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Spring is the time when nature blossoms and all living things wake up. Along with the plants and shrubs at the dacha, pests also wake up from hibernation and can cause irreparable harm to them. Gooseberry leaves are eaten by many insects and larvae, the fight against which and the prevention of their appearance occupy an important place in the management of every country house.
Who eats gooseberry leaves
Among the pests that can harm gooseberries, caterpillars, which eat gooseberry leaves, occupy a predominant position. There are several varieties of these larvae.They all differ from each other not only in their appearance, but also in the ways in which they need to be dealt with.
The most common caterpillars that eat gooseberry leaves are:
Pest name | Description |
Gooseberry moth | A green larva with a black head up to 2 cm long, which spoils the berry harvest. |
Gooseberry sawfly | The larvae of the parasite have a bluish-green tint with black speckles. They eat the foliage of vegetation. |
Gooseberry shoot aphid | Transparent greenish larvae. Their vital activity on the foliage causes the growth of shoots to stop, the leaves to bend and curl. |
Gooseberry moth | The larvae of these butterflies have a white-yellow tint and dark spots on the back. The harm from their vital activity lies in the fact that they completely destroy the leaf plate. |
Spider mite | Tick larvae, like adults, are very small in size, so they can only be seen with a microscope. Causes dieback of gooseberry foliage. |
How to determine whose caterpillars have appeared on gooseberries
To determine what methods to choose to combat emerging pests, you need to clearly understand who exactly you will have to fight and who exactly ate the gooseberry leaves. To determine exactly whose caterpillars appeared on the gooseberry and ate its leaves, you need to be able to distinguish them from each other by basic external characteristics, and every gardener who has this plant on his plot should know this.
Sawfly caterpillars on gooseberry leaves
Rightfully, sawfly caterpillars have earned a reputation as the most dangerous pest for gooseberries. They eat gooseberry leaves almost without leaving a trace.They also do not hesitate to eat such plants as black and red currants.
There are two main varieties of sawfly caterpillars that eat all the leaves of gooseberries: yellow and pale-legged.
Both of them can cause irreparable harm to the gooseberry, eating every leaf of the plant, right down to the veins.
Description of the caterpillar:
- external similarity with a regular caterpillar;
- green or greenish-blue color;
- 10 pairs of legs;
- have black specks along the entire perimeter.
Overwintering of these larvae occurs in the ground, directly at the base of the bush itself. In winter, they are located in thick cocoons at a depth of approximately 12 - 15 cm. When early spring comes, the larvae enter the cocoon stage and at the moment when the plants they love begin to flower, they turn into adults.
Female insects lay their eggs during the formation of young leaves on their underside, along the main leaf veins. From these eggs, caterpillars quickly emerge and begin to actively develop their life processes. Initially, they gnaw out small holes in the leaf, and then completely eat the entire leaf plate without a trace.
The life stage of the caterpillar directly on the foliage of the plant lasts for approximately 28 days. After gaining the required mass, they go into the soil and move on to the next stage - the cocoon stage, and subsequently - pupae.
The eggs left by the female on the gooseberry foliage are quite difficult to notice with the naked eye, and not all gardeners pay attention to small holes in the leaves. Due to this, the caterpillars can actively develop.
The vital activity of these caterpillars threatens gooseberry bushes with the following consequences:
- the berries of such a bush will be significantly smaller in size than those from a healthy plant;
- some of the berries fall to the ground in a shorter time;
- the plant exhibits a significant weakening in the growth of the shoot part;
- The winter hardiness of the gooseberry bush drops sharply.
Green moth caterpillars on gooseberries
If green caterpillars have eaten leaves on a gooseberry, then most likely we are talking about moth caterpillars. They cause great damage to the gooseberry bush crop.
Description of pests:
- the length of the caterpillar larva is slightly less than 1.5 cm;
- its body is bright green, with clearly visible dark stripes;
- the head is painted black.
