The Main Methods Of Dealing With Diseases And Pests Of Raspberries

2024 Author: Sebastian Paterson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:47

• Agrotechnical methods of disease and pest control
• Biological control method
• Chemical control methods

To obtain high yields of raspberries annually, it is necessary to timely and efficiently carry out measures to protect plants from pests and diseases that cause great damage to its plantings, greatly reduce the yield, worsen the quality of berries, weaken plants, often leading to their death.

Agricultural, biological, chemical and other methods are used to protect plants. Among them, the most important place is given to the timely and comprehensive implementation of agrotechnical measures that ensure the normal development of plants and at the same time prevent the spread of pests and diseases. The correct choice of a site, its preparation, the quality of planting material, the selection of varieties that are resistant to pathogens, the level of agricultural technology when growing plants - all these are powerful preventive and often eradicate means in the fight against pests and diseases.

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Agrotechnical methods of disease and pest control

Scientifically based fertilization contributes to increasing plant resistance to pathogens. So, the use of phosphorus-potassium fertilizers significantly reduces the number of insects with a piercing-sucking mouth apparatus (aphids, mites), which is associated with a change under the influence of these fertilizers in the chemical composition of the plant, which becomes less favorable for feeding pests. A depressing effect on a number of pathogens and nematodes is exerted by ammonia forms of nitrogen fertilizers, as well as liming of acidic soils.

A significant number of pests and pathogens are destroyed during the autumn digging of the soil, when the plantings are mulched with peat or compost with a layer of 8-10 cm.

Amateur gardeners successfully use manual shaking off of raspberry beetles and raspberry-strawberry weevils on the litter with their subsequent destruction, catch insects that fly into the light at night (moths, moths, leafworms). A large number of beetles, butterflies enter containers with fermenting molasses, sweet tea with milk, beer, etc., placed between the bushes or not far from them.

It is known that it is easier to prevent a negative effect than to eliminate its consequences later on plantings, especially since the use of pesticides is considered undesirable. That is why it is necessary, on the one hand, to prevent or eliminate sources of infection (at least, to use healthy planting material), and on the other hand, to create conditions under which the plant would quickly take root, grow stronger and itself become involved in the competition for light, moisture, nutrition. … And in the end, it would have realized its potential in the fight against infection.

To prevent the emergence of infection or to stop its spread, gardeners need to strictly and timely carry out special agrotechnical measures. These include, in particular:

• growth normalization: removal of weakened and therefore easily infected offspring and replacement shoots;
• cutting of fruiting stems at the very base immediately after harvest;
• preparing plants for overwintering and protecting them in winter;
• timely collection of sick berries and berries damaged by pests;
• destruction of pests and infections in wintering sites (including digging the soil);
• removal of all kinds of wintering places: weeds - intermediate hosts of pests;
• sheltering bushes during active settlement and summer of pests with insulators made of film, gauze, non-woven materials.

Agrotechnical measures should minimize mechanical damage to shoots and roots, since wounds serve as a gateway for infections to enter the plant. As a rule, these measures are enough to keep the raspberry plantation healthy and productive for a long time.

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Biological control method

Much attention in the fight against raspberry pests deserves a biological method, the essence of which is the use of natural insects that destroy pests. Especially useful are the seven-line aphid bug ("ladybug"), lacewings, hoverfly larvae, apanteles rider, dragonflies, etc. For example, one ladybug beetle can destroy about 5000 aphids during the summer. To attract beneficial insects near the berry, it is desirable to have flowering plants of dill, carrot, anise, coriander, which are readily visited by insects to feed on nectar.

Insectivorous birds (tits, starlings, swallows, sparrows, flycatchers, etc.) render invaluable service in the fight against garden pests, destroying large quantities of various caterpillars, larvae, butterflies and beetles. Particularly many harmful insects are destroyed by birds while feeding chicks. Thus, a family of starlings destroys up to 350 caterpillars, beetles, and snails a day, and a family of redstart feeds more than 7000 caterpillars to their chicks. Tits are especially gluttonous. An adult tit, for example, in one day eats food in a mass equal to its own mass. Considering this, it is necessary in every possible way to attract insectivorous birds to the gardens and protect them, arranging artificial nests for them - birdhouses, titmouses, and in winter, do not forget to regularly feed the birds.

Large quantities of garden pests are eaten by frogs, toads, hedgehogs and ants.

To control harmful insects in individual gardens, biological preparations - dendrobacillin and lepidocid can also be used by spraying plants as pests appear. These preparations do not affect the aroma and taste of the fruit, they are safe for humans, warm-blooded animals and bees.

The biological method of control includes the use of plants that emit special substances - phytoncides, capable to a certain extent of protecting berry crops, including raspberries, from some phytopathogenic microorganisms and harmful insects. The most suitable for this purpose are infusions and decoctions of hemp, black elderberry, onion, garlic, tomato, wormwood, chamomile and other plants.

Chemical control methods

Chemical control measures in home gardening can only be used when diseases and pests are excessively spread, and only use those pesticides that are allowed for sale to the public, and strictly follow the instructions, observe safety precautions and use personal protective equipment.

The success of pest and disease control largely depends on knowledge of their distinctive features and symptoms of damage to plants, taking this into account it is easier to apply protection methods.

Also read:

Major pests and diseases of raspberries