Adult beetles hibernate in a frozen soil layer at a depth of 5 to 60 cm (depending on the mechanical composition of the soil). During the wintering period, many of them die on heavy loamy soils, less on sandy ones.
In the spring, after the soil warms up to +12 +16 degrees, they come to the surface in search of food. Before the emergence of potato seedlings, they can eat wild-growing nightshade plants (black nightshade, physalis, henbane, and others) or starve for a month.
In search of food, overwintered beetles can fly. The length of flights on average is 40-60 km, but with a strong tailwind, it can reach 200-300 km.
The Colorado potato beetle also spreads passively: along the course of rivers, various modes of transport (by steamboats, trains, airplanes, cars), as well as with various cargoes.
At a temperature of +17 degrees, the beetles mate and lay eggs on the underside of the leaves, 30-40 pieces in each clutch. After 7-14 days, larvae emerge from the eggs. They develop for 20-30 days, gradually shedding and increasing in size. The most harmful older larvae: 3rd and 4th instars.
On 1 potato bush, 10 larvae can destroy 10-20% of the leaf surface, and 20 larvae - at least 50 percent. The larvae pupate in the soil, in an earthen "cradle", at a depth of 5-7 cm, usually right there, under the damaged plants. Young beetles appear in July, August and again feed on potato leaves.
Larvae and beetles eat potato leaves day and night, leaving behind only bare stems. Having destroyed the tops of one plant, they move to other plants.
Preparations from the Colorado potato beetle are of contact, systemic and biological action. The manufacturer indicates this on the packaging. When purchasing a drug, you should pay attention to its active substance (DV).
Different manufacturers produce drugs with the same active ingredient under different names.
The active substance thiamethoxam is contained in the preparations:
The active substance imidacloprid is in systemic preparations:
Cypermethrin contains reparations:
Using any preparations from the Colorado potato beetle, strictly follow the attached instructions. There can be no trifles in this matter. Otherwise, together with the beetles, you will harm yourself and your loved ones. The best time for treatments is the mass appearance of larvae on potato bushes when they emerge from the underside of the leaf and disperse through the bushes. Adult beetles, in case of a threat of danger, can fly to other areas for a while, so the main fight is carried out with larvae. In collective gardens, the simultaneous processing of potatoes by all neighbors gives a great effect.
Preparations from the Colorado potato beetle of contact action are not absorbed into the plant, do not accumulate in the tubers. They act only when they fall on the covers of insects. When it rains and waters, they are washed off with water, and in Colorado potato beetles they quickly become addictive. Therefore, contact preparations must be changed annually to new, more modern ones.
Systemic preparations are more effective, they have a long period of action, are not washed off by rain, do not cause addiction in the pest, and require a minimum number of treatments. For example, with Masterpiece and Prestige, it is enough to treat potato tubers during planting, and you can forget about the Colorado potato beetle for the whole season. The most modern systemic drugs have the active ingredient imidacloprid (listed above). Systemic drugs should be handled with particular care. Their toxic and carcinogenic active substance, penetrating into the plant, accumulates, including in root tubers, therefore it is impossible to use systemic preparations for early potato varieties.
How do these drugs work? The poison from the planting tuber rises along the potato sprouts, accumulates in the tops, but does not fall back into the growing young tubers.
| A drug | Description |
Prestige 
|
Manufacturer: Germany. Chemical base: pencycuron and imidacloprid. Poison for spraying potato tubers against leaf-biting and sucking pests, against rhizoctoniosis and scab. The period of protection against insects is up to 37 days. Poison packaging - 20 ml, 60 ml, 500 ml, 1 liter. Dissolve the chemical for spraying tubers at the rate of 10 ml per 100 water. The third class of danger. |
Taboo 
|
Manufacturer: Russia. Chemical base: imidacloprid. It is used for processing material for planting: tubers, bulbs, seeds. The poison from the tubers rises up the shoots and protects the young seedlings of the potato. Poison protection period up to 45 days. The release form of the poison is a concentrate of an aqueous suspension in a 10 ml vial and 1 liter and 5 liter canisters. The dilution dose is 10 ml per 100 kg of potato tubers. |
Other pesticides for dressing tubers - Matador, Celeste top, Masterpiece.
