2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
The winter moth multiplies in the forest-steppe and woodlands. It attacks literally all fruit crops, as well as willow, Norway maple and ash. In addition, this pest sometimes attacks elm, birch, oak, hornbeam and bird cherry. Caterpillars of winter moths mercilessly gnaw flowers and ovaries with buds and devour the leaves, braiding them with cobwebs. If you do not start the fight with these dexterous villains in time, the harvest harvested from fruit trees is unlikely to please
Meet the pest
The winter moth is a rather amusing butterfly, characterized by pronounced sexual dimorphism. The wingspan of males reaches 20 - 25 mm. Their forewings are brownish-grayish with transverse wavy dark lines. And the hind wings of males are monochromatic and lighter.
Females are characterized by a brownish-grayish color and are endowed with long antennae and legs. The length of their bodies is about 8-10 mm. In addition, all females have short outgrowths (2-3 mm each) reaching the first segments of the abdomen. And the slightly inflated abdomens of the pests are dotted with small black dots.
The oval eggs of winter moths reach about 0.8 mm in size, and their color can be either yellowish-greenish, or yellowish-orange, or just orange.
Yellow-green caterpillars grow in length from 25 to 28 mm. Longitudinal brownish stripes run along their backs, and three white stripes can be seen on the sides of the caterpillar bodies. Each individual is endowed with a light brownish head, as well as two pairs of abdominal and three pairs of thoracic legs. The size of the light brown pupae is 12-13 mm, and small forked spines can be seen at the tips of their abdomens.
Eggs of winter moths overwinter at the bases of the buds on the shoots. The development of harmful embryos that began in the fall continues into the spring. It is noteworthy that those embryos that have not been exposed to temperatures below zero degrees are unable to complete their development.
The revival of caterpillars starts approximately ten to twelve days before the apple trees begin to bloom, and then from twenty-two to twenty-eight days they feed on generative organs and leaves. Individuals who have finished eating go down to the ground on thin spiderweb threads, after which they go five to ten centimeters deep into the ground, where they subsequently pupate in tiny earthen cradles. Until autumn, the pupae are in a state of diapause, and with the onset of September-October, butterflies begin to appear. The most favorable temperature for their life is considered to be in the range from five to eleven degrees. In principle, they are quite resistant to a temporary drop in temperatures to minus fifteen degrees.
Fertilized females move to trees and lay eggs on young shoots (either one at a time or in small groups). The total fertility of winter moths ranges from two hundred and fifty to three hundred eggs. One-year generation is characteristic of these pests.
How to fight
Before the butterflies begin to emerge, it is recommended to carry out deep plowing of the soil in the fall. Upon completion of the development of caterpillars, it is recommended to cultivate in the aisles, as well as to loosen the soil in the near-trunk circles.
If for every square meter of tree branches there are more than two to five eggs of winter moths, in early spring, before budding begins, they are sprayed with pesticides. It is important that the air temperature does not drop below four degrees. And if during the period of mass revival of caterpillars their density will be from four to nine individuals per square meter of branches, it is recommended to treat the trees with biological products or insecticides.
The number of winter moths also helps to limit the temperature maximum. It is noteworthy that the temperature optimum for pupae is in the range of up to eighteen degrees, and for caterpillars - in the range of fourteen to eighteen degrees. If the temperature exceeds these values, the mass death of gluttonous parasites begins. And eggs perish in winter if the temperature drops to minus thirty-five or to minus forty degrees.
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