Leaf roll on apple tree

The apple harvest largely depends on how well you care for the tree, whether you have chosen the right place for planting, from regularly applied fertilizers and watering. But sometimes, even with perfect care and favorable weather conditions, circumstances may arise due to which your crop will be threatened, we are talking about an invasion of pests. One of the most dangerous insects that damages buds, fruits and apples is the leafworm. It is quite simple to recognize it on an apple tree, it is not for nothing that it bears such a name - the larvae of this insect wrap the leaves in tubes, which is why they are called leaf rollers. It is very important to identify the appearance of pests in time and start fighting them, then there is a chance to save both the apple tree foliage and the harvest. In this article, we will talk about how to recognize a leaf roll, how to deal with it and what measures to take to prevent the spread of such a pest as a leaf roll on an apple tree.

Leaf roll on an apple tree: photo

Leaf roll on an apple tree: a description of the pest

A leafworm is a small butterfly with a well-fed fluffy body and wings, a span of no more than 25 mm. On closer inspection, butterflies can even be called beautiful - the color of the wings, depending on the variety, can be gray or beige-brown, on the wings you can see stripes or an ornament of a contrasting color. By folding its wings, the butterfly completely covers the body, this helps them to hide in a shelter during the day, merging with the terrain, these insects prefer to be nocturnal.

As is the case with most other pests, the biggest damage to the plant is caused by larvae - caterpillars of yellow, brown or green color with a black or brown head. They eat buds, young foliage, and some species eat fruits with appetite. The life cycles of different types of leaf rollers differ somewhat in the wintering places, the timing of the appearance of caterpillars and the departure of butterflies, apple trees are most often affected by one of five species: "Rosanny", "Fruit", "Currant", "Omnivorous", "Kidney twirl".

Both insect eggs, laid in autumn, and caterpillars in cocoons, hiding in cracks in the bark, rolled dry leaves, can winter on an apple tree. In the spring, the caterpillars come out of hibernation just at the time when the buds of the apple tree swell before flowering. Then, around mid-June, the caterpillars pupate in the damaged leaves and after a couple of weeks, butterflies appear from there, capable of laying several batches of eggs within thirty days. After that, after 2 weeks, young caterpillars emerge from the egg, which feed on foliage, but since apples are already beginning to grow, they can get to them.

It turns out that the leafworm on the apple tree harms it throughout the entire growing season:

• the first generation of caterpillars damages the buds, thus reducing the number of possible ovaries.
• after flowering, insects begin to move to the tops of young twigs and feed or, which significantly delays the growth of the tree.
• the next generation of caterpillars eats and damages not only leaves but also apples.
• if you do not fight the leafworm in a timely manner, then it quickly spreads and passes to neighboring fruit bushes and trees.

Leaf roll on an apple tree: photo

Leaf roll on an apple tree: how to deal with chemicals?

It is necessary to resort to chemical treatment from a leafworm on an apple tree only if you find more than 5-7 caterpillars on one apple branch, otherwise you can try to cope with the pest using mechanical methods or using folk recipes. But if insects are spreading, and their number is rapidly increasing, then the use of insecticides cannot be avoided. The leafworm belongs to lepidopteran insects, the following drugs are especially effective against it:

• BUTguy... The drug has an effect on caterpillars at any age, so even egg clutches can be processed. Processing must be carried out twice with an interval of two weeks. The advantage of the drug is that it is not washed off by rains.
• Decis Pro... It is one of the fastest-acting drugs, and it also lacks phytotoxicity.
• Inta-Vir. The drug is not used as a prophylactic agent; spraying should be carried out approximately 25-30 days before the upcoming harvest. This agent acts on caterpillars and scares away butterflies from the apple tree.
• Calypso... After treatment with the drug, the protective effect lasts about a month. The undoubted advantages can be called the fact that the pests do not get used to it, which means that repeated processing can be carried out. In addition, this agent is low-toxic for important insects (bees, bumblebees, etc.).
• Kinmix... This drug is able to stay on the leaves for a long time after application, and its effect on pests is noticeable within an hour.

Before finally deciding on a preparation for treating the garden, you need to carefully study all the instructions, take into account the number of pests, the growing season of apple trees, as well as climatic conditions. And of course, when using the drug, you must strictly follow the instructions, observing the dosage and using personal protective equipment.

Leaf roll on an apple tree: photo

When to spray apple trees?

It is very important to know at what time the insecticide treatment should be carried out in order to minimize the risk of drug exposure to the future crop.

