Apple moth - how to stay without apples

Apple moth is one of the most famous and common pests. Its appearance is familiar not only to gardeners, but also to all fruit lovers. Surely, everyone at least once in his life found a worm in an apple. With a probability of 99.9%, it can be argued that it was a caterpillar of the apple moth. There are many ways to deal with a pest. But in order for destructive and preventive measures to be effective, you should familiarize yourself with how the apple codling moth looks and the features of its reproduction.

Biology of Apple Codling Moths

Agricultural pests are numerous the Leafloader family. The distribution area is very extensive. You can find the codling moth wherever apple trees, pears, quinces grow, with the exception of the Far East and the Far North.

Distinctive external features

The butterfly of the apple codling moth, like all its related species of codling moth, is distinguished by its wide rectangular wings of a nondescript patronizing color. When they are folded, the insect becomes completely inconspicuous. The upper wings are silver, ashy in color with transverse wavy dark inclusions and a bronze spot; three curved brownish staples close at the top of the wing. Hind wings of apple codling moth of dirty gray tones bordered by serrated fringe of a lighter shade than the color of the butterfly.
In the daytime, butterflies sit motionless on the inside of the foliage. Insects are very shy. One has only to slightly touch the part of the plant on which they take refuge, they immediately fly apart and hide in the crown of trees.

On a note! The adult apple moth needs drip moisture and at dusk begins its peak activity. Butterflies, like moths, willingly fly into the light, which is often used to catch them.

Development Phases and Diet

Pests spend the wintering in the pupal stage, which is distinguished by a light brown color with a golden tint. Length 10-12 mm. The body is divided into segments, on each of which there are 2 rows of spines. The end of the abdomen is covered with setae with hook-shaped outgrowths. Arachnid cocoons of apple moths can be found under the bark of fruit trees, the root neck of the plant, in containers, under plant debris, as well as in the surface layers of the soil.

With the onset of steady heat, which is accompanied by flowering and the period of detachment of the buds, the pupation phase begins and butterflies of the codling moth appear. Their years last for about a month, it can be observed in calm, calm weather. If it turned out to be a hot spring, then the flying period is reduced to 2-3 weeks. Females secrete pheromones, which the male can feel at a distance of 100-200 meters. The highest concentration of sex secrets is typical for 3-5-day butterflies.

After mating, after a few days, the female begins to fulfill its intended purpose - to lay eggs.She does this in batches, placing eggs one at a time on the inner or outer surface of smooth leaves, shoots, fruit ovary.

Codling moth on an apple lays up to 110-120 embryos. The egg-laying process mainly occurs 7-12 days after flowering.

Due to its microscopic dimensions - 1 mm in diameter, it is not always possible to see flat white eggs of the pest, outwardly they are very similar to droplets of milk or wax. Under favorable conditions, after 7-10 days, caterpillars of the apple codling hatch from them.

The emerging generation is in no hurry to leave its birthplace and for several hours adapts to new conditions. The length of the tracks as they grow reaches 10-18 mm. The bodies are covered with sparse bristles, hairs and gray plaques. Caterpillars of the apple codling moth are introduced into the fruit, clog the hole with cobwebs or bits and continue to develop inside.

Young individuals need enhanced nutrition and begin to absorb the contents of the fruit. Moving from the crust to the seeds, they form winding passages. As the mass increases, they undergo several links. Larva of the third age eats seeds. Often she leaves the eaten fruit in search of a new one. If she fails to find a source of nutrition, she returns to her “breadwinner” and continues to develop in it.

Caterpillars of the apple moth are extremely gluttonous. Before increasing the necessary volumes for the transition to the pupation phase, each individual damages 2-3 fruits, after which they prematurely decay and fall off.

In the caterpillar stage, the apple moths stay for a month. In the southern regions, the first generation pupates in the summer and the reproduction of pests continues intensively. These females are more prolific and lay up to 300 eggs. Larvae of the second generation damage large fruits of trees. In temperate and cold climates, only one generation develops.

