How to deal with carrot fly folk remedies

You always want carrots to grow even, beautiful and, most importantly, with excellent taste. But often harmful insects appear on carrot beds, which cause significant damage to your crop. So, one of the most dangerous pests (along with the carrot leaf beet) of carrots is the carrot fly.

Next, let's talk in more detail about what kind of pest it is, what it looks like, what are the signs of damage to carrots, and also how to process the plantings in order to get rid of the carrot fly.

Description of the pest and the harm it causes

Carrot flies belong to the Psilidae family. They have a black body and white fluff. The transparent wings are distinguished by the presence of yellowish veins. The legs and tentacles are yellow in color. The insect looks unattractive, so it is easy to find it in the garden. The larvae of the parasite are round and up to 5 mm long.

The summer period begins in early spring, immediately after the snow melts. At this time, the insect lays eggs, choosing for this the beds where the carrots are planted. The larvae penetrate the root system, where they grow and pupate. Thus, at the end of June, the second generation of the carrot fly appears.

The parasite causes significant damage to carrots planted in the garden beds. The larvae gnaw the vegetable almost to the middle. Therefore, the harm is caused not by the direct fly, but by the larvae.

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Stanislav Pavlovich

Gardener with 17 years of experience and our expert

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Attention! To effectively fight the parasite, the period of activity of the carrot fly is taken into account.

Life cycle

In development, this type of fly goes through a full cycle. Adults lay eggs twice a season. The first year starts in May and ends with the laying of eggs (about 100 pieces) in the tops of root crops protruding above the soil. In the absence of carrots, in the garden, the fly will lay eggs in turnips, celery, dill root.

The eggs are small (0.6 millimeters), from which larvae appear after 10-14 days. It is the larvae that are the pests of root crops. They immediately begin to feed, gnawing through the passages in the carrot pulp. The larvae are 6-7 millimeters in size, similar to brown worms.

Two stages take place, taking a total of 60-75 days. After that, they crawl into the soil and pupate. New flies fly out in July-August. Pupae successfully winter in the ground, with the onset of spring they continue the cycle of transformations, give life to new flies.

Signs of an insect

Determining the presence of a carrot fly in the beds is quite simple. For this, the following characteristics are taken into account:

• small passages appear on the tops of vegetables;
• the tops initially darken and turn red, after which they turn yellow and dry quickly;
• the upper part of the root, protruding from the ground, acquires a purple tint;
• the surface of the vegetables becomes bumpy;
• if you pull out one carrot, then moves with a dark shade are easily detected;
• small depressions and cracks appear on the surfaces of vegetables, made by the larvae before the fly flies;
• root vegetables affected by the parasite become bitter and also have an unpleasant odor.

Expert opinion

Stanislav Pavlovich

Gardener with 17 years of experience and our expert

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Attention! Since the vegetable is damaged by the larvae, microbes enter the carrots through the holes they make, leading to rotting of the root crop, so it is stored for a limited period of time.

Garden enemy

If the carrot tops turned purple-red, soon turned yellow and dried up, it means that a small worm could appear in the soil - a carrot fly larva. Eating a root crop, it makes passages in it, along which rot forms. As a result, the fruit becomes unusable.

Signs of a fly

It is difficult to visually detect this insect due to its small size.

An enlarged carrot fly in the photo. Its natural dimensions are 4.5-5 mm. She has a black and shiny abdomen and scutellum, a brown head, yellowish limbs, transparent wings.

The appearance of cabbage butterflies is a harbinger of the presence of flies in the beds.

Yellowed tops - signals the presence of a pest in the beds

The most active period of time when eggs are laid on a garden crop coincides with the 25-30th day after its germination. In other words, at the end of May.

As soon as plants with dried or red-violet tops, roots with bumpy formations began to be found, it means that these pests appeared.

Favorable conditions

Comfortable habitats for this insect are excessively moist soil with darkened areas. Frequent rainfall favors an increase in population size.

Lifestyle

Having chosen a suitable territory, the female starts laying eggs on the root collar of the plant, closer to the ground.

With regular and sufficient watering and warm days, eggs develop smoothly. After a week's period, larvae hatch from the eggs. After settling in fruits, they live in them for about three weeks and gain weight.

Then they crawl out into the soil and pupate. They are in the pupa stage until the next season. In the spring, when the ground warms up enough, the process is repeated.

The pest is capable of giving several generations per year

Some of the larvae that did not have time to move to the pupal stage enter the cellars with root crops and continue to exist and feed on their juice perfectly.

Several generations of an insect appear in one season.

If a dry summer is issued, then this can provoke the death of up to 50% of the eggs.

The causes of the pest

The carrot fly prefers a warm and humid place in which it lays its larvae. Therefore, a pest appears in the garden for the following reasons:

• excessive watering of the root crop or frequent rains;
• lack of sunny color, which is associated with the wrong choice of a place for planting;
• thickened plantings, since the optimal distance between individual root crops is not maintained.