| Name of the drug | Description of the drug |
Aktara 
|
Manufacturer: Switzerland. Chemical base: thiamethoxam. It is popular with gardeners and gardeners. Systemic chemical. Hazard class III (moderately hazardous substance). It is used for watering the land and for foliar cultivation. The dilution rate is 1.2 g per 10 liters of water. Beetle protection period: 28 days - when processed on a leaf, 50 days - when watered. The death of beetles occurs after 24 hours. |
Apaches 
|
Manufacturer: Japan. Chemical base: clothianidin. Poison of systemic and contact-intestinal action. Effective against all stages of the Colorado potato beetle. The death of the pest occurs 30 minutes after treatment. Release form - powder in a bag of 25 g. Used for watering the soil (1 g per 1 liter of water) and leaf processing (05 g per 1 liter of water). The term of poison protection is up to 28 days. The poison does not have a pungent odor, does not cause addiction to the active substance in insects. |
| Name of the drug | Description of the drug |
Colorado 
|
Manufacturer: Russia. : imidacloprid. It has contact-intestinal and systemic effects. The poison inhibits the function of the intestines and the nervous system of the pest, causes paralysis and death. Protective action for plants up to 28 days. Adults and larvae die within three days after spraying the tops. Insects do not acquire resistance to this active substance. The package contains 5 ampoules of 2 g each. The rate of dilution of the poison is 2 g per 10 liters of water. |
Corado 
|
Manufacturer: Russia. Active ingredient: imidacloprid. Release form - ampoules of 1 and 2 ml and vials of 5 and 10 ml. Method of exposure - systemic and intestinal-contact (1 ml per 5 liters of water). |
Regent 
|
Manufacturer: Germany. Active ingredient: fipronil. Has a number of advantages. Effective at temperatures up to +40°C. Destroys not only adult beetles and larvae, but also laying eggs. Protective action 28 days. The third class of toxicity. |
tanrec 
|
Manufacturer: Russia. Active ingredient: imidacloprid. Substance of contact-intestinal action in the form of an aqueous concentrate in a 1 ml ampoule and 10 ml, 50 ml and 100 ml vials. Destroys larvae and adult beetles. Potato protection period is 21 days. The insect dies within two days. The dilution rate of the drug is 1 ml per 10 liters of water. |
Confidor 
|
Manufacturer: Germany. imidacloprid Systemic poison. Packing 1 g and 5 g. Dilution rate - 1 g per 10 liters of water. The duration of the protective action of the poison is up to 20 days. |
beetle 
|
Manufacturer: Ukraine. Active ingredient: imidacloprid and piperonyl butoscid. Effective against larva and adult beetle. The drug is available in packages of 5 ml and 10 ml. The consumption rate of the poison is 5 ml per 10 liters. |
Apply chemicals only in the presence of pests on plants. Treatments should be carried out with various preparations, alternating them so that the Colorado potato beetle does not get used to them.
The safest preparations for the Colorado potato beetle are biological preparations. They contain the spore bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis, which cause stomach and intestinal upset in beetles.
Sick beetles lose their appetite and die in a few days. Preparations of biological action are not absorbed by plants and do not accumulate in tubers. They are harmless to other beneficial insects and humans. Potatoes processed by them can be eaten after 5-7 days. The disadvantages of such preparations include the frequency of treatments: at least three potato treatments with a weekly interval.
Brief description of biological preparations:
| Name of the drug | Description of the drug |
Agravertin (Akarin) 
|
|
Fitoverm 
|
|
 |
|
Most pesticides are toxic to humans and animals to varying degrees. Before using drugs, gardeners are required to familiarize themselves with the safety rules when working with them and strictly observe them.
When working with pesticides, you must:
Particular care must be taken when handling pesticides in the process of preparing working solutions from them. It is necessary to store drugs in cabinets or in rooms that are locked with a lock, in a well-closed container, indicating the name.
It is strictly forbidden to store chemicals together with food and animal feed. Do not use for other purposes utensils and equipment in which solutions and mixtures of pesticides are prepared. It is not allowed to use drugs that do not have a clear factory label (until laboratory analysis is carried out).
Before starting work, it is necessary to check and adjust the sprayer (by pouring water into it). When filling the sprayer, it is necessary to carefully filter the solution. Spraying plants is less dangerous than dusting. When spraying (dusting) the garden, the direction of the wind should be taken into account so that splashes and dust do not fall on workers, on vegetable and berry crops grown in row-spacings.
Clothes in which plants were sprayed (pollinated) should be ventilated (away from the premises) and periodically washed in a soap and soda solution (soaked and boiled). The dishes in which the preparations were stored are neutralized with a solution of soda ash (50 g per 1 liter of water) or wood ash gruel, followed by rinsing with water. After work, dusters and sprayers are thoroughly washed and cleaned. Pesticide residues unsuitable for further use are neutralized with milk of lime and buried deep away from housing.