Butterfly pupae overwinter in the ground, in its upper layer. During the period when the first buds appear on the gooseberry, butterflies fly out of the pupae. The females of these butterflies lay eggs in the flowers during the end of flowering of the plant. One adult female can lay about 200 eggs on the foliage of a plant. After 10 days, caterpillars emerge from these eggs. They are quite voracious and eat both flower buds and berry ovaries. The period of their life cycle on the foliage can last about 30 days, and during this time they manage to significantly spoil the possible harvest of berries from the gooseberry bush. Basically, they feed on berry pulp and its seeds. In a relatively short period of time, one such caterpillar is capable of destroying about 7 gooseberries.Having dealt with the next fruit, the pests envelop it in cobwebs.
After 30 days, the caterpillars are ready to move on to the next stage of their life cycle - pupation. As a rule, this period comes just when it is necessary to harvest.
It is not difficult to detect that a bush has been attacked by moth caterpillars. This can be understood by the following signs:
- Upon careful examination of the gooseberry, you can see small holes in the berries, while a small thin web stretches from berry to berry;
- If you examine the lump of cobwebs, you can see up to 6 berries in it. Some of them are still completely fresh and untouched by pests, others, on the contrary, are already rotting or completely dried out;
- If you stir up such a lump, then most likely you will find a moth caterpillar in one of the fresh berries.
Currant glass caterpillars
This pest is considered one of the most dangerous. Despite its name, this caterpillar is not averse to eating gooseberry foliage.
The danger lies in the fact that for quite a long period of time the presence of this pest in the bush does not indicate itself in any way, and summer residents sometimes begin to fight it when practically nothing can be done, and the bush has been seriously damaged. This type of caterpillar is capable of completely destroying the entire crop.
Female adult currant glassworts lay about 60 oblong eggs directly on the branches of bushes.
Description of the pest:
- white color of the larva;
- dark head;
- is particularly voracious.
About 10 days after the eggs are laid, harmful larvae emerge from them. During this period they are very vulnerable.This lasts until the caterpillars penetrate from the foliage into the branches. There they begin to actively feed and can make their way up to 30 cm long, thereby destroying the bush from the inside. They remain inside the plant for the winter and only come out in May to give birth to their offspring.
You can recognize that a gooseberry bush is affected by these caterpillars by the following signs:
- the leaves on the branch inhabited by them are smaller in size compared to their neighbors;
- in hot climates, the leaves on the branch wither and fall off very quickly;
- the death of the affected part of the plant occurs in the second year after the currant glass has entered it;
- When such a shoot is cut off, in its core one can observe a cavity filled with the waste products of this caterpillar.
Reasons for the appearance of green caterpillars on gooseberry leaves
The main reason for the appearance of harmful and voracious caterpillars on the leaves, fruits and branches of gooseberries is that the owner of the area where the bush is located:
- does not pay enough attention to methods of preventing their occurrence;
- starts fighting harmful insects at the wrong time;Important! It must be remembered that the sooner the gardener begins to fight pests, the greater the chance that they will be completely eradicated from the leaves of the plant, and the gooseberry bush will not be completely damaged. In addition, this will stop the larvae from spreading to other uninfected plants in the garden.
- simply does not know about the presence of such caterpillars and the need to actively fight them to preserve the “health” of their plantings at their summer cottage.
How to deal with those who eat gooseberry leaves
There are several basic ways to combat gooseberry caterpillars that have eaten its leaves, branches and berries. They can be used individually or in combination with each other. The main thing is to start the pest control process in a timely manner and monitor the results of the measures taken.
How to fight caterpillars on gooseberries using folk remedies
Folk remedies for fighting caterpillars on gooseberries have been known for a long time and have proven themselves to be very positive. They are very effective and safe.
