The reasons for the formation of holes on the leaves of pepper and measures to combat this phenomenon
A healthy pepper bush has beautiful green foliage with an even, smooth surface. If small holes appear on the leaves of the pepper, you should not ignore this change. The "sieve" of leaf blades indicates that the future crop harvest is in danger.
Why do holes appear?
Holes in the leaves of bell pepper can appear regardless of the place of cultivation - in the open field, in a greenhouse. The reasons for their appearance are also in no way related to diseases of the bushes or improper care of them. The appearance of a "sieve" on the leaves is associated with the appearance of pests. They gnaw holes in leaf tissue, suck the juices out of the plant.
Who eats pepper leaves?
Harmful insects that leave similar signs of activity include:
- aphids;
- Colorado potato beetle;
- slugs;
- caterpillars.
To accurately determine the effective control measures, you need to know which particular pest is gnawing at the planting.
Aphid
If an insect that has settled on a pepper cannot be found with a superficial examination of the bush, you need to look at the back of the leaves. Usually it is there that aphids accumulate. There are many subspecies of aphids, but the greatest danger to bell peppers is black and green aphids.
The emergence of aphids is often accompanied by the appearance of colonies of ants and anthills. If ants are scurrying around near the crop plantings, most likely, the peppers are already affected by aphids.
Colorado beetle
The Colorado potato beetle usually settles on potato tops, but will not give up on the juicy greens of sweet pepper bushes in the absence of food. Particular harm is caused by the beetle larvae, which are highly voracious. The Colorado potato beetle can lay its eggs on peppers that grow outdoors near a potato field. It is easy to recognize the larvae - their bodies, reaching a length of 15 mm, are colored bright orange. Black spots are visible on the sides of the body.
Slugs
Slugs appear in high humidity and high temperatures. Most often, the pest gnaws plantings in a greenhouse and a greenhouse. At the same time, it damages not only the foliage, but also the fruits on the bushes. The mouth apparatus of slugs is a grater, so the pest does not gnaw holes, but wipes it. Slug tracks are large holes in the middle of the leaf.
Small slugs hatched from eggs do not cause damage to bushes, they begin to actively feed only during the period of intensive growth.
Caterpillars
Caterpillars of gamma moths are leaf-eating pests. They feed on tissues of leaf plates and fruits of many vegetable crops. The caterpillar has a green body color and characteristic gray dots on the sides. The pest hides on the stems and in the leaf axils.
Control methods
To combat pests of pepper, use chemical, biological and folk methods.
The most effective way to deal with the Colorado potato beetle, caterpillars and slugs is considered to be the collection of individuals by hand, followed by destruction. Collecting insects by hand is difficult, especially with a large number of them, so gardeners often resort to other methods.
Aphid control
Biological means of controlling aphids include:
- attracting natural enemies to the site - ladybirds, lacewings, birds (suitable for growing peppers in the open field);
- use of biological products - "Fitoverma", "Akarina".
Chemicals in the fight against aphids are recommended to be used before the flowering of the culture and only as a last resort.
If aphids have captured a significant area of planting, you can use one of the effective drugs listed in the table.
| Drug name | Solution preparation | Multiplicity of treatments |
|---|---|---|
| "Karbofos" | 1 ampoule for 10 l of water | 1 |
| "Fufanon" | 10 ml for 10 l of water | 1-2 |
| "Aktara" | 2-4 g per 10 l of water | 1 |
| "Inta-Vir" | 1 tablet in 10 liters of water | 1-3 |
| "Actellik" | 1 ampoule for 2 liters of water | 1-2 |
| "Spark Double Effect" | 1 tablet in 10 liters of water | 1 |
Traditional methods in the fight against aphids are absolutely safe for humans and involve the use of improvised means.
- Ash infusion. Pour 2 cups of wood ash into a bucket of water, leave to infuse for a day. In the resulting liquid add 50 g of milled laundry soap.
- Needle infusion. 0.5 kg of needles are infused in 2 liters of water for a week, filtered and diluted with clean water in a ratio of 1: 5.
- Dry mustard decoction. 30 g of mustard is brought to a boil in 0.5 l of water, left to infuse for 3 days. Before use, the concentrate is brought to a volume of 10 liters.
- A solution of ammonia. In a bucket of water, bred 2 tbsp. l. ammonia, add 50 g of crushed soap.
- Garlic infusion. 1 cup chopped garlic cloves infused in a bucket of water for 24 hours.