Experts advise spraying a maximum of 60 days before harvest. Some preparations suitable for early varieties are recommended for the last spray a week before harvesting the potatoes. Preparations of different spectra of action are used at different periods - some during the mass distribution of larvae, others are preferably used for prophylactic purposes, when even oviposition has not yet appeared.
Immediately after processing potatoes with preparations, you can eat the crop only if it was harvested in August. Early and mid-early varieties can be eaten 50 days after spraying. It was then that all the toxins that could remain in the tubers will be removed.
Very often you can hear the question of how justified it is to spray potatoes during flowering and whether it is worth it. Let's look into this issue.
Undesirable. The optimal time for spraying is the period before and after the flowering of potatoes. Even if the first beetles were seen on the flowers, it is better to use folk methods of struggle or collect insects by hand.
When potatoes bloom, it is possible to spray with biological and chemical preparations Fitoverm, Agravertin, Bikol, Akarin, Bitoxibacillin. The best results, spraying will bring, at the first appearance of beetle larvae.
Repeat spraying in a week. From folk remedies, gardeners choose nicotine persecution: an infusion of 200 cigarettes is made for 10 liters of water for two days, then 40 g of laundry soap is diluted. Also, flowers can be protected from pests by sprinkling ash through a sieve, irrigating with various infusions and decoctions of walnut or poplar leaves.
Yes, you can. Beetles at this time hide underground and crawl out only after a year with the first warming. During this period, it can be lured and destroyed by folk remedies or resort to special preparations.
Some drugs are so toxic that they can kill bees and other pollinating insects. Despite the fact that potatoes self-pollinate, their flowers still attract insects. In addition, potatoes are just beginning to develop during the flowering period, and are most vulnerable to chemical poisoning.
Spraying is carried out in the early morning (before 10 a.m.) or in the evening (after seven in the evening), when temperatures are lowest and the weather becomes calm and dry (so that the poison is not washed away with dew and does not evaporate). This will allow the drug to have the strongest effect and be evenly distributed over all the bushes.
Preparations for processing potatoes can be prepared independently from some plants. We present here the best recipes of folk remedies. The effectiveness of such products is somewhat lower than the effectiveness of chemicals, but they work, and they are absolutely safe for both humans and animals.
It is better to process potatoes with folk remedies at night in good weather. A little soapy solution is added to the prepared infusion, which will allow it to linger on the leaves and stems of the potato for a longer time.
Recipes for making infusions to fight the beetle:
The fight against the Colorado potato beetle begins from the moment the plantings are placed. First of all, it is necessary to observe crop rotation. If this is not possible, then they try to place the potatoes at least as far away from other nightshades.
For cultivation, varieties less damaged by the beetle are selected: Belorussky-3, Vorotynsky early, Spring, Desire, Zaryo, Call, Spark, Crystal, Lasunak, Loshitsky, Lorch, Lugovskoy, Ramensky, Resource, Sante, Firefly, Svitanok Kiev, Stolovy-19, Sulev, Temp and others.
You can reduce the number of the pest by catching it on food baits. During the mass summer of beetles, potato tubers or tomatoes (whole, cut into slices), chopped leaves and stems of these plants are laid out in small dimples or depressions in the soil lined with pieces of plastic wrap. Baits are viewed 2-3 times a day and the collected beetles are destroyed.
With a small spread of beetles, they are collected by hand and larvae, leaves are cut off with clutches of eggs, and then they are all destroyed. Simply shaking off the larvae from the bushes and filling them with earth will not bring you the desired effect.
We should not forget about such agrotechnical methods as deep autumn and spring digging of the soil of the site, high hilling of seedlings with filling the leaves of the lower tiers at the beginning of the hatching of the first larvae, destruction of the tops one to two weeks before harvesting.
The ambiguous history of potatoes in Russia goes back almost 300 years, and almost two-thirds of them, this crop enjoys well-deserved love among the people. Unpretentious in cultivation and adapted to survive in various climatic zones, potatoes have acquired the title of "second bread".
And even an inexperienced farmer who has planted this root crop on his plot and has some idea of \u200b\u200bthe mechanism of irrigation and hilling is able to get a good harvest by the end of the season, if not for one "but". The Colorado potato beetle, this insatiable conqueror that penetrated the west of the Soviet Union in the 1940s, by 2000 had become firmly associated with potatoes in the minds of residents of all regions of our country. 
