Onion fly - an insidious pest, capable of completely destroying the entire future crop of onions . Experienced horticulturists know firsthand about the situation when young green shoots of onions start to turn yellow and wither. And the guilt in this often turns out to be a harmless insect with the appearance. It lays its gluttonous larvae in the bulbs used for planting. For this reason, the struggle with the onion fly is conducted by all possible means, including the people's means. We'll talk about them in our article.
How to get rid of the onion fly folk remedies?
Many owners of household plots today refuse to use any insecticides, since all these chemicals are extremely toxic and carry in themselves harmful substances that can accumulate both in the soil and in the plants themselves. Folk remedies are much more harmless, and it is often thanks to them that they manage to get rid of annoying pests.
So, against the onion fly are considered effective such folk remedies:
- It's no secret that preventive measures are more preferable, because getting rid of pests that have already appeared is much more difficult than preventing them from appearing. And since larvae of onion fly penetrate to the site most often with planting material, the main measure of prevention in this case will be the appropriate preparation of onion-sowing. It is recommended to warm it at a temperature of 20 ... 25С °, pour salt water for 3 hours, and then rinse and for another 2 hours soak in a solution of potassium permanganate. After this, the sowing should be slightly dried and planted in the garden.
- Also a good way is to plant the onions next to the carrots, the smell of which will scare off the onion fly. At the same time, the carrot fly does not like the neighborhood of the onion, and such a mixed planting can solve both problems simultaneously. And, of course, it is not necessary to thicken the planting - the garden with the onion should be well ventilated.
- It helps well against the onion fly that parasitizes onions, and such folk remedy as kerosene. In a bucket of water, dilute 1 tablespoon of kerosene, and then with a watering can water the garden bed with onions (no more than 4-5 m). Onion fly after such a procedure usually disappears, but if necessary, you can repeat it again.
- Earlier, when insecticides were not as prevalent as they are today, the fight against the onion fly was carried out exclusively by folk remedies, and one of the best was considered such. In 10 liters of water, dilute ½ teaspoon boric acid , the same amount of potassium permanganate, 3 drops of iodine and 1-2 tablespoons of ammonia. A small amount of this liquid should be poured under each individual plant, and the onion fly is guaranteed to leave your site.
- Also, the onion fly does not like the smells of pine needles and mint, wormwood and valerian. Cope with the pest will help a concentrated tincture or a decoction of these herbs.
- Wood ash is not only a good fertilizer, but also a natural insecticide. In the infusion of ash, you can add tobacco dust or a little red ground pepper.
- Cope with the larvae of the onion fly will help the laundry soap. It is used in a ratio of 50 g of soap per 10 liters of water.
- After the harvest is collected, the soil at this place should be dug. This will help to eliminate pupated larvae, which will rise to the surface together with clods of earth and die as soon as frost hits.
As you can see, protection of onions from onion fly by folk remedies is fully justified. These methods can be alternated or combined until the pest finally leaves your crops.