The pest enters the garden in search of food and a place to lay eggs. Due to the presence of several generations of flies, carrots are negatively affected several times per season. Therefore, before planting a root crop, the correct choice of a place in the garden is assessed.

The best ways to destroy

The carrot fly and the fight against it is a topic that is relevant for a large number of gardeners. The most effective method is prevention, therefore, for the beds, you should choose specially bred varieties that are resistant to the pest (among them "Perfection", "Losinoostrovskaya 13", "Kalgeri F1", "Vitamin 5", "Incomparable"). It is also customary to highlight the following preventive measures:

• When planting, use bright, sun-drenched areas.
• Avoid waterlogging of the soil.
• Thinning plantings. This will help protect crops from pests.
• Pre-treat the seeds with specialized preparations: "Fitocid-R", "Azotofit".
• In the fall, after harvesting, the beds should be properly dug up (to a depth of more than 30 cm), this will allow to destroy the larvae that are prepared for wintering.

Crop rotation rules will also be useful for those who are fighting carrot flies in the garden: after root crops, onions, tomatoes, garlic should be grown on the site. If preventive measures do not help, you will have to use folk remedies or insecticides. In the latter case, it is necessary to strictly adhere to the dosage indicated in the instructions.

The easiest ways

The destruction of the pest should be started using folk methods, since they are safe, and with timely use they will be very effective. For example, you can sprinkle a special "flour" on the tops of carrots - a mixture of red and black peppers, tobacco dust and dry mustard. This composition is very unpleasant for insects.

In addition, you can highlight the following useful recipes:

• For 10 liters of water, take 4 kg of tomato tops, boil the resulting preparation for 5 hours, then cool, add liquid laundry soap (about 50 ml), then pour into three containers, each used for spraying the beds.
• Collect fresh wormwood herb in a bucket and pour boiling water over it, leave for an hour and let cool. After that, divide the resulting liquid into three equal parts, each of which is filled with 8 liters of water. It turned out to be a simple tool with which the garden is watered. The treatment should be repeated every 30 days.
• Onion infusion. Pour 150 g of finely chopped onions with a liter of boiling water, cover the container and let it brew for 24 hours. The resulting product is further diluted in 5 liters of water, 5 tablespoons of liquid soap must be added to it and used to spray the plants.
• Soapy-pepper water: 1 tbsp is taken for 10 liters of liquid. l. black pepper and 1 tsp. grated or liquid soap. The resulting product is poured over the beds and aisles.

Chemical industry products

If folk recipes turned out to be unproductive, and the number of small insects has not decreased, you should turn to special drugs that will help you quickly solve the problem. First of all, this is the "Northwind" product, which should be treated every month during the season. It is necessary to prepare a solution: for 2 liters of water, use 0.4 liters of "Borea", per sq. m of soil, apply 20 ml of solution.

There are also the following effective drugs:

• "Karate Zeon", a spray agent, take 50 g of the agent for 10 liters of water.
• "Tsipi" is suitable for weekly processing, 0.5 l is diluted in 10 liters of liquid per sq. meter is taken 20 ml of solution.
• "Vantex". For 10 liters of water, 0.1 liters of the product is taken, used during the period of active growth every 10 days. Per sq. m, 0.2 l of solution is used.
• "Inta-Vir" is convenient in tablet form, 1 tablet is lost in 10 liters of water, processing is carried out every 20 days, the permissible rate is 100 ml per sq. meter.

When using any drug, it is very important to observe the dosage indicated on the package. It is worth noting that chemical agents are the last way to destroy the pest, if possible, it is better to do without them.

You can fight carrot flies in the fall by carefully digging up the beds. This will help the larvae to be on the surface and not survive the winter.

It is important to pay attention to the storage of the crop: roots should be kept in places protected from excessive moisture. Before sending them for storage, you should carefully examine each carrot and ruthlessly discard those vegetables on which there is a network of channels and passages - they are affected by a pest and are not suitable for use in food or sale. Such a measure will help save most of the crop.

Such a measure will help save most of the crop.

Carrot fly control methods

Getting rid of an unpleasant parasite is quite difficult.Some gardeners are forced to use preventive methods every year, although they have to use toxic agents that negatively affect the composition of the carrot.

See also How to properly thin carrots with your own hands

Attention! Failures associated with the elimination of carrot flies are associated with the wrong time for planting and processing the vegetable, as well as with the purchase of low-quality products.

Agrotechnical, chemical and folk methods are used to fight. It is advisable to focus on an integrated approach. Safe folk methods are used as a prophylaxis, and in the presence of a large number of larvae, effective chemical compositions are selected.

