Coniferous evergreen shrubs adorn almost every summer cottage. They captivate with their decorative, persisting throughout the year, unpretentiousness in care, resistance to cold and adverse environmental factors. However, like most ornamental plants, juniper in the garden can hurt and be attacked by pests. How to protect the bush from such troubles, let's talk in this article.
Did you know? In addition to decorative, juniper has soil-protective and water protection value. From its shoots get the essential oil, and the berries are used in traditional medicine.
Signs and ways to combat juniper diseases
Most often, juniper suffers from any illness in the spring, when its immune system did not return to normal after the winter period. The overmoistening of the soil during spring floods and the raising of the groundwater level have a negative effect on the ornamentation of the plant. His needles turn yellow and die off. Spring temperature drops and freezing often lead to freezing of the crown and roots. Young bushes are especially susceptible to this.
Junipers may also suffer from spring burns or physiological drying, which are manifested by yellowing of the needles and further shedding. This happens due to the fact that at the first spring rays of the sun, in late February - early March, the crown of the shrub gets very hot, photosynthesis is actively taking place in it, which requires moisture. Not being able to take water from frozen ground, juniper consumes intracellular fluid tissues. In order to protect the plant from this phenomenon, in February-March it is necessary to priten it with agrospan, lutrasil, spunbond, spruce fur twigs or other materials.
However, fungal infectious diseases still pose a great danger to coniferous shrubs. On the most common of them and the care of juniper in the period of illness, see below.
Alternaria Juniper
Alternaria - an infectious disease spread by the fungus Alternaria tenuis. Its symptoms are brown needles and black velvety plaque on it. As a result of the lesion, the needles crumble, and the branches dry out. The pathogen lives in the bark, needles and plant residues. The cause of its activity are thickened landing. Control measures. To avoid this disease, you must follow the rules of juniper agrotechnology. Also, in spring and autumn, preventive sprays are carried out with 1% Bordeaux liquid, the “HOM” preparation.
The affected branches should be cut off, the cut-off sites should be disinfected with copper sulphate (1%), covered with garden pitch or oil paint with drying oil in the composition. In case of severe damage in the summer, treatment with Bordeaux liquid or its analogs is recommended.
Important! When using chemical preparations for juniper diseases, it is necessary to first treat one shrub. If during the day there will be no undesirable reaction from the plant, then you can spray other junipers.
Juniper biortella cancer
Another dangerous fungal disease for juniper bushes is biorella cancer. It appears as brown spots on the bark, which eventually dries and cracks, ulcers and fruit bodies form on it. Then the juniper turns yellow, and the needles fall.
The causative agent of this disease is the fungus Biatorella difformis, which is stored in the bark of the plant. Causes of the disease - mechanical damage to the cortex. The infection is transmitted through infected planting plants and with thick and dense plantings.
Control measures. In the treatment and prevention of biorcellular cancer, the same methods are used as in case of Alternaria (see above).
Juniper bark nectriosis
Necriosis of the bark of the branches caused by the fungus Nectria cucurbitula leads to yellowing and dropping of needles, the death of the branches and the death of the whole plant. Its distribution first leads to the formation of red sporulation foci on the cortex, which later darken and dry. The cause of the activity of the pathogen are dense plantings of shrubs. Control measures. When treating nectriosis of the bark of the juniper branches, the same methods are used as in case of Alternaria. For the prevention of infection using spring and autumn treatment of juniper from pests and diseases fungicides. One or two times is enough to significantly reduce the risk of infection. The first treatment can be carried out with a tank mixture of "Ridomila Gold MC", "Caesar" and sodium humate. After two or three weeks, it is possible to use Strobe ("Skor", "Quadris") and lignohumate for repeated spraying.
Did you know? The most attractive for infections and parasites are thickened, sprawling juniper bushes.
Juniper Rust
Juniper rust symptoms are orange-colored growths on the branches that contain the pathogenic fungi Gymnosporangium confusum, G. juniperinum, G. sabinae. Spores of fungi are rapidly spread by wind to other cultures. Juniper branches dry out, needles fall off. Frequent result is the death of the shrub. Two types of juniper are most susceptible to rust: virginian and cossack.
Important! Since these mushrooms have a complex development cycle, which presupposes the presence of two hosts - usually juniper and rosaceous (pear, apple, irga, hawthorn, mountain ash, quince), for the purposes of prevention it is necessary to plant these cultures away from each other or to make a barrier between them from other plants.
Control measures. Unfortunately, the treatment of this disease can not be. The branches with the tumors are removed, the cut sections are disinfected and covered with garden pitch, oil paint. Healthy branches are treated with fungicides. Measures to prevent the occurrence of rust will be spraying juniper in the spring with such preparations as Tilt, Bayleton, Ridomil Gold MC, Vectra, etc.
Tracheomycotic wilt (fusarium) of juniper
Fusarium infection occurs from the soil through the root system. The fungus pathogen Fusarium oxysporum first leads to darkening of the roots. Then it penetrates the vascular system of the plant, as a result of which the shrub supply is disturbed. Juniper dies gradually - at first the needles on the apical shoots turn red, then individual branches dry out, and finally the whole bush becomes dry. Medium and virgin species are most susceptible to this dangerous disease.
Control measures. In order to prevent the development of this disease in my garden, it is necessary to carefully choose planting material, not to buy it in questionable places, but to buy it only in specialized stores. If you doubt the quality of the plant, the soil and roots before planting in open ground must be disinfected "Fitosporin", "Maxim", "Quadris."
The soil is already subject to disinfection under the diseased plant with Fitosporin-M, Gamar, and Fundazol solutions. It will be even better if it can be replaced, since the preparations cannot guarantee 100% removal of pathogens. Dry infected branches must be trimmed and destroyed in a timely manner.