Harmful codling moth

Butterfly codling moth is a dangerous pest of gardens. The fruits of apple and pear trees are reliable shelters for larvae. Eating flesh and seeds, the caterpillars interfere with the normal development of the fruit, which leads to their decay and decay, thereby reducing yield.

Fruits damaged in the final stage of ripening lose commercial quality and are usually discarded before sale. Damage done by the apple moth can amount to yield loss of up to 90%.

How to deal with the apple codling moth

Codling moth control methods on the apple tree are determined by the phase of tree vegetation and the degree of infection with pests. When laying young gardens, it is necessary to place early varieties no closer than 100 meters from the late ones. Oddly enough, but the pest is selective when choosing varieties of apple trees. Most often, Pepin Lithuanian, Renet, Parmen, Kassil, Borovinka, Antonovka are subjected to his attacks.

How to deal with the apple codling moth:

• remove and dispose of scavenger in a timely manner, do not leave damaged fruits for the winter period; collection of affected fruits is carried out daily in the evening, they can be used as livestock feed;
• fumigation of containers, packaging materials, storages through fumigation with sulfur or disinfection with hot steam;
• removal and subsequent burning of exfoliated bark, under which pupae hide in winter; the procedure is carried out in autumn and spring - the dead bark is removed using a wooden scraper, and the trunk itself is whitened with lime, this measure provides high protection for apple trees from the moth and other garden pests;
• Periodic plowing, especially in the autumn period, between aisles and near-trunk circles;
• regular collection and destruction of mummified fruits, plant debris

Processing apple trees from the codling moth with insecticidal agents is carried out several times a year. In the southern regions, where two generations of pests develop, spraying is carried out 4 times, 2 sessions per generation:

• when caterpillars appear;
• 3 weeks after the first spraying;
• 7-10 days after the start of the summer of summer moths of the moth;
• 18 days after the third treatment.

Spray the apple tree from the codling moth with the following drugs:

• “Match” 050 EU is a Swiss-made concentrate that acts on adults and has an ovicidal effect on fresh eggs. It is not washed off by rain, safe for humans, effective even against insects that have developed resistance to traditional insecticides, and does not destroy beneficial entomofauna.
• "Calypso" is a systemic insecticide of contact-intestinal action. Pest death occurs 3 hours after treatment. It retains its effect for 30 days.
• "Decis Pro" - the effect of application is noticeable an hour after spraying. It can be combined with the use of growth stimulants, other insecticides, with the exception of agents with an alkaline reaction.

Also use Kinmiks, Karbofos, Inta-Vir, Fufanon, Agrovertin, Fitoverm.

Processing of trees from the codling moth is carried out in the evening in the absence of wind and rainfall.

Folk methods

The fight against the codling moth on the apple tree can no less effectively be conducted with the help of folk remedies that have passed the test of time:

1. 300 g rye crusts, several teaspoons of sugar and ordinary baker's yeast are placed in a three-liter container. All ingredients are poured with water and put in a warm place for fermentation. After 2 days, the resulting kvass is drained, sugar, bread and water are re-added to the remaining mixture. The fermented substance is used as a bait for butterflies of the codling moths. The jars are hung in the evening, removed in the morning, the caught insects are removed, and at dusk the procedure is repeated. As a bait, any other fermented fruit liquid, juice, compote can be used.
2. During flowering, trees are treated with infusions of wormwood, tansy, and tobacco to scare away the moth.
3. On trees impose the so-called hunting belts. The trap for the apple moth can be a cardboard funnel that is attached to the trunk with a rope or be cool or insecticidal. In the latter case, the rags are moistened with a chemical solution and wrapped around the trunk, covered with a plastic film on top. The glue trap is made even easier. Paper and cardboard strips are attached to the trunk and treated with garden glue, tar or tar.

Also used are pheromone traps for the moth. They attract males and thereby prevent reproduction. An equally important advantage of such a device is the fact that it allows you to monitor the dynamics of growth of the population of the apple codling moths and, if a large number of individuals are detected, to begin timely pest control.