Larva of the May beetle.

One of the most serious pests of the garden and garden is the beetle of May. Throughout the winter, the beetles themselves and their larvae live underground, in this state they are before the appearance of the first leaves on the trees. The greatest activity of beetles occurs at night time. Closer to midnight, they calmly settle on the branches and begin their massive feast. Under the affected trees, you can find a huge amount of excrement of beetles and leaf stubs. However, these pests periodically "bare" the trees and in the daytime.

A characteristic feature of May beetles is that when flying, they emit a strong buzz that can not be confused with anything. In food, these insects are not too choosy, they can become the victim of almost any hardwood (plum, apple, pear, willow, maple, poplar, birch or oak), and sometimes they do not disdain even larch or pine.

The larva of the May beetle can also cause huge damage to your summer cottage, completely destroying the planting of berry and vegetable crops. Before their strong jaws, even the roots of 8-year-old trees can not stand . Strawberry roots are one of the most favorite delicacies of a young person. It can destroy a whole patch of freshly planted strawberries in a couple of weeks. This is due to the fact that the larva of the May beetle cuts the roots of each bush.

From an egg to an adult May bug, an insect develops in about 4.5 years. Initially, the beetles for a few days are intensively fed, then mated. After this, the females are buried in the soil to a depth of up to 35 centimeters (this depends on the density of the land in this area) and leave about 100 eggs there.

A larva of the May beetle appears in about 35 days. She immediately begins to eat humus and the smallest rootlets. Within 4-5 years such larvae are found in the soil. They are clumsy caterpillars of white and yellow color with three pairs of short legs and a yellow-brown head.

The struggle with the larvae of the May beetle is a rather difficult task, because they live in the soil at a great depth (up to 70 cm). They can occasionally be seen only when digging, in which case the larvae must necessarily be destroyed. However, the destruction of several individuals will not give the desired effect, because there is a huge number of eggs in the soil, and new pests will be released next year.

It should be noted that such invasions of the larvae of the May beetle are rare (every 7-8 years). The pest spreads through abandoned areas, which are not plowed or fertilized by anyone.

Fighting the larva of the May beetle (basic methods):

- strawberries for the purpose of prevention should be poured with ammonia (10 liters of water - 15 ml of ammonia);

- Periodically, chlorine-containing fertilizers (35% potassium salt, potassium chloride) should be introduced into the soil;

- to dig through the soil, while adding a small amount of usual dry chlorine, or to water with the help of a diluted "Belizna";

- the larva of the May beetle must necessarily be destroyed, if it was found during the digging of the soil (they are easy to see, since they are quite large);

- The plum is a favorite place of the May bug accumulation: early in the morning it is necessary, beforehand having covered the oilcloth under the tree, to shake them, and then to burn;

- in a bowl with ordinary water, add 9-10 drops of kerosene and put under a light bulb - this is a kind of tricky trap (the beetles love the bright light);

- You can attract natural helpers - starlings. To do this, you need to build and hang a good birdhouse on one of the trees. A pair of these birds during the feeding of their chicks destroys up to 10 thousand beetles and their larvae.

Remember, with pests in the garden, not only can, but also need to be fought, especially if this pest is the larva of the May bug.