Drying of juniper branches
If in spring the juniper begins to turn yellow and drop needles, and then the branches dry up one after the other, then most likely you are dealing with a disease called shrinking of the branches of the juniper and excited by a number of pathogenic fungi. The pathogens manifest themselves a little later - in the form of small dark fruiting bodies on the bark. Reproduction of mushrooms contribute to dense planting, heavy soils, poor air conduction of the earth.
Control measures. With a minor lesion, the diseased branches are removed and destroyed, followed by disinfection of the sections. The shrub is treated with fungicides. With the massive spread of mushrooms juniper is no longer salvaged. It must be removed and burned, and the soil sanitized.
Juniper shutte
When infected with ordinary shyutte, juniper needles turn brown or dark yellow. Then it dries, but does not fall for a long time. By the end of summer, the needles are covered with traces of sporulation of the Lophodermium juniperinum mushroom - black fruit bodies up to 1.5 mm in size.
Control measures. In the spring and autumn of spraying chemicals for prevention. Thorough cleaning of fallen needles and pruning of affected branches. With a strong lesion treatment is carried out in the summer. To do this, apply Bordeaux liquid, preparations "HOM", "Ridomil Gold MC", etc.
Brown shyutte juniper (brown snow mold of conifers)
The development of the disease brown shyutte occurs under the snow. When he comes off, the needles of the diseased juniper are colored yellow or brown. The needles are shrouded in cobwebs, which houses the mycelium Herpotrichia juniperi and N. nigra. Later black fruit bodies are formed in the form of small balls. Brown and dry needles do not fall for a long time. Snowy shyutte podkashivaet most often weakened plants, junipers growing in the shade and on soils with high humidity.
Control measures. Preventive spring and autumn spraying with fungicides. Top dressing of plants with fertilizers. For treatment use drugs "Kvadris", "Ridomil Gold MC", "Strobe", etc.
Important! Since pathogens tend to develop resistance to drugs used for prophylactic and therapeutic treatment, it is advisable to alternate them.
Juniper pest control
Juniper pest attacks rarely. The greatest harm from them is caused by sucking parasites: ticks, scutes, moths and aphids. They can lead to the death of the plant.
Galliches
Galliums are small mosquitoes (2.2 mm). Gall midges larvae form sprouts at the ends of sprouts — galls in the form of cones up to 10 mm high. When the larvae mature, the tops of the needles bend outwards.
Control measures. Spraying systemic fungicides. Cutting and burning branches with galls formed.
Spruce Spider Mite
If the needles are entangled with cobwebs, covered with yellow spots and showered - this is evidence of the life of the spruce spider mite. These sucking insects, quickly and often breeding, are capable of causing great harm to the juniper, so much so that by the end of summer there will be no trace of its former ornamentation. Young seedlings with a tick may die.
Control measures. For the prevention of tick attacks, it is necessary to provide proper care to both young and adult plants. Spray them periodically to increase moisture. In case of mass lesions with tick, apply acaricides.
Juniper sawfly
Sawfly larvae harm the needles and juniper sprouts by gnawing their internal tissues.
Control measures. Since the juniper sawfly lives in the soil, the digging of the trunk circle is recommended. With a slight spread of the pest will help the manual destruction of nests and larvae. With a massive lesion - processing infusions and decoctions of plants, insecticides.
Juniper aphid
Juniper aphid is a small wingless insect (3 mm) of brown color with two dark stripes. Aphid infects young plants. It sucks the juice out of them, as a result of which the scrub stops in its development, weakens, becomes more susceptible to infectious diseases, and the shoots become deformed.
Control measures. Since the aphids are carried by garden ants, it is necessary first of all to deal with the root cause - to destroy the anthills located in close proximity. To remove aphids from a bush, it will need to be treated with soapy water several times per season with an interval of 7-10 days (10 g of soap / 10 l of water). In case of mass lesions, bio and chemical preparations are used. For example, you can spend two spraying with an interval of two weeks with a biological preparation "Fitoverm".
Juniper Shchitovka
It is a light brown insect, covered on top with a flap. Reaches the sizes of 1-1,5 mm. Sucking the juice, greatly harms the young plants that stop growing and may die. In adult plants, when a shield is damaged, the needles turn brown, dry and fall off.
Control measures. Spraying insecticides "Aktara", "Confidor", "Calypso", etc. Processing is carried out in two or three visits. Drugs recommended alternate. From gentle methods you can use trapping belts and barrel cleaning manually.
Ants
Ants are dangerous in the first place because they transport sucking insects such as aphids, scutes, and bills. They also live in the roots of plants, rotting wood.
Control measures. Treatment of anthills with drugs "Aktellik", "Fufanon", pouring boiling water on them. During the growing season of plants, the preparations "Thunder", "Medvetoks", "Ants" and others make the anthills and the places of clusters.
Angled wing pine moth
The winged pine moth is a small purple butterfly with a wingspan of 3.5 cm. The butterfly for juniper itself is not a threat. But its larvae feed on needles. They appear in the middle of summer. They have a body 3 cm long green with longitudinal dark stripes. They pupate in the soil.
Control measures. Digging the ground in the wheel circle. Spring and repeated (if necessary) summer treatment with enteric insecticides.
Snails
Snails feed on pine needles and juniper shoots. Massively multiply during periods of heavy rainfall. They also like to live in shaded and dense places, on littered soils.
Control measures. Manual collection and destruction. Weeding, thinning dense planting of juniper.
As we see, there are a lot of diseases and pests that trap juniper. However, if you comply with all agrotechnical requirements, select high-quality planting materials, care for the plant, carry out preventive treatments and strengthen its immune system, it is highly likely that you will not see signs of any of the ailments described in this article on your coniferous handsome.
