Boxwood, or buxus, is a decorative evergreen shrub or low tree, used since ancient times to decorate gardens and produce extremely strong and durable wood. It lives a long time, but can be attacked by a dangerous pest - the boxwood moth. This voracious insect is capable of destroying perennial, and even centuries-old, plantings and natural bushes at the roots.
What kind of pest is the boxwood moth?
This is an invasive species that has appeared in Europe relatively recently, starting in 2006 when the butterflies were spotted in Germany.Since then, it has spread to many countries and caused a lot of damage to boxwood plantings. The insect's homeland is Southeast Asia (Japan, China, Taiwan, India, the Korean Peninsula) and the Far East.
The adult butterfly has triangular light wings with a dark brownish border. After the female lays eggs on the boxwood, caterpillars hatch, up to 40 millimeters long, yellowish-green in color, with two rows of convex black dots along the body and with wide gray, narrow white stripes along the back and sides. Also, white hairs are sparsely scattered throughout the caterpillar's body. She has a large black head. The pupa overwinters on the boxwood. It is also colored yellowish-green. During a season, a moth can give birth to, on average, three offspring.
The pest eats the dense, leathery boxwood leaf in just 4 hours, and does not disdain the plant’s bark. As a result of the spread of the moth, all bush plantations and relict forests can be completely destroyed.
Signs of appearance
One of the first signs of the presence of boxwood moth is the formation of a dense layer of whitish cobwebs. The caterpillars envelop the damaged areas of the bush with it. Also noteworthy is the unpleasant odor emitted by processed leaves and branches, and insect waste products.
While the foliage is not eaten, pests hide behind it. A severely affected plant turns brown, becomes bare and dies within a short period of time. When the caterpillar destroys all available bushings, it can “spread” to a nearby maple, larch or ash tree.
How to get rid of a pest?
The moth must be destroyed as soon as the first pests are discovered.Eggs and caterpillars are collected by hand or the damaged ends of the shoots are cut off. The collected branches, cocoons and pests are burned. When insects spread, you will have to use chemical or biological treatment.
You can also reduce the number of pests by regularly pruning plants.
By chemical means
You can protect boxwood from the pest using drugs based on pyrethroids - “Actellik”, “Bi-58”, “Fufanon”, based on lambda-cyhalothrin and deltamethrin - “Decis”, “Operkot”, “Enzhio”, systemic action - “ Aktara" or "Confidor Maxi".
When using chemical means to kill the boxwood moth, you need to take into account that the effectiveness of the drugs reaches two weeks, and the butterfly’s reproduction cycle is 40 days. Therefore, it is necessary to repeat the treatments several times with an interval of 10-14 days, while alternating various means - systemic and contact action.
Biological methods
The following biological preparations act on the boxwood moth:
- "Aktofit".
- "Guapsin", which helps against younger caterpillars.
- "Lepidocide."
- "Bitoxibacillin."
When using various methods of killing the moth, it is necessary to use adhesives to ensure that the active drugs reach the largest possible number of leaves and shoots.
Prevention measures
In order to avoid mass infection with boxwood moth, it is necessary to carry out the following preventive measures:
- Regular inspection of plantings with rapid destruction of pests, before the butterflies have time to begin active reproduction.
- Attracting birds to the garden that readily eat caterpillars and butterflies.
- High agricultural technology. Constant care prevents the proliferation of pests. Treated soil and frequent spraying with biological agents help reduce the number of pests dangerous to boxwood and other plants.
- Regular pruning of buxus bushes.
- Collecting caterpillars and butterflies by hand. This is effective when the pest spreads insignificantly and helps prevent an increase in the number of boxwood moths.
- Breeding of ichneumon wasps, which can parasitize the caterpillars of the box moth.
Careful attention to boxwood plantings will help preserve both relict buxus forests and modern decorative plantings in gardens and parks.
