Birch tar from the Colorado potato beetle

Growing their own crops takes a huge amount of time and energy for gardeners, so insect pests can be a serious problem. One of the most unpleasant is the Colorado potato beetle, which can spoil a huge amount of potatoes and other crops in a short time. In the fight against it, birch tar is excellent.

This composition has been used in our country for a long time. He is known for helping to cope with harmful insects. Birch tar is used to scare away not only the Colorado potato beetle, but also flies, cabbage butterflies and others. It is effective even against some rodents; for example, mice and hares do not like it, which in winter can significantly harm the bark of fruit and berry crops.

If we talk about the description of the product, it is an oily liquid with a very dark, greenish color, as well as a specific pungent odor. It is obtained from birch bark, from its very top layer. Usually the process starts at the end of June or the very beginning of July. At this moment, the birch bark can be easily separated from the trunk. The dry distillation method involves heating the raw material to 600 degrees and at the same time completely limiting the access of oxygen.

The Colorado potato beetle can be a real problem not only for potatoes. He also enjoys eating tomatoes, eggplants and bell peppers. Some gardeners prefer to use chemicals, but it is noted that they do not always achieve results. At the same time, the specific smell of tar helps scare off the pest even before he has time to feast on the harvest.

To prepare the solution, you need to purchase tar. It is sold at a pharmacy or hardware store. The price will certainly delight the gardener, for 100 milliliters you need to pay only about 100 rubles. The recipe for the solution is not complicated. It will be most convenient to take 30 milliliters of the product and mix it with 30 grams of laundry soap, adding 10 liters of water. However, if you plan to process only tomatoes, it is recommended to reduce the amount of the basic substance to 10 milliliters.

Maintaining proportions is a fundamental principle of success. The soap should first be split into shavings. For this, a regular food grater is quite suitable. It is easiest to dissolve it in hot water in an amount of about a liter. The resulting composition must be diluted with the remaining ingredients, and also add the remaining water.

The use of a tar solution ensures that pests are repelled. That's why experts recommend applying it even before planting. This will help get rid of the larvae, which will soon begin to wake up and spoil the shoots. In this case, the solution is added in small quantities directly to the prepared wells and to the furrows located around. No soap is required. After that, processing is carried out when the sprouts have already appeared. It is best if they have time to reach 10 centimeters.A solution is being prepared, where in this case soap is already added, all leaves and stems are processed with it. The procedure must be repeated every 3-5 days until the insects disappear completely. If larvae are found, they must be removed by hand, and the spraying must be repeated.

The most convenient way to handle plants is with a regular broom. This method has been used for a very long time. In addition, you can use a regular plastic bottle with holes drilled in the cap. However, in this case, more solution will be used, and the procedure will take a longer time, so a broom is still preferable. Some people try to use a spray bottle, but this is irrational, since the liquid is oily, accordingly, it clogs all the exits, and it will not be possible to spray the area with high quality.

It should also be noted that birch tar is poorly soluble when mixed with water. In addition, it is not subject to long-term storage, because it exfoliates within a couple of hours after mixing. Accordingly, it is required to prepare the solution immediately before poisoning the insects. All manipulations are required in dry weather. On ordinary days, it is better to act in the morning or in the evening, when the sun is hidden, and on cloudy days, you can act during the day. This will help prevent sunburn. As for the prevention of the appearance of the Colorado potato beetle on the site, treatment should be carried out every 4-6 weeks. If the summer is rainy, this amount will need to be increased.

Gardeners note the effectiveness of using tar solution against the Colorado potato beetle. Useful tips will help those who started such a treatment for the first time.

• The main thing is not to overdo it. The above proportions of the composition are quite enough to combat the pest, if you overdo it, there will be a risk of causing serious harm to the crop. If you water the crops too rarely, the smell will quickly disappear and the insects will return. Otherwise, there is a risk of killing the plants, as they become inedible.
• It will be nice if you carry out a joint struggle in several areas at once. To do this, you can negotiate with your neighbors and join forces.
• It should be noted that there is only one way to deal with pests. It is not necessary to combine different drugs, since it is difficult to predict the reaction from their interaction. In addition, if you combine the use of birch tar and chemicals, the latter can kill a specific smell, respectively, the drug will become useless.
• If you treat a plant without first removing pests from it, this will also not lead to a positive result.at. The beetle will spoil the landings, orienting itself visually, as it will no longer distinguish smells.
• It is also imperative to observe safety precautions. The solution is not applied to the fruits that are used for food, as it can give them an unpleasant taste. Undiluted substance can trigger allergies, so protective clothing should be considered. You should also attend to the safe storage of the substance. During the preparation of the solution, it is imperative to remove children and pets from the access zone.

For information on how to process potatoes from the Colorado potato beetle using birch tar, see the next video.