, larvae. Due to its high penetrating ability, it enters the soil and protects the roots from parasite larvae. It has a long residual effect. Another advantage of the drug is the lack of resistance of insects to the constituent components of the drug.
• "Decis Profi" is a drug based on pyrethrocides. Two treatments are possible for the growing season. The effect of application is noticeable within an hour after the procedure.

Folk recipes

Along with numerous ways to get rid of midges on cabbage, there are folk recipes. Unlike insecticidal preparations, their prime cost is extremely low: most of the components grow near the beds. In addition, these methods are safe and allow you to grow vegetables without the content of chemical impurities.

On a note! The processing algorithm is identical to the procedure using insecticides. Plants are sprayed in dry weather at a temperature of 15 to 22 ° C.

Popular folk remedies for midges on cabbage:

• Young seedlings of cabbage planted in open ground must be pollinated with a mixture of ash with tobacco dust (1: 1 ratio) or wood ash. The procedure is repeated every five days, as well as after watering, fertilizing. The composition is applied to the leaves from both the outside and the inside.
• From wood ash, infusions are prepared for spraying plants. Sift 100 g of ash, mix with 1 liter of water, boil for 30-40 minutes, then strain the mixture and bring to a volume of 3 liters. To keep the solution better on leaves, stems, add 10-15 g of liquid soap or chopped tar, laundry.
• Tobacco infusion is used to combat various pests, including midges. Pour 100 g of tobacco with 5 liters of hot water. After cooling, strain and add 2 teaspoons of any liquid detergent.
  
• For the destruction of fleas, vinegar solution has proven itself well. To prepare it, 5 liters of water and a glass of 9% vinegar are combined.
• Based on the fact that pests do not like nightshade crops, decoctions of tomato or potato tops are prepared for their extermination and repelling. Grind 2 kg of freshly picked or 1 kg of dry tops, pour 5 liters of water, insist for at least 5 hours, and then boil for 30-40 minutes. The cooled and filtered solution is diluted with water in a ratio of 1: 1. To improve the “sticking” qualities, add liquid soap. Processing cabbage is carried out twice a week.
• Grind a glass of tomato tops and the same amount of garlic through a meat grinder, pour 10 liters of water at room temperature.
• Dandelion infusion is prepared from 500 g of green mass of the plant and 10 liters of water. The mixture is infused for 3-4 hours, after which it is ready for spraying.
• Wormwood tincture is the most effective way to get rid of black midges on cabbage. Grind 500 g of wormwood and boil in one liter of water for 10 minutes. After cooling, add 50 g of garlic and bring the broth to a volume of 5 liters.
• Dilute 2 tablespoons of any anti-flea shampoo for animals in a liter of water and process the cabbage.
• Pour young nettles with water in a ratio of 1:10, insist ten days. Before spraying, the concentrate is diluted with water at the rate of 1 liter per 100 g of product.
• Insist chicken infusion (1:20) in the open air for 7-10 days, then strain and process the plants. The tool not only protects against midges, but also nourishes the soil with nitrogen.

To minimize the chance of emergence in midges, timely removal of weeds, deep plowing of the soil in the autumn period, and burning of all plants remaining after fruiting are recommended. It is better to plant cabbage next to plants whose smell repels pests: dill, nasturtium, marigolds, garlic, calendula.