2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
The bristle-footed sage moth is characterized by a rather solid habitat and damages clary sage, as well as the Caucasian catnip, mint, lavender and some other essential oil crops. Caterpillars of bristle-footed sage moths are especially harmful, eating the pedicels, eating away flower ovaries and damaging the leaves quite badly. And they usually eat growing crops from top to bottom. In order not to lose a significant part of cultivated crops, it is extremely important to make every effort to get rid of these gluttonous parasites
Meet the pest
The Bristly Sage Moth is a very cute butterfly with a wingspan of 30 to 40 mm. Its front wings are painted in grayish-yellow tones and are equipped with a dark transverse band, which is sometimes difficult to notice. Gray kidney-shaped spots on the wings are equipped with black edges, and dark stripes stretch from these spots to the front edges of the wings. The hind wings of voracious pests are light-colored, with dark spots in the center, and brownish-gray bands can be seen at their outer edges.
The size of the eggs of bristle-legged sage moths reaches 0.5 - 0.6 mm. Initially, eggs are colored in light yellow tones, and after some time they acquire a greenish tint. Dark green caterpillars, growing up to 50 mm in length, are endowed with three gray stripes running along their backs, and on the sides of their bodies there are clearly visible oblong lines. The entire body of voracious caterpillars is covered with light sparse bristles, located on tiny tubercles. And the dolls of these pretty scoundrels are usually light gray.
Wintering of harmful parasites takes place in the surface soil layer in the pupal stage. The emergence of the first butterflies starts in April, and their mass appearance falls on the period from May to early July. All butterflies need additional nutrition on flowers of weeds and cultivated plants.
Female pests, the total fertility of which often reaches six hundred eggs, lay eggs one at a time on sage leaves and buds. The food for the revived caterpillars is mainly the reproductive organs of growing crops - they without hesitation gnaw through the petiole leaves covering the buds, and also feast on flowers, flower twigs and bracts. As soon as the inflorescences are seriously damaged, the caterpillars, in search of food, begin to go down to the young apical leaves, in which, in a fairly short time, they eat out uneven and rather large holes. Sometimes caterpillars eat such leaves entirely, without touching the larger lower leaves.
The average lifespan of each caterpillar is three to four weeks. They develop at five instars, undergoing four molts during this period. Pupation of caterpillars in most cases takes place in sage aisles, as well as in sunny areas in the soil (at a depth of two to ten centimeters).
In southern Russia, bristly-legged sage moths develop in three generations, with the first being considered to be the most numerous.
How to fight
During the period of mass pupation of harmful caterpillars, it is recommended to cultivate sage aisles. And when the grass is harvested, it is advisable to carry out deep autumn plowing.
It is important to try to keep sage plantings free of weeds. Treatments with microbiological preparations or insecticides are usually started when there is a real threat of serious damage (from 40% to 60% of the total phytomass).
Among the natural enemies of bristly-legged sage moths are tahini flies and ichneumon flies. And eggs of harmful parasites are often affected by trichograms.
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