Attacking and damaging:
1. It is a polyphagous pest that attacks many species of plants.
2. It causes great damage in eggplants, peppers, beans and cucumbers crops.
3. In the field, the pest frequency is higher in cucumbers and eggplants crops.
4. In solariums, attacks can be extremely violent.
5. How red spider mites attack. Adults and larvae colonize the back of the leaves, stinging them and sucking the cells juice.
6. Red spider has up to 20 generations per year.
7. White dots first appear on the infested leaves, visible and on top, especially near the ribs.
8. Gradually, these dots meet and create growing marks, which cause yellowing and drying of leaves.
How to prevent the pest:
1. Red spider mite overwinters on dead leaves or on the soil top layer. A deep plowing will considerably reduce pest’s biological reserves.
2. The returning of the strongly attacked crops on the same land after at least 2 years.
3. Destroying the weeds that are considered intermediate hosts for the pest.
4. Defoliation and selective removal of affected leaves to reduce the infection.
5. Ensuring a balanced mineral for the soil which causes a more vigorous plant growth and increased resistance to attack.
How to combat the pest chemically:
– Treatments are applied on the back of the leaves where colonies of mites are spotted.
– You can use plant protection products with longer persistence. During the fructification you can use short residence acaricide from group IV of toxicity.
– Treatments are repeated if mite population is restoring.
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