Many summer residents who are not able to permanently reside in their suburban areas throughout the summer season, at least once in their gardening practice, have encountered the following situation. Planted potato tubers have grown well, the first hilling has been carried out, the wet summer does not require frequent watering, and some circumstance (for example, a long-awaited vacation) did not allow the landowner to visit his site for one to two weeks. And upon arrival at the dacha, the owner sees a dead potato plot, consisting of bare stems completely eaten by beetles. The yield from the field is minimal and does not even compensate for losses on the purchased planting material. Such a picture is especially typical for the southern regions of the country, where the humidity is low and the average summer temperatures are high. In the warm arid climate of Central Asia, the Colorado potato beetle gives 4 generations per year, and in especially hot weather there is a massive flight of adult insects at a distance of several kilometers downwind at a speed of 8 km / h. Finding no potato plantations along the way, the beetle feeds on wild nightshades, including poisonous black nightshade and henbane, until it reaches a new cultivated field. It is not surprising that by our time this malicious pest has conquered the whole world, except for England, where strict quarantine is organized against it, and Antarctica. 
The Colorado potato beetle, as a rule, does not feed on the potato tubers themselves, either in the adult or in the larval stage. You can meet insects on root crops only at the beginning of spring, when the overwintered hungry adults find tubers ready for planting by smell and restore their strength before the first shoots appear. And although this species of insect was formed in the deserts of the Sonoran province in Mexico, where the beetles fed on wild plants of the nightshade family, today the main and favorite food of the Colorado leaf beetle is the green tops of the potato. Although user statements are quite common on vegetable grower forums that if there are nearby plantings of potatoes, eggplants and peppers, the beetle prefers more tender shoots of the last two crops, and only after the destruction of the pulp of pepper leaves does it switch to eating potato tops. In all likelihood, this state of affairs is facilitated by the spread of modern varieties of potatoes with hard, pubescent or bitter leaves due to glucosides, which are more resistant to eating by the pest. These are, for example, "Nikulinsky", "Bryansk reliable", "Kamensky", "Shurminsky-2", "Sulev", "Temp", "Olev", "Svitanok Kiev", "Thought", "Lasunok", "Morning early" and others.
The most dangerous for potato plantings are the larvae of the Colorado potato beetle, and although each immature individual eats no more than 30 milligrams of leafy pulp per day, the prevalence of pests and the ability of adults to produce several generations per season can lead to the destruction of 40 percent of the tuber crop. The mass of clutches and, as a result, larvae, the voracity of young and adult individuals, adaptability to frost and drought, insensitivity to many poisons and rapid addiction to insecticides, have elevated the Colorado potato beetle to the top of the list of potato enemies.
Therefore, unfortunately, it will not work to ignore this pest in your potato farm. 
Scientists are closely studying the life cycle of the striped leaf beetle, chemists and geneticists are synthesizing new insecticides, and farmers and gardeners are testing old folk remedies for misfortune. And although a universal and absolutely safe panacea for the Colorado potato beetle has not yet been found, many vegetable growers have quite effective methods of dealing with it, and gardening stores offer a range of strong and relatively harmless chemicals. Today, for many, it is not the search for means of counteracting this voracious pest that remains relevant, but the question -Is it possible to process potatoes from beetles during flowering.Let's try to figure it out.
Despite the fact that only tubers have the main nutritional and industrial value in potatoes, for the qualitative formation of these formations, the plant must complete a full vegetative development cycle. In the green aerial part of the bush, photosynthesis takes place in sunlight - a key process of plant metabolism, in which monosaccharides (glucose molecules) are synthesized from simple inorganic compounds, and then complex polysaccharides, including the desired starch. Starch polymers accumulate in potato storage organs - root tubers. The number and size of tubers depend on the quality and duration of photosynthesis, the sufficiency of starting materials and the presence of general favorable factors (heat, lighting, humidity, soil air and underground space). From this it becomes clear why, when the green mass is damaged by the Colorado potato beetle, the crop of root crops suffers. Having increased the green mass and developed generative organs, the potato bush begins to store nutrients "in reserve". The appearance and formation of tubers in medium-early potato varieties popular in Russia occurs during flowering, the timing of which coincides with the period of the greatest activity of adult insects and their larvae. Eating tops by a beetle at this important time for plants inhibits the formation of tubers, since the synthesized nutrients do not go to underground “storages”, but to try to restore damaged organs. In addition, during injury to the stem, fungal spores and viruses can enter the wounds, which will lead to damage to the crop and infection of the site. The importance of flowering for the potato crop is indirectly confirmed by the fact that the practice of removing inflorescences, which is used by some gardeners, can lead to an increase in the number of tubers by 1 - 2 pieces, but the root crops themselves grow small, uneven, and they contain little starch. 
