It is unlikely that there is a pest that can reduce potato yields more than the Colorado potato beetle.
This leaf-eating insect has virtually no enemies in nature, so the fight against it falls entirely on the shoulders of the owners of summer cottages.
Anastasia Kovrizhnykh , an expert of the online publication "BelNovosti", an agronomist and landscape designer, advised how to fight the Colorado potato beetle.
Gardeners have three main methods of protection at their disposal: chemical, biological and agrotechnical.
The chemical method is based on the use of inorganic compounds that are toxic to the beetle, which are also dangerous to humans to one degree or another, which is important to remember during processing.
In addition, it is necessary to strictly adhere to the dosage. If it is less than recommended, the drug will not work effectively, the pest will acquire immunity, and further use of the chemical will be useless.
It is also necessary to take into account that the use of a chemical method after the onset of the tuber formation phase is highly undesirable, since the pesticide, having been absorbed through the pores in the leaves, can pass into the tubers and make them potentially dangerous to our health.
The biological method also involves treating potatoes with preparations. But they are not based on "chemistry", but on bacteria that can have a negative effect on the beetle.
The beetle becomes lethargic, loses the ability to reproduce and feed, and soon dies.
The undeniable advantages of biological preparations include their safety, their inability to harm the environment, humans, or the harvested crop, which is guaranteed not to contain even traces of pesticides.
The agrotechnical method includes deep autumn digging, the use of healthy planting material, the cultivation of varieties resistant to the Colorado potato beetle, crop rotation on the site, timely destruction of weeds, etc. In fact, the method is a good addition to the two described above.
To be fair, it should be noted that there are also methods that are, for the most part, completely useless.
In particular, manual collection can be called a waste of time and effort. It is used by many landowners, hoping to reduce the number of insects on potato plantations.
This will not happen, since it is known that the beetle can fly well, thanks to which new leaf beetles will immediately arrive in place of the collected ones.
In addition, the method is extremely tedious and can only be recommended, but only with major reservations, if the planting consists of a couple of small beds.
If two or three hundred square meters are allocated for the crop, the collection will be absolutely useless from all points of view.
There is another misconception that the Colorado potato beetle can be exterminated with the help of certain birds.
Indeed, pheasants, turkeys and guinea fowl can eat the pest, but they are not able to fully contain its spread and protect the crop.
Some people place repellent plants, such as garlic, among the potatoes in the hope that its smell will repel the insect.
This is a misconception. The uninvited guest from the distant state of Colorado will not be afraid of the garlic smell.
Even dusting the tops with wood ash will not stop it. Ash control is ineffective at least because the powder will not stay on the leaf blades for long. It will either be blown away by a light breeze or washed away by a light rain in a short time.
Sometimes they try to destroy the leaf beetle by spraying the tops with diluted vinegar.
It is quite possible that at first the sharp smell will scare the beetle, but after the liquid dries, it will start eating the leaves again with no less enthusiasm. In addition, vinegar can easily damage the leaves and cause considerable additional harm to the potato.
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Expert: Anastasia Kovrizhnykh