Chemicals

They are used for severe root infections. It is necessary to spray the plants with preparations containing diazinon. This active ingredient blocks the transmission of nerve impulses, which leads to disruption of the functioning of the nervous system of parasites. The paralyzed carrot fly quickly dies without having time to lay eggs, and even its larvae are harmed.

Vegetable growers can spray their beds with the following formulations:

• "Mukhoed". Allows you to get rid of various insects and their larvae in the ground. To do this, it is enough just to water the soil with the composition. Pests die literally 3 days after treatment. The product does not accumulate in the ground and is safe for the root crop.
• "Provotox". Acts on the intestines of parasites, hindering the production of enzymes necessary for the nervous system. After eating the granules, the larvae die, which leads to a drop in the number of insects.
• Aktara. The product is based on thiamethoxam. It is sold in the form of granules, soluble in water, and also in the form of a suspension. This versatile tool allows you to fight not only carrot flies, but also other pests in the soil.
• Fitoverm. The biological product easily destroys pests. The product is diluted with water, after which the soil is sprayed with it. It allows you to get rid of not only insects, but also larvae.

Treatment is recommended in the morning and evening in dry and calm weather. The composition is prepared based on the manufacturer's instructions. Funds are sprayed on greens and soil next to the root crop.

Expert opinion

Stanislav Pavlovich

Gardener with 17 years of experience and our expert

Ask a Question

Attention! If there is a need for reprocessing, then it is performed in a week.

Folk remedies

In case of minor lesions of the root crop, it is advisable to use folk methods. They are mainly used to prevent the appearance of the parasite. These methods are effective and safe for vegetables. They allow you to save carrots without the use of chemicals that accumulate in the root crop. Vegetable processing is carried out in different ways:

1. Tobacco dust. It is used during the period when insects lay their eggs. The dust is often replaced with mustard powder.
2. Wormwood tincture. To prepare it, 300 g of fresh grass is poured with hot water. Watering is performed after the solution has cooled.
3. Tincture of garlic or onion. To create a solution, a 2-liter container is used, which is filled with warm water. 200 g of chopped garlic or onion is dipped into the water. In this state, the solution is left for a day, after which it is filtered and mixed with 8 liters of water. Next, you just need to process the carrots with the resulting infusion.
4. Ammonia. 2 ml of alcohol is mixed with 12 liters of water, after which the tops are treated with this solution. The second procedure is performed after 2 weeks.
5. Kerosene. It is used in small quantities for severe infection so as not to burn crops.
6. Birch tar. To create a solution, 1 tbsp is mixed. l. tar with 10 liters of water and 20 g of grated soap.The resulting mixture is watered in June and August.

See also Is it possible to plant carrots in July and June

With the help of such simple methods, it is possible to destroy insects and larvae.

Planting green manure

In order not to fight the carrot fly larvae, you can simply protect the carrot from the negative effects of parasites. To do this, in the place where the root crops will grow, various green manures are planted for the winter. They improve soil fertility, protect from frost, prevent weed growth, retain water in the ground, nourish useful plants, and also reduce the likelihood of carrots being damaged by parasites.

Siderata are planted in spring, and the soil is preliminarily plowed and watered to prevent overdrying of the top layer. To protect carrots from parasites, siderates are selected:

• oil radish suitable for heavy soils and economical in consumption;
• rapeseed is picky about the soil, used for chernozem and medium loamy soil;
• mustard is planted in mid-September, and it quickly grows foliage and stands up to frost, and also protects the earth from nitrogen loss;
• rape is undemanding to the ground, and also withstands temperature extremes.

This easy method helps protect root vegetables from the effects of carrot flies.

General information

The carrot fly is a dipteran insect that settles in the fields and destroys a huge number of root crops. In addition, she lays the larvae, which continue the activities of their parents and do not leave the carrots a single chance for full ripening.

Insect appearance

This representative of the fauna belongs to small insects. Its body length rarely exceeds 5 mm. Long wings help the fly travel long distances in search of food. Individuals are completely transparent or can be colored yellow or brown.

The pest has a round red-yellow head with a pair of large brown eyes. In the lower part of the body of the fly, 3 pairs of small yellow legs can be distinguished. Their entire surface is covered with fine and sensitive bristles.

The size of the carrot fly is slightly smaller than the house fly and has a different color.

The larva of the dipteran fly deserves special attention. It grows up to 7 mm, which exceeds the size of adults. The larva is a light yellow legless caterpillar that mercilessly eats carrot tops. The slightly rounded head has a mouth with powerful jaws. On the opposite side of the larva, you can see 2 small black processes with spiracles.

Life cycle

Before dealing with a carrot fly in the garden, it is necessary to study the features of its behavior and reproduction. With this information, you can choose more effective methods of dealing with the pest.

