A worm in a cherry: how to get rid of, what to do

A worm in a cherry indicates that the plant is most likely affected by a cherry fly larva. Females of this type of pest make holes in the fruit of the tree and lay eggs in them. Then the developing larvae begin to eat the cherries, which causes damage to the berries.

When such fruits fall to the ground, the larvae burrow into the soil for the winter and reappear in the spring in the form of flies. If cherries are infested with these pests, you need to act quickly to get rid of them before too much damage is done.

Why cherries are wormy: causes and methods of struggle

The cherry fly is a small insect that varies in length from 3 to 5 mm. It spends the winter in the upper layers of the soil, and when it begins to warm, it climbs to the surface to find food. These pests consume cherry aphid secretions, which have a sweet taste, as well as cherry and cherry juice.

When the flies are full, they begin to lay offspring. Pests lay eggs inside the cherry. The wormy fruits begin to rot and fall to the ground.

The detection of worms in early cherry varieties is a rather rare case, because the flies do not have time to lay larvae in them. In order to control these pests, in the fall, summer and spring, gardeners loosen the soil around the tree trunk. The harvest must be collected very quickly, and the fallen cherries must be thrown away. When there are too many cherry flies in the garden, the trees need to be treated with insecticides.

Cherry fly life cycle

The life cycle of a cherry fly is divided into three stages.

Departure and mating stage

This fly is a member of the variegated fly family. She is born during the year. Adult insects fly out of the ground when it gets warm and the ground warms up to + 10 ° C.

Attention! As a rule, flies fly out in mid-May.

They do not start laying eggs right away. First, the female must eat the juice of the early fruits. She does this for 12-14 days. Then comes the mating stage, and the female lays the larva.

Egg-laying takes place during sunny weather. The temperature must be at least +18 ° C. First, females hatch from eggs, males - on the 4th or 5th day. Adults fly for about 45 days. After the fly lays an egg, it dies.

Stage of development of the larva

A week after oviposition, a white worm half a centimeter long hatches. The larva begins to eat the pulp, approaching the fruit bone.

This stage lasts 16-20 days. After its completion, when the length of the pest is already from 6 to 8 mm, it is selected and goes into the state of a pupa.

Chrysalis stage

Usually the first pupae appear in early June. In order for the fly to complete its life cycle, it needs a low temperature. That is why cocoons hibernate in the ground. They become flies in April or May of the next year.

Damage caused

The cherry fly damages all cherry varieties. The damaged fruit becomes soft, darkens and ripens ahead of time. Because of this, the cherries begin to rot and fall to the ground.

These pests can destroy the entire cherry crop. Because of them, small depressions appear on the berries. The larvae devour the flesh of the fruit, which makes it soft to the touch.

How to use sweet cherries

You can eat wormy cherries and make various jams or compotes from them. To make sure that there are no pests in the fruits, it is necessary to first clean the fruits from the larvae.

How to peel a wormy berry

To get rid of pests in cherries, they can be soaked in salt water for several hours. In particular, such a procedure is desirable before making jam or compote from berries.

Simply pour water into a large container and add a couple tablespoons of salt. You need to stir the liquid and pour the cherries into it. After 2-3 hours, the worms will get out of the berries and float to the surface.

Is it possible to eat wormy cherries

Many people eat cherries without looking inside to check for pests. And those who check throw out the berries that have been damaged by the worms.

There is a small chance of poisoning if the worm has lived inside for too long and the berry has rotted a little. But eating fresh contaminated fruit does not affect human health in any way. You can eat wormy berries without fear for your condition.

What can you do with wormy berries?

After cleaning worm cherries, you can make various compotes and jams from it. You can just eat it, but not everyone is pleased to realize that there were worms in the berries. So if a person disdains damaged berries, but it is a pity to throw them away, conservation is an excellent way out.

Cherry fly control

To fight the cherry fly, at the beginning of spring it is necessary to cover the ground around the tree trunk with black film or roofing material. They will prevent overwintered pests from flying out of the soil.

The crop must be harvested very carefully. Do not leave fruits on the tree. The fallen berries must be collected and buried half a meter in the ground.

