Experienced gardeners, most likely, already know who such a ground beetle (Carabidae) is and what useful functions it performs in the garden.
For novice gardeners and gardeners, it will not be superfluous to learn more about this giant beetle, common in almost all of our regions. The beetle is also called - ground beetle forest, garden, ordinary.
Important! For the backyard plot or garden, all types of these beetles will be useful, with the exception of one - the ground beetle (ground beetle black), which must be destroyed if you have cereals.
Ground beetles: description
Speaking about how the ground beetle looks like, you need to know that the species of this beetle are diverse and we have up to 2700 of its subspecies. Differences will be in size - the size of the body, legs, antennae, color, some features of the development of insects.
Did you know? In total, more than 32,000 (!) Representatives of the ground beetles family are known in the world.
Often found garden ground beetle is a large mustache beetle up to 1.7-3 cm in length, of dark graphite color with a metallic luster. On the body on the flaps - small golden points, dents and oblong grooves. It has developed strong legs that allow you to quickly and deftly move, and also, as a ground beetle is a predator, powerful strong jaws.Features of the life cycle of ground beetle
Females lay from 50 to 80 eggs at a time, choosing for this fertile, fairly moist area in the upper layer of the earth. Then the eggs appear from the larvae. With the time (from 3-4 weeks and in some species up to two years) the larva of the ground beetle turns into a pupa, which then becomes an adult insect. Adult individuals are nocturnal - they hunt at night, but during the day they remain in shelter. What does the ground beetle eat and where does the ground beetle live? It feeds mainly on caterpillars, towaiting worms, slugs, snails, as well as small insects, flies, mollusks, seeds and plant roots. The dwelling where the ground beetle lives is either shallow soil layers, or on the surface at the base of grasses, bushes, and under stones. Ground beetles live in small groups, which may include beetles of different species.
Did you know? Ground beetle is a long-lived beetle. Lives - 3-5 years and good winters, hiding under barns, storage facilities, the foundation of houses.
What is the use of ground beetles in the garden, how to attract ground beetles
Ground beetles eat harmful garden insects, caterpillars, snails and slugs, which destroy home gardens and garden crops. The ground beetle is the easiest, natural and environmentally friendly way to combat these pests. That is, if the ground beetles are many, then you can do without chemicals and drugs to combat garden pests. And thus get a clean crop and avoid unnecessary spending on chemical protection.
Ground beetle saves the crop by destroying mature pests and, in fact, does not allow them to multiply. Meanwhile, not all chemical preparations act equally well at different stages of pest development, and precisely because of this, it is necessary to make several sprays per season.
Important! AT an average of one ground beetle in the summer months kills from 150 to 300 larvae, pupae and adult caterpillars.
Therefore, these orderlies do not need to be destroyed, but on the contrary, it is desirable to increase their population in the area. If the question is how to quickly attract more ground beetles to your garden or garden, then, first, you need to create a habitat for them. To do this, leave at the site pieces of wood bark, piles of leaves, sawdust, small stones - all that will serve as a refuge for the bugs. And secondly, if possible, do not use chemicals for pest control. Ground beetles are sensitive to chemicals that also act detrimental to them.
Who feeds on the ground beetle are birds, but they do it infrequently because of one particular feature of the beetles. At danger (as well as for immobilization of prey), beetles emit an unpleasant substance, so the birds try to avoid ground beetles.
Can a ground beetle harm the garden
For gardens, more precisely fields and crops, grain (black) ground beetle or hunchbacked pune is dangerous. And the reason is what this ground beetle eats. Instead of garden pests, it eats leaves, shoots (larvae) and grain of cereals, and both cultivated, which is especially important, and wild. Besides the fact that beetles eat grains, they sap an ear, and whole grains fall to the ground. Approximate yield losses can be 30-35 grains in 10-12 days from one adult beetle.
Ground beetle on the description differs from the garden. It is richly black in color, smaller - 1.3-1.6 cm in length, with short brown or red antennae, perfectly adapted to the arid and hot climate. The peak of the invasion of bred beetles on crops - the end of May and the beginning of June.
Did you know? Black ground beetle can also affect maize. And sometimes with a shortage of food to survive, it can feed on weed seeds.
How to deal with ground beetle
The ground beetle pest is susceptible to the following insecticides - pyrethroids, neonicatinoids, organophosphates. These are chemicals used in the fields for spraying and seed dressing before sowing. There are agrotechnical techniques, how to deal with black ground beetle. This is a complete harvesting of the previous crop, respect for crop rotation, deep plowing and weeding of stubble, additional cultivation is also desirable.
Farmers will not be superfluous to know about natural, accessible to everyone and harmless methods of pest control in gardens and vegetable gardens.