This video tells about ways to deal with carrot fly:

The life cycle of an insect consists of several stages:

1. The fly spends the winter, hiding from the cold in the roots remaining in the field, or simply burrowing into the soil. As soon as the air temperature settles within + 15 ... 17 ° С, the insect flies out of the shelter and starts looking for food.
2. In mid-May and early June, the mating and egg-laying period begins. During this time, the female is looking for a suitable place in the soil. It should be dry and close to the carrot bed. In one season, a female individual is capable of laying up to 120 eggs in different places.
3. After 7-10 days, small larvae are born. Their sole purpose is to find food and food. The worms prefer the young green parts of the plant, from which they drink the juice. Future flies are so gluttonous that they do not stop for a second. Due to this, they very quickly gain weight and increase in size.

   
   The only purpose of the carrot fly larva is to find food.

4. After 3 weeks, the larvae of this representative of the fauna go deep into the ground and look for a reliable shelter there.There they move to the next stage of development and turn into a pupa.
5. After a few weeks, flies are born from the cocoon. They are slightly smaller than their parents, but after a few days they become their copies. Young insects are immediately taken for the destruction of the crop and eat not only the green part of the carrot, but also the root crop itself. Fly activity peaks between mid-July and late August.
6. Young females begin to lay eggs immediately. They hide them in dense vegetation where the owners of the field or garden have not thinned the carrots. New larvae destroy roots and prepare for winter. A third of the individuals manage to turn into a pupa and survive the cold season in this state. The remaining larvae are taken into the vegetable, where they hibernate.

Causes and harm done

This pest settles in the garden only if there are favorable conditions for it and a lot of food. It reproduces rapidly, which ensures good survival of the species. Depending on the weather conditions, the number of insects that have settled may vary. The reasons for the appearance are determined by the following conditions:

• high humidity;
• lack of sunlight;
• excessive watering of the garden or field;
• dense planting of vegetable.

These representatives of the fauna cause irreparable harm to agricultural organizations and ordinary gardeners. Having settled in a root crop, the larva can quickly destroy it and deprive people of the long-awaited harvest.

Insect damage can be determined by the following criteria:

1. Black spots and dark passages left by the larvae appear on vegetables.

   
   One of the clear signs of damage to the root crop by a carrot fly is dark spots and moves on it.

2. Most often, carrot flesh is damaged at the base.
3. The green part of the plant begins to darken and acquire a purple color. Over time, the leaves dry out and curl.
4. The growth process of carrots is disrupted, because of which it loses its correct shape.

In addition, the pest can harm other plants - celery stalks, dill and parsley.

Common mistakes when dealing with a fly

When the first signs of carrot fly exposure appear on the carrot, gardeners immediately begin to use various methods aimed at combating parasites. But they often make serious mistakes:

• leaving the torn tops next to healthy crops;
• dense sowing of the garden;
• the use of a large number of chemicals;
• planting carrots in a shaded place.

The carrot fly flies directly above the root crops, so it is not difficult to notice it. Black and white midges are easily eliminated by folk methods, but the larvae will have to be destroyed in more severe and drastic ways.

If the carrot is already infected

But often the observance of precautions and the use of funds is not enough, and the larvae still infect the root crop. In this case, the question arises of how to store carrots damaged by a carrot fly.

Unfortunately, you will have to get rid of such root crops, because even at low temperatures, the larvae will continue their parasitic activity and will be able to pupate. Affected carrots can only be stored in processed form: dried, grated and frozen, canned.

Carrot fly is a pest that infects root crops and makes them unsuitable for storage. To achieve the best result in the fight against it, it is better to use a set of measures: prevention, the use of folk remedies and, if mass destruction could not be avoided, the use of chemical insecticides and biological preparations.

Agrotechnical methods

To prevent damage to carrots by pests, the following agrotechnical methods are used:

• Dig up (plow) the garden in the fall. The larvae on the surface of the earth will die at low air temperatures, some of them will be eaten by birds.

Loosening the soil

• Proper crop rotation will protect carrot beds from pests. Tomatoes, garlic, onions, radishes are useful precursors for the umbrella. The plot with carrots in the new season should be at a distance of at least 10 m from last year.
• Choose varieties with a high sugar content such as Flakke, Calgary. The pest attacks them less.
• Sowing carrots as early as possible (at the end of May), while the garden flies are not very active. An adult crop is less susceptible to pest attacks than young seedlings.
• It is necessary to comply with watering norms, loosen the beds so that excess moisture evaporates quickly. Waterlogging of the site contributes to the active reproduction of the parasite.
• Place seeds in the ground at a distance of 4–5 cm from each other so that you do not have to thin out the sprouts. The carrot smell attracts insects when thinned. Mechanical damage to the root system during this procedure weakens the plant. Damaged specimens are more likely to be attacked by pests.
• To plant onions, calendula, marigolds, wormwood in the aisle of carrots - the pest does not tolerate their smell.

Onions in the aisle of carrots