How to deal with fleas on cabbage

If holes with jagged edges appear on cabbage leaves, this is a clear sign of an attack by a cruciferous flea. The insect is often found in the beds of this vegetable crop, since it feeds on the sap of the plant. To save the harvest, there are many ways to destroy the pest - chemical, biological and folk remedies. For more information on how to process cabbage if black fleas eat it, read the article.

How and why fleas appear on cabbage

Tiny black beetles have been called flea beetles because of their jumping ability.... This method of movement allows them to quickly spread through cabbage plantings and pest in very large areas.

Insects prefer to feed on all plants from the cruciferous family: with the arrival of spring - young weeds, then move on to seedlings of vegetable crops.

Pests cause especially great damage to cabbage beds when in the barely born leaves of young seedlings, they eat out many rounded holes, damaging the growth points of seedlings.

Cruciferous fleas are common almost throughout Russia... Their mass invasion occurs at the end of April - beginning of May. Until this moment, leaf beetles are dormant in the upper soil layer or under fallen leaves.

As soon as the air warms up to + 15 ° C, they leave their shelters and attack the tender leaves of growing cabbage seedlings or seedlings. Actively and quickly multiplying, they are capable of destroying the entire future crop in a few days. Adults will not give up on the leaves of cabbage heads.

When inspecting damaged heads of cabbage, fleas are absolutely invisible, because they are arranged in the middle of the fork. Only by the ridged leaves and yellowness around the holes, gardeners guess about the invasion of the pest.

Young plants weaken, wither, then dry up even with abundant watering... Hence, on cabbage roots flea larvae have settled, which often damage the neck of the seedlings.

The reason for the massive appearance of pests in cabbage beds can be neglect of the simple agrotechnical methods:

1. Late sowing of seeds. The seedlings do not have time to get stronger by the time the pest is active.
2. A large number of weeds and cruciferous plants in the beds.
3. Plant residues after harvest, in which the beetles find winter refuge.
4. Dry and hot weather in which the cruciferous flea is actively growing and multiplying.
5. Drying out of the soil.
6. Ignoring deep soil digging in late autumn.

How to deal with a cruciferous flea

If the flea population is very large, there is a high risk that the entire crop will die.... In this case, chemical and biological preparations are used.

How to process

The main feature of biological agents is that they have a low level of toxicity. Such drugs do not harm humans and beneficial insects.

The most commonly used biological insecticide "Aktofit"... It is used taking into account the following recommendations:

1. Add 4 ml of the preparation to a bucket of water, stir thoroughly.
2. After preparation, the solution is used immediately, since after a few hours the effectiveness of the agent is significantly reduced.
3. Spraying is carried out in calm and dry weather at an air temperature of +16 to + 28 ° C. In cold or extremely hot weather, the effectiveness of the insecticide decreases.
4. The cabbage is sprayed again after 15-20 days.

About 12-20 hours after treatment, fleas become less mobile, and after 2 days they die.

Chemicals are used to quickly kill insects, but they harm all living organisms - humans, animals, pollinators, birds. When processing cabbage with such means, personal protective equipment must be used. Spraying is carried out in the evening - at this time the activity of flea beetles decreases.

When preparing solutions of biological and chemical insecticides, it is important adhere to the manufacturer's recommendations. Consider the most common chemical insecticides.

"Aktara"

it the agent has an intestinal action... The main active ingredient is thiamethoxam. The drug is diluted in slightly warm water at the rate of 3 g of the product per 1 bucket of water. The solution is used to spray plants or poured it under a bush. The leftovers are not stored, since the product loses its effectiveness after a few hours.

The drug begins to work in 30 minutes and protects cabbage from fleas for a month... Thiamethoxam is not addictive to pests and does not accumulate in the plant, but harms pollinating insects.

"Actellik"

Influences the nervous and digestive systems of insects... For spraying, 2 ml of the product is diluted in 2 liters of water. This volume is enough to destroy pests on the territory of 20 sq. m.

The drug is addictive to fleas, so it is not recommended to use it for several years in a row. Actellic is toxic not only to insects, but also to fish. It cannot be used near bodies of water.

"Decis"

Contact-intestinal preparation. His cannot be used during floweringas this insecticide is dangerous for bees. The advantage of the product is that it is not washed off with water and works even after precipitation.

