May Khrushchev Leprosy

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

Catching the May beetle is one of the exciting activities in childhood. Having played enough with insects, we let them out of the matchboxes, not even suspecting that these cute and harmless-looking creatures could be voracious enemies of the garden and the forest. What is insidious about them?

On the mustache - plates

The May beetle or beetle (Melolontha hippocastani F.) belongs to the Lamellar family. Outwardly, it is well recognizable: an oblong brown-brown body (20-30mm) oval with elytra. In the south, their color is closer to black. On a small head with yellow-gray hairs, lamellar, shaggy antennae stand out. In females, they are half as much as in males.

Khrushchev lives wonderfully throughout Eurasia, but they are most often seen in central and northern Europe. There are two known varieties of them - western and eastern. The first of them is slightly lighter and differs in a flatter abdomen at the end. He lives in fields and forest edges. However, the eastern species has adapted better to the harsh conditions and is found even in the northern regions.

Females of both species, somewhere towards the end of June, lay up to 70 pieces of white, oval eggs, burying them in the ground to a depth of 30 cm. At 5-6 weeks, larvae are born, which pupate only for 3 years. Mature beetles emerge from pupae only for 4 years. Females of beetles mature 8-10 days later than males.

Thunderstorm of tree species

In the 15th century, the Swiss officially brought charges against the May beetle for malicious harm to the environment, tried and read out a sentence of exile. Later, the Lausanne Academy anathematized Khrushchev as "a stupid and unreasonable creature." It’s a pity that the insects didn’t come to their senses after that. Nowadays, they "hooligans" no less. The most active time for beetles is mid-May until the end of June, rare specimens fly until August. May beetle is an "evening" insect that goes for a walk after sunset and frolic until complete darkness. His main diet is young, recently blossoming leaves of trees (oak, birch, apple, plum, pear, poplar, pine, larch, etc.).

If you do not control the number of beetles, then they can cause serious harm not only to gardens and vegetable gardens, but also to vast forest park areas. Moreover, you need to be wary of both adult insects and their larvae, which greedily pounce on the roots of trees and berries. Young plants damaged by them quickly die, and mature ones are delayed in growth. The most insidious are the 2 and 3-year-old larvae of the beetle. By the way, they are great as bait for fishing.

All means are good in the fight

Rarely, but still there are years when there are practically no May beetles. This is often attributed to changes in climate and poor environmental conditions. However, even a few beetles (from 10-20 individuals) can cause serious problems for the growth of fruit and berry crops and tree species. That is why it is important to timely and seriously prepare for the fight against this insidious pest. Among the many recommendations, we offer the most proven ones:

- Before planting strawberries or strawberries, carefully examine the soil for the presence of larvae in it. A serious threat is evidenced by the presence of more than one individual per 1 sq. M.;

- Perhaps the most straightforward and effective method of dealing with beetles is to collect beetles and larvae by hand and then destroy them. Usually, in the early morning, sleeping insects are simply shaken off the trees.

- In the evening, light traps are good. They are built with a can, coated with molasses or other sticky liquid. A light source is placed in the middle of the container, attracting evening flyers.

- An excellent and natural solution is to build and hang birdhouses at the dacha, since May Khrushches are very popular with melodious starlings and rooks. Do not mind eating beetles and hedgehogs with moles. But it is important that they do not stay on your site to manage.

- Some gardeners claim that the white clover and lupine planted in the garden are able to "drive away" the May beetles.

If none of the above has helped, then ordinary chemistry will come to the rescue: at the end of flowering, trees can be treated with insecticidal agents such as Aktar, Zemlin, Antikhrushch. In the rows between the berries, 30-40 cm grooves are poured with malofos (75%), and the plants themselves are sprayed with ammonia (half tablespoons per 10 liters of water). Having dug up the ground before winter, it is useful to water it with whiteness. It is important to remember that chemistry does not tolerate brute force, otherwise there will not be only a beetle, but also a harvest …