Among them are:
- Planting red elderberry in close proximity to gooseberries. Its smell will certainly repel many pests from gooseberry leaves;
- Spraying gooseberry leaves with elderberry infusion before flowering and immediately after it will help destroy the caterpillars. This infusion can be prepared as follows: take 200 g of crushed flowers and shoots of red elderberry; pour 10 liters of hot water; leave the solution for about 2 hours and start processing the gooseberries;
- Treating gooseberry leaves with wormwood decoction. This will help deal with moth and glassware. You need to proceed as follows: take half a bucket of fresh wormwood; pour 10 liters of water and leave everything like this for 24 hours; After the required amount of time, boil the solution for half an hour. It should be used diluted in the proportion of 1 part solution: 5 parts water. Treatment must be carried out 3 times with a break of 7 days;
- Fumigation of gooseberry bushes with tobacco dust. To do this, you should: create a pile of dry garbage on the leeward side; pour 2 kg of tobacco (dust) on top of it; fumigate the gooseberries for about 30 minutes;
- Sprinkling the ground under the bush with the following composition: 300 g of wood ash + 1 tbsp. l. dry mustard + 200 g tobacco dust;
- spraying gooseberry leaves with a special coniferous solution every 7 days throughout flowering. To prepare it, you should: pour green pine or spruce cones (100g) with hot water; after 5 hours you can start processing.
All of the above means will be highly effective in combination with the following procedures:
- loosening the soil around and under the gooseberries;
- cutting off damaged branches and leaves;
- picking rotten berries.
How to fight caterpillars on gooseberries with chemicals
In addition to traditional methods of fighting caterpillars on gooseberries, there is a whole arsenal of chemicals that will also help cope with the problem that has arisen on the leaves. The following drugs are highly effective in combating voracious caterpillars:
- "Chlorophos". This product is available in several forms: as a paste or powder. In addition, the drug has different concentrations. It has proven its effectiveness in combating sawfly and moth on the leaves of shrubs;
- "Entobacterin-3". Actively used in the fight against sawfly. It can be used at an ambient temperature of at least 20 degrees Celsius. The big advantage of this product is that it does not have a detrimental effect on other plants, animals and beneficial insects. It can be combined with Chlorophos - and thereby increase the efficiency even more;
- "Sevin" is a potent drug that fights glass beetle, fireweed, their larvae and eggs on green leaves. It can be used only in the period before flowering, directly spraying the drug on the foliage;
- "Pyrethrum" - a very toxic powder, which is used to pollinate gooseberry leaves or make a solution based on it. This product copes very successfully with caterpillars that harm vegetation.
How to get rid of caterpillars on gooseberries using mechanical methods
Mechanical methods of combating caterpillars inhabiting gooseberry leaves are considered the simplest, most cost-effective and very affordable for all amateur gardeners. However, in order for them to have a positive effect, such activities should be carried out periodically, carefully monitoring the timing when pest control should be especially active. Procedures include:
- Dropping caterpillars from branches and leaves of bushes;
- Collecting larvae from foliage by hand and destroying them;
- Applying glue belts to bush branches. The surface of such a belt is lubricated with an adhesive substance. The easiest way to prepare this substance is to mix burdock oil and boiling tar in a 1:2 ratio.
Prevention measures
In order to avoid the rather labor-intensive process of fighting caterpillars on gooseberry foliage, you should follow a number of simple recommendations on methods for preventing the appearance of these harmful larvae in your summer cottage.They should be carried out at least 4 times, namely:
- in spring;
- in autumn;
- before the flowering period;
- after the flowering period.
The main preventive measures include the following:
- during the onset of heat, gooseberry leaves and the ground around it must be treated with the following solution: ash + chalk + copper sulfate;
- in order to kill all the caterpillar larvae, it is necessary to water the soil under the bush with hot boiled water (the temperature should be about 90 degrees Celsius);
- fallen leaves under the bush should definitely be collected and burned;
- As a preventative measure, gooseberry foliage must be sprayed with special chemicals in early spring.
Conclusion
Gooseberry leaves are eaten by numerous harmful caterpillars. Fighting them is a rather complex and time-consuming process, during which you need to stock up on strength and patience. Knowing certain methods of controlling pests on gooseberry leaves, you can defeat them and save the plant from inevitable death, but you should always remember that it is easier to carry out certain actions to prevent the appearance of larvae than to subsequently fight them.