The exception is some modern varieties of potatoes, in which the absence of flowering or a small number of flowers in the brush is the norm. These are ultra-early "Rocco", "Timo", "Empress", "Mariella". Variety "Spring" forms buds only in wet summers and fades very quickly, and does not bloom at all during periods of drought. The exclusion of flowering in this case is beneficial for the farmer, since the plant does not spend energy on the formation of organs that are not of economic importance.
Many gardeners and a large percentage of entrepreneurs who grow potatoes for sale carry out insecticidal treatment of potatoes at any time during the growing season. The effect of staining beetles with potent chemicals of new generations is always expressed in the preservation of the aerial parts of the bushes and, as a result, an increase in yield. However, it is not unknown that chemical synthetics are especially strongly accumulated in tubers during the flowering period of potatoes. By the way, there is a lot of controversy about the advisability of using industrial poisons in other periods of the plant's life cycle, because. these substances tend to accumulate in the soil, interact harmfully with beneficial soil microflora and fauna, and are assimilated by subsequent generations of plantings. On the scales, which in this debate expresses a negative attitude towards the processing of potatoes during flowering, one can also put such a phenomenon as the lightning-fast adaptation of the beetle to all new chemical preparations. Suffice it to recall the now-banned insecticide DDT (trademark "Dust"), which was sensational in the USSR in the 1950s, which at first successfully fought the Colorado potato beetle and other agricultural pests, and then ceased to act on them. The key to the insensitivity and rapid addiction of the potato leaf beetle to poisons is a genetically incorporated mechanism for removing plant alkaloids from the body. The food base of the Colorado potato beetle in its historical Mexican range was toxic nightshades, deadly poisonous to most other herbivorous insects. The metabolic system of the beetle is adapted not only to the recognition and elimination of hazardous substances, but also is able to accumulate compounds harmful to the body in tissues. This metabolic mechanism renders the host inedible to most predators, as indicated by the bright warning coloration of adults, larvae, and clutches. The only exception among toxic substances is modern systemic pesticides (for example, "Confidor Maxi Extra"). These insecticides penetrate the plant through the roots and accumulate in all its organs. Insects get poison by eating the poisoned parts of the plant and die. Unfortunately, many systemic insecticides linger in the soil for up to 10 weeks, can harm humans through contact with and ingestion of treated plants, and kill helper insects, fish, and pets. The toxicity of chemicals to bees, predatory insects and beneficial amphibians is another important reason why it is highly discouraged to treat potatoes from beetles during flowering with pesticides. 
The sharply accelerated development of environmental science, microbiology and nanotechnology in recent years has led to the emergence of an unprecedented direction in the chemical industry - the production of biological insecticides. The active agents in these preparations are microorganisms - natural pests of the Colorado potato beetle (some strains of fungi and bacteria) - and entomopathogenic nematodes.
Fungal insecticides (avermectins) secrete neurotoxins that lead to paralysis and death of the insect. In addition, the conidia of some microscopic fungi can enter the body of an insect and infect its organs, causing death. Avermectins are sensitive to humidity, temperature and light conditions, require cold storage without light and should be applied after fine aerosol sprinkling in the evening.
Bacterial pathogens are isolated from strains of soil microorganisms and act through the intestinal tract of insect pests by producing toxins. These drugs are produced in the form of a dry powder, stored for up to one and a half years under normal conditions and, unlike fungal insecticides, almost do not cause allergies in humans. 
Insecticides based on EPN - entomopathogenic nematodes are the most promising and effective drugs of the 4th generation. Microscopic worms enter the body of adult insects and larvae with food and infect hosts with symbiotic bacteria that produce a toxin. Nematodes are sensitive to dryness, EPN treatment should be carried out after fine aerosol sprinkling in the evening.
Numerous studies show that insecticides based on natural microcultural non-phytotoxic, almost do not harm humans, bees, fish and warm-blooded animals, are quickly inactivated in the natural environment, do not accumulate in the soil and tissues of organisms and often have a narrowly targeted effect, and most importantly, they are not addictive. at the target pest. Despite the higher cost, these drugs are being actively studied and may eventually replace synthetic analogues. However, the impact on human health and beneficial animals, as well as the entire range of environmental relationships of these microorganisms, is far from being fully studied, therefore, when working with them, it is advisable to take preventive precautions.
As we have already found out, spraying potatoes from the Colorado potato beetle during flowering with chemically active preparations is unsafe for human health and farm animals and has detrimental consequences for the biocenosis as a whole. Let us now consider more harmless ways to deal with the Colorado potato beetle, which can be applied during this growing season of the plant. 
