Cereal flies and their dangers!

Cereal flies are a serious problem during the early stages of winter wheat vegetation.

The main pest flies on cereal crops are: Swedish oat fly (Oscinella frit), barley Swedish fly (Oscinella pusilla), black wheat fly (Phorbia securis), Opomyza (Opomyza florum) and Hessian fly (Mayetiola destructor). 

After hatching, the larva penetrates the shoot and spirals towards the growth cone or ear bud, eating away all the delicate tissues on its way. As a result of the damage, the central leaf turns yellow and withers, and the shoot is depressed and dies. 

In cereal crops, damage usually causes the entire plant to die by the beginning of tillering. Under dry weather conditions, damage can kill up to 90% of wheat crops.

Larvae and puparia overwinter inside wintering or wild cereals, and the wheat fly can also overwinter in pupae. Puparia are found on plant debris as well as in the soil. 

One of the most damaging species is the Swedish fly, a common representative of the entomofauna of grain crops, which has a hugĕ areal, occurring practically in all areas of grain crops cultivation.

Numerous studies show that in autumn and spring the Swedish fly larvae damage only young stems.

The most optimal period for egg laying is the 2-3 leaf phase of the crop. Plants with 4 leaves are unattractive, and female flies do not lay eggs on stems with 5-6 leaves.

The economic threshold of harmfulness of the Swedish fly on wheat is 6 larvae per 100 stems.
 

Pre-sowing dressing of seeds with insecticidal protectants is highly effective against grain fly larvae. The best solution to deal with this problem for sowing spring and winter grain crops is Orpheu, WG (acetamiprid, 200 g/kg) at the rate of 0.8-1.0 kg/t.

To prevent and control development of cereal fly populations during vegetation, insecticidal treatment with Organza, KS (acetamiprid, 100 g/l + lambda-cyhalothrin, 100 g/l) at the rate of 0.2 l/ha should be applied; Break, ME (lambda-cyhalothrin, 100 g/l) - 100 - 150 ml/ha or Sempai, ME (esfenvalirate, 50 g/l), at the recommended rate of 0.3 - 0.35 l/ha. 

Only a complex of agro-technological measures and compliance with the regulations on the application of preparations can curb the rapid development of various pest populations, including cereal flies.

IMEXAGRO - technology for success!