Examine the trees in the spring before they start to wake up and bud open. If you find the presence of pests (egg clutches), then the first treatment from a leaf roller on an apple tree should be carried out immediately, as soon as the apple tree buds turn pink.

If you notice light cocoons of caterpillars, then spraying the apple tree will need to be carried out at the moment when the "green cone phase" begins. This period is passing rapidly: the bud has burst and released the tip of the leaf - it is at this moment that the treatment must be carried out. If you have time, you will be able to destroy all the pests, which will allow the apple tree to bloom and set fruits. By this time, new butterflies may appear, so you should regularly inspect the trees so as not to miss the appearance of pests.

Never spray with insecticides during the flowering period, as all of these preparations pose a danger to beneficial insects. Spraying should always be carried out in cloudy, dry and calm weather.

Leaf roll on an apple tree: photo

Leaf roll on an apple tree: how to deal with folk methods

You can use the means prepared according to folk recipes that have been tested empirically. They will be effective if the area of ​​distribution of pests is not too large. But the truth is, you can use such means in any growing season, since the solutions do not contain chemicals and do not pose a danger to the future harvest.

In order to scare away butterflies, a decoction of wormwood, potato and tomato tops is prepared. To do this, 1/3 of a bucket of chopped plant materials must be poured with water, brought to a boil and boiled for 30 minutes. Then cool for several hours, strain and add liquid to a bucket full. Add 1⁄2 cup of tar or laundry soap and sprinkle on the apple tree.

And to combat the caterpillars, another solution is prepared. 0.5 kg of tobacco dust must be poured with ten liters of boiling water and insisted for three days. Then strain and dilute in half with water, add a little soap and spray on the affected tree.

Such decoctions and infusions cannot be stored, they should be used immediately after preparation.

Leaf roll on an apple tree: photo

Prevention and mechanical methods of struggle against leafworms on an apple tree

Mechanical control measures against leaf rollers on an apple tree can be applied if the affected area is small. In this case, the twisted leaves must be very carefully cut off, making sure that the caterpillars do not slip out of them, and burned. In no case should you throw away such plant waste, since all these caterpillars will then fly to your site in butterflies.

Hang feeders on the trees to attract birds to your garden to help you fight insects. The main thing is not to put a lot of food in the feeders so that the birds look for pests and feed on them.

At night, you can hang bait-traps on the apple trees. To do this, attach a plastic bottle cut in half to the apple tree trunk at a height of one and a half meters and pour sweet liquid (tea, water and honey, kvass or compote) into it. In the morning, remove the trap along with the pests that have got into it, and hang it up again in the evening.

If you carefully examine the tree, you can find butterflies that rest in the daytime and, thanks to their color, are perfectly camouflaged. Collect them and destroy them.

Attach adhesive belts to the trunk of the apple tree from the leaf roll. As insects stick, the belt needs to be updated.

In winter, do not remove the feeders while still attracting birds. The best helpers in the fight against the leafworm will be tits, which find and peck caterpillars from cracks in the branches and in the trunk.

As a preventive measure against the appearance of pests, trees must be carefully looked after. Since it is known that pests often hide in plant debris, fallen leaves and apples must be removed from under the tree in a timely manner, sanitary pruning must be carried out regularly, the tree trunk must be weeded and the soil must be loosened.

In addition to sanitary, attention must be paid to formative pruning, since the dense crown does not contribute to good fruiting and is a favorable environment for the spread of pests.

In the fall, brush the trunk and branches of the apple tree with a stiff brush. This will help remove moss from the apple tree, flaking pieces of bark, and with them most of the clutches of eggs and caterpillar cocoons. And also in the autumn, process apple trees with lime.

Processing from a leaf roller on an apple tree: photo

Conclusion

When leaf rollers appear on an apple tree, it is always unpleasant. But if you take timely measures, you can cope with them. Regularly inspecting trees, pay special attention to young twigs, since pests begin to eat the youngest and most juicy greens in the first place. If you notice a folded leaf, then it must be carefully torn off and burned.

If you have to use chemicals to combat the leafworm on an apple tree, then remember that during the flowering period and a month before harvesting, they cannot be used categorically, in this case traces of processing can be found in the fruits, and all these drugs are toxic to humans.

If the summer is warm, and precipitation falls often, then it is worth inspecting the apple trees from the leaf roll as often as possible - it is in such weather that the leaf roll is activated and spreads especially quickly.

Leaf roll on an apple tree: video about a pest