Repulsive infusions and solutions are effective with a small area of damage to plantings.
Colorado potato beetle control
Due to its toxicity, the Colorado potato beetle has practically no natural enemies. Beetle larvae are eaten by lacewing, ground beetles, pheasants. Only guinea fowls feed on adults.
If the beetle has settled in a large area, chemical agents will help to fight it.
| Drug name | Solution preparation | Multiplicity of treatments |
|---|---|---|
| "Corado" | 1 ml for 4 liters of water | 1 |
| "Gulliver" | 3 ml for 10 l of water | 1 |
| "Killer" | 1.3 ml for 8 l of water | 1 |
| "Destroy" | 3 ml for 10 l of water | 1 |
From folk methods, 2 processing methods are used:
- dusting - sprinkle bell pepper bushes with ash, corn flour or gypsum (cement);
- preparation of deterrent solutions and decoctions. The most effective are infusions of tomato tops, walnuts, wormwood, onion husks, tobacco. Decoctions of hot pepper, yellow mustard, dandelion, poplar leaves are also effective.
As a preventive measure, plants that scare off the Colorado potato beetle - nasturtium, calendula, coriander, marigolds - are planted in a row of peppers in the aisles.
Slug fighting
Slugs lay their eggs in the soil under pepper bushes, under lumps of earth. Gently loosening the soil in the garden will help detect and destroy them. The pest is active at night, so manual collection is carried out at dusk.
Some chemical agents will also help fight slugs, the recommendations for the use of which are summarized in the table:
| Drug name | Drug consumption | Multiplicity of treatments |
|---|---|---|
| "Storm" | 15 g per 5 m 2 | 1-2 |
| "Slime Eater" | Spreading between rows, 30 g per 10 m 2 | 1 |
| "Bros" | 4 g / m 2 | 1-2 |
According to the consumption rate, the powder is scattered over the surface of the soil in an even layer.
Traditional methods of scaring away slugs are quite effective, so you can choose the most suitable one for your site.
Soil processing:
- dusting the beds with a mixture of tobacco dust and wood ash, taken in a 1: 1 ratio;
- scattering of dry mustard under bushes;
- spraying the topsoil with a solution of ammonia (2 liters of ammonia per bucket of water);
- mulching the beds with dried nettles.
Spraying peppers:
- soda solution (50 g of soda ash + 50 g of soap per bucket of water);
- 9% vinegar (65 ml of liquid per bucket of water);
- mustard infusion (150 g of powder per bucket of water, leave for 3-4 hours).
For catching individual specimens, traps with baits are arranged. Beer or milk-yeast mixture is used as bait. But gardeners who have tried this method on their site say that slugs run down to the bait from neighboring summer cottages.
To protect peppers from the harmful effects of slugs, it is recommended to create some kind of barriers.For example, eggshells scattered under the bushes scratch the belly of the pest, so he does not risk approaching the plantings. Instead of eggshells, nut shells are used, as well as gravel, coarse sand, slightly crushed shells.
Caterpillar control
The most effective method of dealing with scoop is considered to be digging the soil in spring and autumn and regular loosening. You also need to remove all weeds in a timely manner.
You can fight the caterpillars of the scoop, gnawing the foliage of peppers, using chemical means.
| Drug name | Solution preparation | Multiplicity of treatments |
|---|---|---|
| Iskra M | 1 ml / l water | 1-2 |
| "Fas" | 2 tablets for 5 l of water | 1 |
| "Rovikurt" | 1 g / l water | 1-2 |
According to folk recipes, deterrent decoctions and infusions are prepared for processing plantings of peppers. The most effective are:
- infusion of garlic arrows - the arrows are poured with water, left to ferment in the sun for a week, before use, the resulting liquid is diluted with water in a ratio of 1:10;
- decoction of garlic - 200 g of chopped cloves are introduced into a bucket of water and boiled for 1 hour, to increase efficiency, 200 g of tobacco dust and onion husks are added;
- infusion of burdock - 1/3 of the bucket is filled with chopped burdock leaves, poured with water to the brim, insisted for 3 days, soap is added for adhesion.
Scoops multiply quickly, so if you find characteristic holes in the leaf plates of pepper, you need to start fighting immediately.
The appearance of holes in the leaves of bell pepper is a sign that the plantings have been affected by pests. Careful inspection of the bushes and timely struggle will help save plantings from a harmful insect. The risk of a "sieve" is reduced if preventive measures are taken: dressing of seeds, soil and regular careful examination of growing bushes.
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