How to process potatoes from the Colorado potato beetle during flowering is up to you. We strongly recommend that you adhere to natural means of combating the leaf beetle that are more gentle for the plant, the environment and humans. Let us summarize the recommendations on the technique of carrying out treatments with plant and biological insecticides.
If the processing of potatoes from the Colorado potato beetle during flowering with chemicals still does not cause your concern, then we advise you to familiarize yourself with the rules for its implementation:
Forums of potato growers demonstrate how topical for compatriots the question is whether it is possible to poison the Colorado potato beetle when potatoes are in bloom. The temptation to quickly and surely solve the problem with the help of potent pesticides meets with powerful resistance of sanity not only among the owners of small summer cottages, but also among larger landowners.
“This beast easily gets used to poisons, produces an antidote and inherits the ability to produce it. And she also loves nitrogen fertilizers, which do not feed our gardeners with bread, but let them shove them into the ground. Grow vegetables organically and your potatoes will grow such tough tops that no beetle is too tough ... yes, chicken manure is also a thing, but after harvesting.
"No. I have the same situation in the country - one part of the potato is blooming, and the other is not yet. I persecute selectively, but not blooming. Although it is not very convenient and takes a lot of time.
It is believed that tubers are formed at this time, therefore, potatoes cannot be sprayed.
“For the time of flowering, I prefer to collect them every day, and before flowering, you can spray them. But after that I don’t do anything, since the tubers are already formed and the beetle is not terrible.
The question of spraying potatoes is relevant every season. How to process plantings so as not to harm health and get a good harvest? Let's talk about this further.
Regardless of the type of variety, early or late, potatoes need periodic tillage, three times feeding and spraying. The main thing choose the right drugs specially designed for processing this type of potato.
Experts advise spraying a maximum of 60 days before harvest. Some preparations suitable for early varieties are recommended for the last spray a week before harvesting the potatoes.
Preparations of different spectra of action are used at different periods - some during the mass distribution of larvae, others are desirable to use for preventive purposes, when even oviposition has not yet appeared.
Immediately after processing potatoes with preparations, you can eat the crop only if it was harvested in August. and can be eaten 50 days after spraying. It was then that all the toxins that could remain in the tubers will be removed.
Very often you can hear the question of how justified it is to spray potatoes during flowering and whether it is worth it. Let's look into this issue:
Undesirable. The optimal time for spraying is the period before and after the flowering of potatoes. Even if the first beetles were seen on the flowers, it is better to use folk methods of struggle or collect insects by hand.
When potatoes bloom, it is possible to spray with biological and chemical preparations Fitoverm, Agravertin, Bikol, Akarin, Bitoxibacillin. The best results, spraying will bring, at the first appearance.
Repeat spraying in a week. Gardeners choose nicotine poisoning from folk remedies: for 10 liters of water for two days, make an infusion of 200 cigarettes, then dilute with 40 g of laundry soap. Also, flowers can be protected from pests by sprinkling ash through a sieve, irrigating with various infusions and decoctions of walnut or poplar leaves.
Yes, you can. Beetles at this time hide underground and they come out only after a year with the first warming. During this period, it can be lured out and destroyed or resorted to special preparations.
Some drugs are so toxic that they can kill bees and other pollinating insects. Although potatoes self-pollinate, its flowers still attract insects. In addition, potatoes are just beginning to develop during the flowering period, and are most vulnerable to chemical poisoning.
Spraying is carried out in the early morning (before 10 a.m.) or in the evening (after seven in the evening), when temperatures are lowest and the weather becomes calm and dry (so that the poison is not washed away with dew and does not evaporate). This will allow the drug to have the strongest effect and be evenly distributed over all the bushes.
You will learn more about the best chemicals in pest control in the material "The best preparations for the fight against the Colorado potato beetle and".
The Colorado potato beetle delivers many unpleasant minutes to gardeners. About when to spray potatoes from the Colorado potato beetle and how to spray potatoes from the beetle, read on.
Each preparation contains exact instructions for use, as well as a list of self-protection recommendations (respirator, gloves, spraying in hot or cool weather, etc.), for the most part they are universal, since they are based on different substances and are productive under different conditions.
All varieties of potatoes should be sprayed from one or more times in season. So that the beetles do not develop addiction and develop immunity to poison, chemicals must be changed regularly.
Most preparations are for external use and only tops are allowed to be sprayed. It becomes toxic to beetles that eat stems and foliage, while tubers are absolutely safe for humans after a certain period.
