Protection against pests and diseases of plants, prevention and treatment

With the onset of summer in gardeners daily the number of cases only grows. And at the forefront is not planting and irrigation, it is much more important to protect against pests and plant diseases. Miss the time, do not pay attention to the alarming signs - and you can assume that all the hard work was wasted, and you were left without harvest. I must say that modern gardeners and truck farmers are offered a huge arsenal of various means to avoid such an outcome. Protection from pests and plant diseases is the guarantee of an excellent harvest, which is why, on the eve of the new summer season, this information will be useful to everyone.

Classification of modern methods of struggle for health of the garden

Without this, it will be really difficult to understand. Modern agronautics has studied and developed a huge number of methods to combat various ailments that threaten to defeat your garden. Very conditionally they can be divided into four large groups. Protection from pests and diseases of the garden can be agrotechnical, and methods from this group are given particular attention today. In the second place is a biological, then - a mechanical way to control pests and, finally, chemical.

It should be noted that in the garden and in the field it is perfectly permissible to use a combination of a variety of ways to fight and protect plants. Moreover, it is this approach that guarantees the safety of your crop. But each of the methods separately can not give a full effect.

There is always an alternative

How do you think, when using what methods, protection against pests and plant diseases will be the best? Of course, many believe that the best effect will ensure the use of pesticides. However, in Europe, the areas of land cultivated by biological methods are increasing every year, where the use of chemicals is completely excluded. That is, people already well understood that all "chemistry" in one form or another gets to us on the table in cultivated vegetables and fruits. Of course, protection from pests and plant diseases is very important, but is not it too high a price we pay for it? That is why the areas of ecological farming are growing year after year. Europeans have introduced strict control over the content of pesticides in vegetables and fruits, and the demand for products grown without their use is growing.

Preventive actions

The better the pre-sowing work is done, the less problems you will have during the whole summer. Biological protection of plants against pests and diseases requires careful digging of soil in autumn and spring, and also attracting predatory insects that are able to protect crops from pests. This also includes the planting of garden plants according to special schemes. Some cultures repel pests, others enrich the soil with substances important for third plants.

Long-term studies have shown that bubbling, lacewings and ladybugs can kill about 50% of aphids on crops. Therefore, the gardener has a direct benefit from attracting these insects to his site. For this purpose, special multi-storey houses are built of reeds, peat and wood. Around the planting wild flowering plants, which are particularly loved by these insects.

Agrotechnical methods of plant protection against pests and diseases

These are very simple and effective methods that do not require additional costs. They are economical and environmentally friendly. Any gardener knows about them and partially uses it on his site. By experience it was established that the best agrotechnical measure would be the cultivation of plant varieties resistant to pests and diseases. This includes effective crop rotation and a special soil cultivation system, adherence to optimal seeding and harvesting periods , fertilization and, of course, quality weeding.

Choose a variety

Integrated protection of plants against pests and diseases suggests that to achieve a good result you need to apply a whole range of measures on your site. However, too much depends on the chosen variety to avoid this issue by the side. First of all, of course, the resistance of the variety to diseases and invasion of insects is of interest. These indicators depend on the anatomical, physiological and biological characteristics of each of them. Varieties also have different endurance to damage by insects. That is, with an equal degree of damage in some crops decreases, but for others this is almost imperceptible. And zoned varieties are always characterized by greater endurance, so it is recommended to use them on their site.

Crop rotation

Another effective agricultural technique, which will significantly increase the yield. The change of crops grown in this area of the soil is a way to increase its fertility, as well as an important method for regulating the number of pests and preventing various diseases. If from year to year the same crop is planted on one crop, the pests, fungi and viruses gradually accumulate in it, until their number reaches a critical mass. Now the plants will die just at the root, forcing the grower to take action.

Application of fertilizers

Means of plant protection against pests and diseases are represented on the market in a wide range. However, it is necessary to start with the fact that healthy soil is able to take care of itself. And to maintain it in the right condition, it is very important to regularly make fertilizers, dig over and carefully weed the weeds. The use of organic and mineral fertilizers when treating the garden from disease promotes the formation of shoots that are more resistant to damage. On well-fertilized soils the shoots are friendly, the plants develop rapidly, the development of pests and the crops themselves do not coincide. As a result, pests are killed or simply can not cause significant harm.

Many gardeners on their own experience know that fertilizing with phosphorus fertilizers during the laying of eggs by insects significantly reduces the number of pests, for example superphosphate effectively works against slugs. Careful digging of soil in autumn and spring is an excellent protection against pests, diseases and weeds. In this case, the pupae and insects are on the surface and die, as well as the roots of the weeds.

Garden pests. Learning to defend yourself

To protect your garden or large industrial field from diseases and pests, you must carefully weigh the needs of the chosen culture and learn its main enemies. This will already give a certain scheme of action, which can become very effective. The very first method is to sow crops at the optimum time. This will allow to obtain quality shoots that are resistant to various diseases and pest damage. For example, early sowing of radish makes it possible to protect the crop from the onion fly.

