In August, the harvest ripens and there is not much work to do. You can start removing annoying insects and moles from the site. Our consultant Dmitry Lukyanov, agronomist-vegetable grower, candidate of agricultural sciences, tells how best to do this.
July 28 2016
Horticultural crops are mainly harmed by ants-cattle breeders who live off their milk cows – aphids. The stores have special bait for these insects. But if there are a lot of parasites, then it is not worth spending money. There are many reliable antiques available. For example, boric acid (available at the pharmacy). Mix equal parts of it and syrup from old jam, place “drinkers” in places where ants accumulate. There is also another recipe. Pour a tablespoon of yeast with cold boiled water until the consistency of thick sour cream, mix, add a teaspoon of jam and mix again. Apply the mixture on a piece of cardboard and spread it in places where insects accumulate. They eat the mixture and die after a while.
Use essential oils with insect-unbearable odors: rosemary, mint, sage, thyme, lavender, spray the solution on the paths. Spill generously with acetic acid solution (liter per bucket) on the foundation of the house. Ants are also very scared of garlic solution or vanilla solution. Make the solution more saturated and fill the anthill several times. Baits are very effective, pieces of which are dragged by the working insects straight to the ant queen. The recipe is simple: borax powder (also sold in a pharmacy) must be mixed with a sweet solution and spread around the edges of the garden, near berries and fruit plants.
In August, Moles become more active: by the end of summer they begin to multiply. Contrary to popular belief, they do not harm our precious root crops. Moles eat only animal food: insects, worms, dead rodents. But the holes of moles are successfully used by other rodents, which eat the harvest. By the way, only one mole can feed on a standard area of a plot of 6 acres, these animals live alone. So all the “slides” in the garden will belong to only one animal. Your task is to drive him away. Some summer residents use the mole’s sensitivity to strong odors, for example, he cannot stand the “aroma” of a rotting herring head at all. Also, animals do not like noise. Ratchets on poles driven into the ground transmit vibration to the ground, and the moles leave the area. Someone prefers to use purchased mole traps, but then they will have to do something with the caught animal.
Medvedka is a large insect that breaks holes in the ground, simultaneously gnawing at the roots and making holes in the roots. In a day, one such pest can destroy a couple of dozen plants. It is difficult to advise reliable folk remedies, the insect is too tenacious. It is best to buy bait such as “Thunder” or “Medvetoks”, lay in the holes in the places where the bear is seen. Or wait until fall and triple the dung trap, the bears love fresh dung. Insects are successfully trapped by their passion for fresh manure. In the fall, dig trapping pits measuring 50 x 50 x 50 and fill it with manure, and insects will crawl there to settle for the winter. In mid-November, pits are dug, the contents are scattered over the soil surface. Bears in a state of hibernation will quickly die from frost.