Decis protects cabbage for 2 weeks. Plants are sprayed in the evening and in dry weather. The maximum number of treatments per season is 2.

"Imidalite"

Systemic insecticide. His used to prevent flea beetles.

"Imidalite" is used to treat cabbage seeds before planting. The product protects the plant for 2 months after planting.

"Karate"

Contact after an hour, the agent enters the flea's digestive system and disrupts its work... It affects both sexually mature individuals and larvae. During the season, cabbage is treated with this drug 2 times.

"Karate" cannot be used when plants are in bloom. The solution is prepared in 2 stages. First, the agent is diluted with a small amount of water, mixed. Then add more water at the rate of 1 ml of the drug per bucket.

"Tabazol"

Used as a deterrent... It consists of tobacco fly ash. In addition to repelling pests, it is used to plant feeding, since the preparation contains a lot of phosphorus, calcium, potassium and other important trace elements.

"Tabazol" is used dry. They pollinate cabbage in dry and calm weather. Powder consumption per 1 sq. m. - 15-20 g.

"Lightning"

Contact and intestinal agent. Has acaricidal effect, due to which it kills fleas and their larvae.

Most insects die within 30 minutes after processing cabbage. The protective effect lasts for a month. To prepare a solution in 10 liters of water, dilute 2 ml of the drug.

Other control measures

It will not work to collect pests with your hands, since they jump back at the slightest danger... People use this feature of fleas to catch with sticky traps.

The basic principle is that any flat surface is treated with sticky material, for example, double-sided tape, glue, honey, grease, etc.

How to deal with cabbage flea using traps:

1. A sticky composition is applied to a sheet of plywood or fiberboard. After that, they walk with him along the beds, touching the cabbage leaves with a trap.
2. A cone-shaped cap is made for each plant. From the inside, it is treated with a sticky substance. In hot weather, the seedlings are covered with caps for several hours.
3. Low and wide containers are placed between the rows, which are filled with water and 2 tbsp. l. kerosene or any vegetable oil. 2 people stretch a rope over the beds and guide it over the plants. Fleas caught in containers will not be able to get out of there.
4. To catch fleas, a rag soaked in automotive oil is often used. It is spread between the rows. The rag is turned over every 2 days.
5. Using a car vacuum cleaner will help to get rid of some of the pests. They just spend near the seedlings. Fleas jump and some of them fall into the vacuum cleaner.

Also gardeners often use folk remedies for pest control... During the formation of heads of cabbage is very vulnerable, therefore it is recommended to regularly dust it with ash. If the procedure is carried out after rain or watering, the ash will stick to the leaves for a while. Pests do not attack such plants.

Others recipes for fighting fleas on cabbage:

1. Powdered with red pepper.
2. Garlic, calendula, coriander or marigolds are planted between the rows.
3. Cut wormwood is laid out next to the plants.

How to process cabbage if deterrent methods are ineffective:

1. Rub 50 g of tar soap, dissolve in 10 l of water, add 3 tbsp. l. wood ash. This agent is sprayed on cabbage in the evening.
2. Also treated with a solution of vinegar (200 ml per 1 liter of water).
3. 300 g of dandelions are finely chopped and infused in 5 liters of warm water for several hours. After that, filter and add grated laundry soap to the infusion. Cabbage is sprayed with this tool once a week.

Prevention methods

Timely carried out preventive measures will help protect the cabbage crop from attacks of gluttonous pests:

1. Planting and breeding along the perimeter of the suburban area of ​​insecticidal plants (tobacco, pyrethrum, etc.).
2. Deep autumn digging of soil. After such a procedure, most of the insects hibernating in it die.
3. Keeping the soil moist. The cruciferous flea does not tolerate moisture and dampness.
4. Timely weeding.
5. Compliance with crop rotation... Cabbage is not planted close to related crops or grown in one location for several years. Plants that emit phytoncides are planted nearby: marigolds, calendula, nasturtium, garlic, onions, dill, coriander.
6. Careful collection of tops and dried weeds after harvest. Usually the residues are burned and thus return some of the nutrients to the soil.

Conclusion

Fighting cabbage fleas brings a positive result only if you start it immediately after the detection of pests.

It is best to use biological insecticides, but if the flea population is too large, chemicals are chosen because they work faster. It is also important to carry out preventive measures, for example, dig up a garden bed and water it with boiling water in the autumn, plant nearby plants that scare off flea beads.