How to deal with caterpillars on tomatoes
Caterpillars on tomatoes eat the leaves, depriving the fruit of the necessary shade. They are also able to eat eggplants, bell peppers, cabbage of various varieties and crops that grow nearby. Consider how to get rid of caterpillars on tomatoes and what drugs are effective in combating them.
Caterpillar control methods on tomatoes
Preventing the appearance of caterpillars on tomatoes
Usually, a cotton scoop appears on tomatoes in a greenhouse. It damages various agricultural crops: corn, tomatoes, zucchini, eggplants, peppers. The cotton scoop butterfly leads a hidden lifestyle, appears at dusk. In appearance it resembles a large moth with a wingspan of up to 3 cm. The caterpillars of the cotton moth can have different colors - brownish-green, dirty purple, etc. and have sizes up to 4-5 cm. If a cotton scoop appears in the greenhouse, you should immediately begin to fight it. In the greenhouse, the insect appears through the window. To prevent this from happening, mosquito nets are installed on the doors and vents. This control method helps prevent caterpillars from growing on tomatoes in the greenhouse.
Precautions to help avoid pests:
- getting rid of weeds;
- soil treatment with potassium permanganate solution before planting tomatoes;
- checking the greenhouse for pests, treating seedlings with chemicals and from time to time;
- spraying at least once a week so that new eggs do not appear in case of infection;
- spraying with biological substances;
- getting rid of all residues of vegetation after picking tomatoes;
- replacement of the topsoil by 15 cm at the end of the season (moth larvae hibernate in the soil).
Chemicals for processing tomatoes
The most effective method of controlling caterpillars on tomatoes in a greenhouse is to spray plants with chemicals. These substances are removed from the fruit for a month.
Chemicals to help control insects
To fight the caterpillar with pesticides, you should be guided by the instructions for this substance, since an excessive amount of them in tomatoes can cause serious poisoning. Let's consider the most effective tools:
- Inta-Vir is a drug that helps fight the pest at any stage of its development.
- Decis protects tomatoes in the greenhouse for a couple of weeks and acts very quickly.
- "Avant" is a rain-resistant agent that even affects the eggs of parasites.
Among other effective poisons that help fight caterpillars on tomatoes, there are Aktara, Iskra, Mospilan, and Admiral. Over time, the caterpillar, which is on tomatoes treated with these pesticides, develops immunity. After this, the drug should be changed.
Tatiana Orlova (Candidate of Agricultural Sciences):
In order not to overlook the appearance of pest butterflies, as well as to catch them, you can use glue traps. All insects are attracted by the yellow color. Gardening stores currently sell these yellow glue traps.You can make them yourself. A sheet of yellow paper is glued onto the cardboard, which is coated with non-drying glue. Several of these traps are hung in the greenhouse. The appearance of butterflies adhering to the traps signals that it is necessary to spray the tomatoes in the greenhouse with insecticide preparations.
Folk ways to get rid of the scoop
If the caterpillars eat tomatoes, but there is no finance for the purchase of chemicals, you can use folk methods of struggle. Among them are called:
- soap solution;
- wormwood decoction;
- decoction of tobacco dust;
- lather;
- very cold water, etc.
Caterpillars on tomatoes in a greenhouse do not like the garlic smell, so all sprouts of seedlings must be treated with an infusion with the addition of garlic. To prepare it, take a bunch of garlic arrows and mix with boiling water in a 3-liter container. All this should be insisted for 3 days.
You can use a decoction of wormwood. About half a bucket of water is filled with wormwood and filled with water. It is necessary to boil the mixture for at least 30 minutes, after which it is used to spray tomatoes.
A bar of soap can be added to any of these solutions. In the greenhouse, the tomato caterpillar is afraid of the smell of this detergent.
You should also water the insects with cold water. The procedure is carried out in the early morning.
Tatiana Orlova (Candidate of Agricultural Sciences):
Folk remedies can be used not when the caterpillars appeared, but when the butterflies of these pests flew. Tinctures with pungent odors are used to disorient insects. they find food sources by smell.
Conclusion
To get rid of caterpillars on tomatoes in greenhouses, it is important to detect the problem in a timely manner, but the best thing is to prevent the pest from appearing in the garden.