Schemes and norms for sowing seeds are also important. In an area, the optimal number of plants should be located. This will ensure their normal growth and development, and therefore, resistance to disease. The depth of seeding plays a role.

However, this is not all that you need to know. Why is it important to get rid of all the weeds that appear on the garden plot? Because it is the weed grass is a favorite place of congestion of the most diverse organisms. Here they successfully multiply and attack the cultivated plants around. Weeds feed on earthy fleas and aphids, spider mite and other insects, not to mention the fact that weeds are the habitat of numerous bacteria.

Fight against diseases

The ways to protect plants from pests and diseases can be painted endlessly. However, first of all it is necessary to note those that can be used on any site, are accessible to all and effective. These are physical measures to combat bacteria, viruses and pests. These methods are based primarily on the use of high and low temperatures and changes in the humidity of the environment.

The soil is spilled with boiling water and frosted, covered with a film and heated under the sun's rays or with the use of special heaters. If the greenhouse is heated with the help of TES in the early spring, pests from all over the site will gather there. It will only turn off the heating devices and open the hotbed for the night so that they all die from the change in temperature.

For a small garden area is very effective is a mechanical method of fighting insects. These are all kinds of traps, glutinous and rag rings, bottles of water, the neck of which is smeared with syrup, and other appliances. The mechanical methods include the destruction of pests with the help of shaking, manual assembly, the destruction of winter nests, that is all that we do on our site in the summer.

Biological methods of combating plant diseases

Pests are an obvious nuisance, you understand the causes of what is happening and notice the consequences. In the case of diseases (bacterial, fungal, viral), it is not always possible to diagnose quickly. And this is true not only for a huge field. Protection of indoor plants from pests and diseases also requires great attention, knowledge and skills, because sometimes it is enough to miss only one day, and it will be impossible to save the plant.

It seems to be a long time to hesitate: we take in the store one bag of fungal diseases, the second - from viral, plus sprayed with an insecticide, and we can sleep peacefully. However, consider that part of this "chemistry" will still get to you on the table along with the fruits. Therefore, it is better to try to avoid the disease with the help of other methods, leaving the above described at last.

Biological methods of pest control are based on the use of living organisms and products of their vital activity. You can use parasitic and predatory insects, they are specially bred for these purposes. Today the greatest popularity is acquired by biological weapons. These are bacteria, fungi and viruses, which are the causative agents of insect diseases. However, it should be noted that with the help of such methods, the protection of ornamental plants from pests and diseases, that is, those grown in a closed ground, is most effective. They are suitable for greenhouses and greenhouses, but in the fields they must necessarily combine with other ways of protection. Today, special microbiological preparations are being developed to fight specific pests, but so far their choice is limited ("Lepidocide", "Nemabakt", "Planrys").

"Heavy artillery": "chemistry" in our garden

Despite numerous convictions, this method still remains the most effective and universal. You store several bottles of drugs (Agroquiller, Betarus, Ditox, Picus, Enlil, Tsirax, etc.), plant and process the garden at the right time. That's all, can only enjoy the harvest. To date, the choice of such funds is very large, they all have a common name - pesticides. This group includes insecticides, that is, tools for fighting parasitic insects. For the most part, they are universal, that is, they are capable of suppressing the development and reproduction of any pest that gets eaten by the plant. They are divided into several groups. These are contact and intestinal insecticides, fumigates. Treatment with these drugs is made for both prevention and control of the problem.

Chemical protection of plants against pests and diseases works well for fungal and viral diseases, which are often the cause of the biggest crop losses. To do this, use insecticides, each of which acts on the causative agents of a particular disease. Consider that these drugs should be used in advance. Their effectiveness drops dramatically if you try to save already diseased plants.

Fungicides are designed for seed treatment in order to protect future plants from a number of diseases. Acaricides work against garden mites, this group of insects is often resistant to other drugs. If rodents frequently invade your garden, then in addition to processing lumber with lime and spreading traps, you can use special rodenticides. This is a chemical fight against mice and moles ("Goliath", "Fentolacin"). Bactericides work well against bacterial diseases of the garden. Finally, in order to protect the garden from feathered "robbers", special avicides were invented ("Averfos", etc.).

Of course, with "chemistry" you need to be more careful, but science does not stand still and is developing all new ways to protect garden plants from diseases, weeds and pests that would have minimal harm to human health. Modern pesticides have a very low percentage of toxicity. When used at the right time and in the quantities recommended in the instructions, the body does less harm than, for example, caffeine. However, this does not mean that all other methods of protecting the garden (agrotechnical, biological) do not have the right to life. Only their optimal combination will give an excellent result.

Let's sum up the results

Among the above variety of options, each of you can find the one that is best suited for solving the tasks facing it. One has a home greenhouse, the other has a rose garden. Someone cultivates vegetables on the garden plot for their family, and someone cultivates grain on an industrial scale. In any case, the plant is always under threat of attack by pests or the development of diseases threatening the complete destruction of the crop. Therefore, competent protection of plants from pests, diseases and weeds is the main task of every gardener.