Fighting A Bear In The Garden

2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38

Among all polyphagous pests, the bear causes the greatest damage to plants. She destroys everything in her path. It is quite difficult to get her out of the site. Let's try to figure out for a start what kind of pest it is, find out its essence

Habitat

Medvedka damages all crops, without exception. Loves wet places. Inhabits floodplains of rivers, ponds, low-lying areas. Prefers humus-rich soils fertilized with manure, humus.

Moves underground, forming long passages or tunnels. It rarely comes to the surface, at night or during breeding. It is difficult to identify the pest on the site, and even more so to see. There are several signs of the presence of an uninvited guest in the soil.

The first signs of settling the site

You can determine the presence of a pest on the site by the following indicators:

1. Drying of plants without visible damage. When pulled out, the root is missing.

2. Seeds do not germinate for a long time. During control excavations, empty rows are found.

3. Small holes appear in the ground.

4. Winding, uneven paths near the surface. After the end of the rain, these places are especially clearly visible. The soil above them is looser, it dries out faster.

The appearance of the bear

"Guest" has a brown body 5 cm long, covered with a hard chitinous cover. Above are short elytra, under them membranous wings, due to which it can fly.

The mouth is equipped with two pairs of tentacles. On the head are a pair of complex eyes, antennae in the form of antennae. The front legs look like small pointed rakes, flat, wide, with digging functions.

At the end of May, the female in the soil at a shallow depth equips a nest, similar to a small cave with tightly packed walls, where she lays eggs. After two weeks, young larvae appear.

At first, they live in the nest, where the female carefully looks after them. After the first molt, the young grows out of their habitable place, settling throughout the site. Outwardly, the larvae resemble adults that do not have wings.

Adult and young insects hibernate in the soil at great depths, in compost and manure heaps.

Biological features of the pest

Medvedka is an ancient representative of its kind. In the process of evolution, it has adapted well to habitat conditions, has excellent survival rate.

It feeds on seeds, gnaws at roots, eats up roots. Adults consume plant and animal food. They willingly eat dragonflies, earthworms, beetle larvae, caterpillars.

Medvedka at night can fly over short distances, expanding its possessions. During drought, it migrates closer to water bodies.

The larva molt several times until it turns into an adult insect. The full development cycle takes 1-2 years, depending on the region of residence.

Agrotechnical methods of struggle

The fight against an uninvited "guest" should start with safer methods:

1. Periodically loosen the aisles, especially actively in May-June.

2. Plow the area deeply in the fall.

3. Bury liter jars, half filled with water, in the places where the pest moves.

4. Spread fresh manure in piles in early spring, as bait, with the subsequent destruction of eggs and adults.

5. Protection with plastic bottles, placing them around the roots of cultivated plants to a depth of 10 cm.

6. Autumn application of manure mixed with straw into pits 50 cm deep. At the beginning of winter, dig up and scatter the source material over the surface. Overwintering insects die.

7. Spraying the passages with a solution of laundry soap, moistening the soil to a depth of 10 cm.

8. Using baits from wet rye bread, sulfur from matches.

9. Burrowing balls consisting of vegetable oil, crushed eggshells.

10. A ditch is dug around the perimeter of the greenhouse and covered with sand mixed with kerosene.

11. Fill holes, passages with water. The pests that have come to the surface are destroyed.

Scaring away the bear

To scare away insects, chopped garlic, needles of coniferous trees or spoiled fish are laid out in pits during planting and around the perimeter of the beds. The aisles of vegetable crops are sown with marigolds. Fresh branches of alder or aspen are stuck into the ground at a short distance from each other.

Chemical methods of struggle

There are few chemical preparations against the bear, but they very well help to reduce the number of the pest. Granules of basudin, medvetox are laid out on the beds at a depth of 5 cm. Before planting vegetables, the well is treated with Prestige solution.

When using chemicals against the bear, take care of the safety of your and your pets. All of them are intestinal, so they can cause severe poisoning if swallowed.

Using all of the above measures to combat the bear, you can achieve significant results in removing it from the garden plot. The main thing in this matter is the systemic use of all methods and preparations. Clear your favorite vegetable garden from an insidious pest!