Among the most commonly used drugs in the fight against the Colorado potato beetle developed by Bitoxibacillin, Aktelik, Colorado, "", "Arrivo", "Sonnet", "Decis Extra", "Confidor", "Bankol", "", "Mospilan", "Agravertin", "Bikol", "Sempai".
As soon as the first eggs and larvae of the Colorado potato beetle were seen on the leaves and stems of plants, spraying should begin. The interval between treatments is approximately 3-4 weeks. Depending on the type of preparation and potato variety, the terms differ. last processing. For Bitoxibacillin, this is a week before harvest, and for Tsimbush, 20 days.
Systemic pesticides affect insects only after they have eaten plants treated with the drug. Contact poisons have their effect directly upon contact with beetles. Gardeners are advised to alternate systemic and contact preparations so that the Colorado potato beetle does not have time to adapt to chemicals.
Recently, the method of so-called senication or foliar feeding of potatoes has become more and more popular. The essence of the method is that a concentrated solution of superphosphate is prepared and, with the help of spraying, artificial aging of the tops and an outflow of useful and nutrient substances to the tubers are caused.
Some vegetable growers recommend performing the procedure immediately after flowering, others advise waiting 15-20 days. Both the first and second are right, the main thing is that the processing of plants should be done 20 days before harvesting, but not before they fade. Thus, early varieties are processed a week before harvesting, ultra-early ones are not processed at all, medium ones a week after flowering, late ones - after 15-20 days. Spraying is carried out in calm weather.
Recipe:
Pour 2 kg of superphosphate with a bucket of water, the powder does not dissolve well, it will take about two hours. After 2 hours, the standing solution is poured into another container, filtering through gauze. (The sludge can be used as a regular fertilizer for other plants).
The average indicator for this method is that the yield increases by 15-20%, and the tubers are very beautiful.
Immediately after preparing the mixture it is necessary to abundantly spray the leaves of each bush. For this, only dry and calm weather is suitable.
This is a moderately hazardous substance, to work with it, you must follow the safety rules: while spraying potatoes with HOM - do not smoke, eat or drink, skin, eyes, breathing apparatus and head must be well protected (cotton gown, respirator, goggles, gloves, etc. .).
Like most chemicals, Hom should not be used in hot weather, as well as in the immediate vicinity of water sources, near animals and children. It is undesirable to spray potatoes during flowering.
Gardeners often ask if it is possible to spray potato leaves with prestige?
" " everywhere used in the control of the Colorado potato beetle and soil pests, penetrates into potato tubers, and only then sits in the stems and leaves of the aerial part of the plant, which insects feed on.
However, it fits only for spraying when planting potatoes planted in April and harvested in August (mid-early and mid-late varieties). Early varieties of potatoes are harvested in June-July, the maximum harvest can be harvested before August 1.
At the same time, the tubers themselves are pickled before planting, and not the tops.
Before you start planting tubers, you can leave them for 45-60 minutes in a solution of ammonium nitrate and superphosphate. Potato preparation will be much more efficient, if immediately after that, pull out the tubers and sprinkle with ashes.
None of the varieties have absolute resistance to late blight or alternariosis, but there is a different degree of vulnerability. Even the most resistant varieties of potatoes, when new strains appear, and other conditions can lose their immunity and become infected.
If the harvest is still was infected with a fungus and ascomycete phytophthora, at the first sign of infection, you will need to use fungicides. The question arises: “How to spray potatoes from late blight?”, The answer is further.
When diseased tubers with depressed brown spots are identified and sorted, treatment should be started immediately before planting (Kvadis and Uniform will protect for 3-4 weeks). Don't wait for the first symptoms– engage in prevention in the early stages, because. after the focus of infection has already flared up, the treatment becomes almost ineffectual.
Due to the rapid development of phytophthora, it will take about two weeks to completely infect all plants. For prevention one of the most productive "Maxim" and "Celest Top"(duration of effect 2 weeks). Is it possible to spray potatoes when they bloom? Generally not recommended. As soon as the flowering is over, you can apply the contact means "Bravo", "Ditan M-45", and "Shirlan".
Pre-harvest treatment with a contact preparation will help to secure potatoes underground. At the same time, it is useful to use desiccants (continuous action) to dry the plants, or manually cut the tops. Desiccants will make it easier to save the crop from infection at the last stage of ripening.
Among pesticides for haulm dehydration and potato spraying widespread drugs "DUAL GOLD", "Basta", "REVUS TOP", Celeste Top, Gezagard, Reglon Super, Maxim and Fitosporin-M.