How to spray cherries so that they are not wormy

It is advisable to process cherries with chemicals only in extreme cases, when other means have not brought any effect. For treatment, you can use any insecticide, for example: "Iskra", "Aktara", "Karate" or "Fufanon".

Important! Trees cannot be processed 14 days before harvest.

When to spray cherries for cherry fly

Cherry trees and soil must be sprayed during the period of mass emergence of flies. If chemicals are used for processing, it must be stopped two weeks before the start of the harvest.

If trees are treated with products without chemicals, it is necessary to repeat the procedure after rains.

Spraying a cherry fly from a cherry fly after flowering

Immediately after flowering, Bordeaux liquid (0.1%) must be used for treatment. If there are clear signs of infection, Topaz or Horus should be added to the solution.

After 2 or 3 weeks, you need to treat the cherry tree again with Bordeaux liquid.

How to process cherries from cherry fly

You can fight cherry flies using various means, depending on the time of year and the degree of tree infestation. First, the plant should be treated for prevention with folk remedies that do not contain chemicals.

If the tree is infected, and folk remedies cannot cope, chemical preparations must be used.

Preparations for worms on cherries

Here is a list of the most effective drugs:

"Spark"... The most appropriate would be to use the "Double Effect" series. The main components of this product are permethrin and cypermethrin. They provide the tree with 60 days of protection. Sweet cherries do not need to be re-processed even after rains.The product is sold in the form of a concentrated emulsion, which is intended for the preparation of a working solution. It costs about 20 rubles.
"Aktara"... This drug is a complex effect. It comes in powder form. To prepare a solution, you must dilute it in water. This preparation must be used to treat the crown and the ground near the trees. It costs about 40 rubles.
"Karate"... This remedy can be used to prevent cherry flies as it fights aphids. They need to spray the leaves in the morning and evening if there is no wind. The price of the drug is about 30 rubles.
"Fufanon"... This product is suitable for pest control over a large area. The drug contains thiomethoxam. They can process cherry trees in any weather. The packaging of the product costs about 20 rubles.

How to get rid of cherry flies with folk remedies

To prevent the appearance of cherry flies, you can treat the tree with a solution of folk remedies that fights aphids. These products include tobacco, wormwood decoction and laundry soap.

Spraying cherries from worms without chemicals

The best ingredient for making a chemical-free solution is pine needles. You just need to take one branch of pine or spruce, put it in a pot filled with water and bring it to a boil. Processing wood with such a tool is harmless and effective.

Important! It is necessary to process the tree with this solution after each rain.

Also, to fight worms in cherries, you can use a solution with garlic, onions, wormwood, tobacco or nightshade.

Cherry fly traps

To combat worms in cherries, it is necessary to use special glue traps. Their effectiveness is approximately 60-70 percent.

Advice! You need to hang such traps on cherries in early June.

This tool can be made by hand. To do this, you just need to cut many small pieces of red or yellow cardboard paper, grease them with glue and hang them on the tree.

When the berries have faded, you need to hang cut bottles with a sweet liquid inside on a tree. Its scent will attract insects. Traps need to be monitored, add new liquid to them and throw out dead pests.

How to deal with cherry fly on cherries: preventive measures

In order to avoid contamination of cherries with cherry fly, only early varieties of this plant can be grown. Its fruits usually ripen before the flies begin to lay their eggs.

However, even if the insect still succeeds in laying eggs, at the time of collection the larvae will be very small and invisible to the naked eye. They will not spoil the appearance of the berries and will not seriously harm the crop.

Attention! Early cherry trees do not need to be treated with cherry fly control chemicals. Therefore, the planting of this plant must be carried out away from the late and mid-season varieties, so that when they are sprayed, the substance does not fall on the early varieties.

Also, to avoid pests getting into the cherry berries, it is necessary to dig up the ground around the tree trunk before the flies fly out. This procedure helps to get rid of a significant part of the pest cocoons.

Conclusion

If a person finds a worm in a cherry, he must take immediate pest control measures, as all trees may be infected. For processing plants, you can use both folk remedies and chemical preparations. The choice of remedy should depend on the degree of infection and the time of year.

How to get rid of worms in cherries