When processing potatoes should be borne in mind the timing of its flowering and collection period finished harvest. Some drugs can only harm potatoes, while others have no effect at all. When purchasing planting tubers, consider their variety because they differ in planting time and harvest. Now you know how to spray potatoes during flowering, as well as answers to many other questions.
spraying must be carried out with the use of protective equipment and at a fixed time. So that pests are not used to poisons, the types of drugs need to be changed several times.
Useful video!
Getting a decent potato harvest is more difficult than it might seem at first glance. It is not enough to choose the right variety, fertilize the soil and create favorable conditions for growth.
It is much more important to protect plantings from pests and diseases. The Colorado potato beetle is one of the most terrible threats, so every gardener needs to know how to deal with it. Many people mistakenly believe that it is possible to spray the bushes with special preparations and calmly wait for the collection time without making any more effort, but it is far from always possible to use store-bought products. Consider how to protect potato plantings from colorados during flowering.
The appearance of the Colorado potato beetle on the beds with potatoes can lead to the complete death of the crop. These insects are very greedy. They literally eat up all the tops in a couple of days, and this does not allow the tubers to fully develop. Although, why dissemble, having eaten the above-ground part, the Colorados and the underdeveloped underground will not disdain.
The most dangerous are not even adult beetles, but their grown larvae (they have a rich pink or red color). They almost instantly eat young leaves from the top.
Also, the Colorado potato beetle, in addition to voracity, is distinguished by fertility. One female lays up to 500 larvae, which develop very quickly.
Every gardener needs to remember once and for all that it is impossible to completely get rid of the pest. He not only tolerates wintering well, but is also able to fly tens of kilometers in search of food. Moreover, during the season, one individual can visit the same beds several times, flying away from them after treatment and returning when the effect of the drug ends or weakens.
Even a child is able to learn Colorado. The characteristic stripes on the wings and the rounded shape of the body make it impossible to confuse it with other pests. 
The easiest way to deal with beetles is to manually collect them and pick off leaves with larvae. But it is quite laborious and the result is not always happy.
Therefore, there are many more efficient ways. But is it possible to use them during flowering?
Just a couple of years ago, gardeners and breeders were sure that during the flowering of potatoes it was strictly forbidden to use any store and folk remedies.
A person is interested in what the tubers will turn out to be, so often attention to the tops, and even more so to the color, is not given enough. 
In fact, it is during flowering that the future harvest is laid. If the color is struck, then the plant will throw all its strength not on the development of tubers, but on the formation of additional buds.
Any plant organism develops according to a certain pattern, and flowering in potatoes is one of the most important moments and intervention is dangerous.
But today opinions differ. On the one hand, spraying can adversely affect the crop, and on the other hand, if the plantings are not treated, there is a risk of losing them altogether.
Thus, we can conclude that in small areas it is better to collect Colorado beetles by hand and use traps and other safe methods for additional protection.
But if hectares are planted with potatoes, manual labor is unacceptable. It just won't bring results. So in some cases, the use of protective equipment is more than justified. 
You have to forget about chemistry. Otherwise, the crop will be deadly to humans. But folk remedies are no less, and sometimes more effective than harmful drugs.
Consider the most popular ways to protect against Colorado potato beetles:
In addition to spraying, there are other ways to deal with the Colorado potato beetle. One of the most proven is mulching. Straw, weeds, spruce needles not only prevent Colorado from creating optimal living and breeding conditions for themselves, but at the same time they are very attractive for ground beetles, praying mantis, spiders and ladybugs that are dangerous for this pest. They create nests in the straw, and the beetles are used for food. 
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A good effect is also given by plants sown along the aisles, which repel the Colorados with their pungent odor. The beetle cannot tolerate catnip, tansy, sage, periwinkle, etc. Just remember that these plantings should also be looked after. If they begin to bloom, then reproduction will begin and the beds risk turning into weeds.
Good results are given by domestic birds accustomed to eating Colorados. Only here there is a risk that chickens or quails will begin to peck at the tops, so they cannot be left unattended.
For extensive plantings, as well as in summer cottages where it is not possible to pay attention to your plantings on a daily basis, it is advisable to use biological products.
Most of them are absolutely safe for humans and animals, and at the same time they have an effective deterrent effect against the Colorado potato beetle. Adults cease to reproduce, and the larvae lose the opportunity to develop and die. 
In addition to the folk remedies listed above for protection against pest beetles, experts advise using Phytoferm, Bitoxibacillin, Colorado NO, etc.
The first treatment is carried out when the beetle larvae appear, then repeated after 10 days.
Remember, inattention can lead to damage to the crop and the death of beneficial insects, such as bees. 
The result that the processing of potato beds will provide is affected by the following recommendations:
