Growing a tree is a long and complex process. And it’s a shame when your work goes to waste due to the ubiquitous pests. Some insects can be immediately noticed on leaves and branches. Others conduct their “subversive” activities under the bark.
These insects, which damage the bark and wood of trees, are classified as stem pests. Woodworms include a large group of butterflies, beetles, hymenoptera and flies. Both adult individuals and their larvae are not averse to feasting on succulent wood.
The consequence of their daily “meal” can be infection of the tree with one of the infectious diseases, which are often carried by stem pests, and even the death of the plant. Therefore, it is so important to notice the danger in time and take effective measures.
What does a nuthatch look like?
Description A small, agile bird 12-14.5 cm long, wingspan 22.5-27 cm and weighing 20-25 g; with a dense build, a large head and a short, almost invisible neck. The plumage is fluffy and thick. ... In Western Europe, Western Asia and the Caucasus, the belly is red, and the chin and neck are white.
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Dangerous hares. How to save a garden from eared pests
In snowy winters, when there is not enough food in the fields and forest edges, hares cause enormous damage to orchards, gnawing high on the bark of trees and gnawing branches with fruit buds.
Hares make their main forays into garden plots during the first snow. But they are most harmful towards the end of winter and at the beginning of spring before lambing. At this time, females require vitamins. Therefore, they mercilessly eat the trunks of young trees, causing enormous damage to the young garden, said Interfax.by expert Vladimir Tereshchuk, candidate of agricultural sciences.
Harm from hares in the garden
Making massive raids or coming to your garden one by one, hares immediately try to destroy the young, whose bark is juicier and not so hard. Having destroyed the maximum of such growth in the garden, the animals begin to destroy the bark on more mature trees. Since there is no favorite food for them now, they gradually peel off the lower layers of the bark of deciduous trees, then higher and higher, until they reach a height of up to one meter. Yes, bunnies feed while standing on their hind legs and completely exposing the most important part of any tree. This causes serious harm!
Initially, the winter cold has a harsh effect on the “bare” wood, which begins to dry out and crack. Freezing itself has a very bad effect on garden trees, because during frosts an unprotected tree dies quite often, and one without bark on the trunk, almost without exception. Enormous harm for a young garden, because hares destroy all the young branches and stems, which in the spring would be ready to produce flowering and fruits, young foliage.
How to determine that hares have visited the territory
If we do not see a “eared pest” in the garden, this does not mean that it does not exist. Hares eat tree bark at night, very wary of any rustles or movements. Due to poor eyesight, but very good hearing, with which nature has replaced some shortcomings, the animal may not catch the eye, but at the same time continue to create trouble in the garden. Few summer residents can immediately understand who exactly they are fighting with, because without seeing the enemy, it is difficult to choose a method of expelling or destroying him. But there are also certain signs by which one can recognize hare activity in the garden: Shoots of young plants are eaten to the very roots, as if someone had removed them with pruning shears; The bark on young bushes and trees, and partly on mature trees, is absent at a height of up to one meter (or simply eaten away if hares have recently visited); The relief of the dacha plot is partially spoiled by potholes; It is quite possible that you will find other traces of a guest in the garden, because the food eaten needs to go somewhere.
Maybe we are in vain sinning on a cute fluffy creature, and another animal has worked here? Let's get acquainted with the characteristic handwriting of a hare. So.
The hare stands on its hind legs and peels the bark of the tree in a circle. The trunk can be twisted up to a meter in height.
The young shoots are eaten away as if someone had cut them with scissors.
If you look closely, you will see small holes in the snow or on the ground, as if someone was digging.
Physical protection from hares
You can solve the problem of hares in one fell swoop by installing a real, strong and high fence around the area so that they cannot crawl under it or jump over it. In order for the fence to “work”, when installing it, you need to bury iron sheets about thirty centimeters into the soil to completely eliminate digging, and the height of the fence must be at least two meters, because sometimes a layer of snow can fall up to a meter or even one and a half.
The most effective way to preserve trees is to install barriers. The trunks of especially valuable varieties are wrapped with a fine net about 130 cm high; ideally, the net should be buried 30 cm into the soil, because hares are known demolitionists.
A very old method that is still used today: the trunk is tied with spruce branches in several layers from bottom to top, like a pyramid (with needles down). The spruce branches allow air to pass through, but the procedure itself is quite troublesome.
Now spruce branches have been replaced by modern materials that allow air to pass through. For example, sugar burlap. But roofing felt or dark film are not suitable for this purpose; in the spring, the black material will heat up and a too sharp temperature drop will occur: it’s cold outside the roofing felt, but warm inside. The bark may crack.
An old trick: they wrap tree trunks with old nylon tights; to enhance the effect, they can be pre-sprayed with diesel fuel or kerosene.
Cut the plastic bottles crosswise and put a ring on the barrel.
But any binding must be removed in the spring, immediately after thawed patches appear, otherwise the bark will support it.
We do not recommend setting traps for humane reasons. Still, a few kilograms of apples are not worth the life of the big-eared
There is an opinion that hares cannot stand dog hair.
It is tied to the lower ends of branches of fruit trees that the hare may be attracted to. The smellier the wool, the better. Popular
news Some gardeners are sure that hares (and mice) are repelled by the smell of wormwood. Therefore, they wrap the branches of this plant around the tree trunk.
Hanging strips of shiny material on branches is a controversial method. Some speak well of it, but most believe that after 3-4 weeks the hares get used to the tinsel and already dine without being distracted by it.
Protecting your garden from hares is one of the important concerns during the cold season. It is necessary to properly prepare for a meeting with these small animals, otherwise they can seriously damage young trees and shrubs. In spring, summer and early autumn, when there is a lot of greenery in the fields and forest belts, few rabbits will run into your summer cottage. Yes, without a doubt, hares can get into your garden or vegetable garden if they find a lot of succulent food there in the form of seedlings and older cultivated plants, but this happens extremely rarely. Animals flock to villages and dacha cooperatives closer to winter, when their permanent habitat becomes more dangerous and hungry. By and large, hares could live in a field, but they do not dig holes like rabbits. They build their nests or kublas in low-lying parts of the terrain, huddling under dry grass. But in winter they are much more comfortable in our gardens, where it is not so windy, they can hide behind a hayloft or in a mountain of dry weeds, and also go to the garden for lunch at any time. It is here that the most delicious and juicy winter food now remains - the bark of trees and the stems of younger plants.
Chemical methods of protection against garden hares
To protect already grown seedlings, mature bushes and trees, use a special garden whitewash for trunks. Ready-made mixtures for whitewashing already contain preparations that will additionally protect the garden from hares. If you prepare whitewash yourself, add iron sulfate or copper oxychloride to the solution.
We recommend: do not whitewash young seedlings after autumn planting, so as not to burn the still tender bark - it is better to use a net to protect against hares.
Nowadays a special whitewash is sold that is not washed off by rain and contains copper sulfate.
I hang ribbons soaked in tar on the branches.
Signs of garden damage by hares
Shy hares in spring and summer, rarely enter gardens, but in winter they raid and eat bark and branches up to a height of 100-120 cm. And it is difficult to see uninvited guests, they feed at dusk and at night. Hares stand on their hind legs and even reach young skeletal branches, and if the snowdrifts are high, they eat the crown of young trees and severely damage berry bushes. If you notice at least one of these signs, it’s clear that the garden is visited by hares and the plants need protection:
Thin branches are cut as if by pruning shears.
The trunks of bushes and trees, skeletal branches are damaged, deprived of bark from the bottom of the trunk to a height of 150 cm, if there are snowdrifts around the seedlings.
Small excavations under the fence of the site.
Traces of hare droppings in the garden.
Advantages of the protective mesh:
The mesh allows air to pass through, so there is no stagnation of moisture near the bark.
Rodents do not penetrate through the mesh and you can safely fill the space between the trunk and the mesh with fallen leaves to insulate the plants.
It is important to know: wrapping trunks with roofing felt, cardboard, or burlap often leads to rotting of the bark due to stagnant moisture. Overheating and cracking of the bark is possible due to differences in day and night temperatures in winter.
Wrap the netting directly around the trunk. But before installing the mesh, many gardeners place several pegs around the tree, at a distance of 20-30 cm from the trunk, and then fasten them along them. Between the mesh and the trunk you can put insulating materials - agrofibre or just dry leaves. And you don’t have to take off such protection for the summer. A protective mesh installed in this way will not interfere with tree care (our mesh is 19.5 cm wide)
And the simplest and most proven method by the author of this article is to wrap the young trunks of apple and pear trees and drains with ordinary newspaper. Printed newspaper contains lead. Hares cannot stand the smell of lead and do not touch the trunks of such trees.
If the hares have already eaten the trees
It is necessary to carefully cover the wounds with garden varnish or oil paint based on drying oil. If the damage is small, it will quickly heal, but if the gnaws are large, the sap flow will be disrupted and the tree will not be saved.
Two types of hares can visit our gardens: the white hare and the brown hare.
The white hare dresses in a white fur coat in winter. He is a forest dweller and rarely goes beyond his territory.
The hare is gray. Resident of fields and open spaces. Tries to stay close to the villages. There is something to chew on here, especially in winter, when the grass in the fields is covered with snow.
Hares come out for a snack at dusk and feed until dark.
The mesh is used repeatedly; it is a rational and environmentally friendly method of protection. The protective mesh is made of fine-mesh plastic, which will reliably protect against rodents and will last in the garden for many years.
If there is a coniferous forest nearby, then instead of a net the trunks are tied with spruce or pine branches and placed with the needles down.
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Mole
Another animal that a person tries with all his might to expel from his plot is the mole. Unlike rats and mice, it does not feed on the roots of the plants under which it digs. The mole belongs to the insectivorous mammals.
His favorite “delicacy” is earthworms. But he will not refuse to eat insect larvae that harm cultivated plants. So in some sense it even brings benefits. However, constantly digging tunnels in search of food, the mole turns out seedlings, undermines the roots of plants, and its hummocks spoil the appearance of the lawn and beds.
The mole prefers to live on fertile soils, where it is easier for him to find food, because per day this animal eats as much as it weighs.
Unlike mice and rats, moles reproduce once a year. At the end of May - beginning of June, the female gives birth to from three to nine cubs. And already at the end of June, young diggers, having left their parental hole, begin to dig their own tunnels.
There are many ways to force moles to leave the place they inhabit: from folk methods to the latest technical innovations.
- Is it possible to drive moles out of the garden forever?
Moles annually cause incredible damage to summer cottages. Is it possible to prevent the dominance of these harmful mammals?
Habitats
It is not very difficult to determine where beavers live. Having noticed fallen trees with a characteristic cone-shaped cut near reservoirs, as well as ready-made dams built by animals, one can conclude that they are somewhere nearby. It would be great luck to come across a beaver’s home - this is already an unambiguous marker of the presence of a friendly family. They settle in slow-flowing forest rivers, streams, reservoirs, and lakes.
In the first decade of the last century, beavers in the wild could have completely disappeared in most countries of the world. Russia was no exception. Fortunately, the situation was corrected thanks to measures taken to protect these animals.
The river beaver now feels free throughout almost the entire country. The European part of Russia, the Yenisei basin, the southern part of Western Siberia, Kamchatka - these are the places where beavers live.
Appearance
It is believed that the river beaver is the largest rodent in Russia and neighboring countries . The size of the beaver, or the length of the beaver , is a little more than a meter, the height reaches 40 cm. The weight of the beaver is about 30 kg.
He has beautiful shiny fur, almost waterproof. On top there is coarser thick hair, below there is soft dense undercoat. The coat color is dark and light chestnut, dark brown or black.
The animal has a squat body, short limbs with five-fingered swimming membranes and strong claws. The tail is shaped like an oar, up to 30 cm long, covered with horny scales and sparse hairs. The rodent's eyes are small, its ears are short and wide. This description of the beaver will not allow it to be confused with other aquatic rodents.
Who gnaws the bark of an apple tree?
Mice gnaw not only the bark and trunks of young apple trees; these animals can even destroy the roots of an old tree. If in the spring an apple tree has fallen to one side and its trunk easily turns in the ground, it means that most of the roots are damaged - the tree will certainly die, since it is not receiving nutrition.
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Notes
- 1 2 Sokolov V. E. Five-language dictionary of animal names. Mammals. Latin, Russian, English, German, French. / under the general editorship of academician. V. E. Sokolova. - M.: Rus. lang., 1984. - P. 151. - 10,000 copies.
- 1 2 Mammals. Large encyclopedic dictionary / scientific. ed. d.b. n. I. Ya. Pavlinov. - M.: LLC “Firm Publishing House ACT”, 1999. - P. 28-29. — 416 p. — ISBN 5-237-03132-3.
- Ozhegov S.I. Dictionary of the Russian language. — 4th ed. - M.: State Publishing House of Foreign and National Dictionaries, 1961. - P. 50. - 900+ pp.
- O. E. Ivanova, V. V. Lopatin (ed.), I. V. Nechaeva, L. K. Cheltsova. Russian spelling dictionary: about 180,000 words. — 2nd ed., rev. and additional.. - M.: Russian Academy of Sciences. Institute of Russian Language named after. V. V. Vinogradova, 2004. - 960+ p.
- Hunting, hunter, hunting weapon, beaver hunting, ammunition, dressing, beaver stream
- For the first time in 500 years, a beaver set foot on British soil // . — October 27, 2005.
- Beavers caused flooding in Poland
- Batbold, J., Batsaikhan, N., Shar, S., Amori, G., Hutterer, R., Kryštufek, B., Yigit, N., Mitsain, G. & Muñoz, L. J. P. (2008). Castor fiber (English). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Date of access (Retrieved November 22, 2009).
- The Red Book of Russia. River beaver, West Siberian subspecies
- The Red Book of Russia. River beaver, Tuvan subspecies
- Hardworking pests. Beavers threaten the operation of Krasnoyarsk power plants — Krasnoyarsk — Regions —
- Beaver pests continue to destroy our roads. The shooting has already begun
- Beavers flooded a road in the Kaliningrad region: From life:
- https://wildlife.by/ecology/news/V+Karelii+bobri+zatopili+poselki/
- Meduza: In Latvia, an aggressive beaver captured a man
Reproduction
Mating occurs in January-February. And after three months, 3-6 half-blind cubs are born. Newborns weigh only 400-600 g. They gain weight gradually while their mother feeds them milk throughout the summer. Inexperienced and weak children also spend the winter with their parents. They usually leave the parental home after 2 years.
It is known quite accurately how long beavers live. Under natural conditions – about 15 years.
Beavers are the only rodents that can walk confidently on two legs. In the front ones they hold branches, stones, and tree bark. Females carry their young in this way.
Third eyelid
In order for this mammal to better navigate in the water, nature has endowed it with a transparent third eyelid.
It is believed that the flat tail helps them move through the water. However, it is not. The webbed hind legs serve this purpose. The tail acts as a stabilizer, thanks to which the animal maintains balance. It also helps regulate body temperature. The tail is also a pantry for storing fat. With the help of this part of the body, beavers warn each other of danger: they hit the surface of the water with it, creating a loud sound.
Massive beaver tail
By the way, these rodents are the only ones in their group capable of building their own homes. Moreover, they are good builders. Their dams are strong, and beavers always choose the places where they are located well.
They do not teach their children the skill of constructing platinums. This skill is genetic. As soon as the little beaver becomes independent, he begins to build a dam.
Someone has to go
Despite which animal feeds on tree bark in winter and which one hibernates, some representatives of the fauna do not survive severe cold weather due to natural reasons. When predators go hunting, the chances of moose, hares and other herbivores to survive the winter, unfortunately, are significantly reduced. And all because every creature in nature is a link in the food chain, and herbivores are the best food for predators in winter. Here the presence of tree bark does not solve much. This is how harsh it is - this natural selection.
Signs of the presence of stem pests on a tree
Stem pests mainly attack weakened trees damaged by disease and weather. Industrial pollution, changes in groundwater levels, and damage to the root system also undermine the immunity of plantations.
However, certain types of insects also attack healthy trees. It has long been noted that the activity of pests is influenced by an unfavorable environmental situation. Most of them are oligophages, i.e. prefer related tree species, which they select by smell.
Insects that are the first to settle on the “prey” secrete pheromones that attract their relatives. They arrange “apartments” for themselves both on individual branches or parts of the tree, and on the entire trunk.
The presence of pests can be guessed by direct and indirect signs. Partial or complete drying of branches refers to the latter, because there may be other reasons for this.
But loose and fallen bark with patterns of passages on it, the appearance of inlet and outlet holes in the trunk, small sawdust, the so-called “drill flour” on the bark and under the tree are direct signs of the dangerous presence of insects.
If they are found, you should carefully examine the tree to find out who you will have to fight with and what measures to take.
Dwellings
On high banks with hard ground, beavers dig burrows. The entrance to them is located under water. A beaver's burrow is a complex labyrinth with several holes, chambers, and entrances and exits. The partitions between the “rooms” are tightly compacted, and the inside is kept clean. The animals throw the leftover food into the river and are carried away by the current.
The name of a beaver's dwelling, which differs from a burrow, can be understood by its appearance, which resembles a small house with a sloping roof. The animal first builds one small “room” up to one and a half meters high.
Uses branches of different lengths and thicknesses, clay, grass. The walls are compacted with silt and clay, leveled by biting off protruding branches. The “floor” is covered with wood shavings. This is the beaver's hut.
As the family grows, its caring head completes and expands his living space. The beaver lodge is being replenished with new “rooms”, and another floor is being built.
A beaver's house can reach more than 3 meters in height! The painstaking work and engineering ingenuity of the animal amazes the imagination.
From predators to herbivores!
It is worth noting that moose, hares and beavers are not the only answer to the question: “What animal feeds on tree bark in winter?” The above-mentioned animals are, rather, leaders in eating tree bark. In addition to them, we can also remember about wild boars, which are also not averse to gnawing trees. Moreover, even some members of the canine family eat the bark. It all depends on the condition of the animal in winter. Sometimes even the most ardent predators cannot find more tolerable food for themselves than tree bark. It is known that wolves, being destroyers of wounded and sick animals, become scavengers in winter. But during a particularly unfavorable period, they turn into “herbivores”: in order to survive, they are forced to chew cones, tear frozen berries under the snow and, of course, strip the bark from trees.
Winter dream
Animal life in winter is a real struggle for survival! It’s just that everyone has their own ways of fighting. For example, badgers, bears and raccoon dogs in the summer try to accumulate as much subcutaneous fat as possible, thanks to which they can survive the harsh cold. These animals will be able to accumulate a sufficient amount of fat reserves only if the year turns out to be favorable and fruitful. Before the onset of cold weather, they prepare holes (like badgers) or dens (like bears) and retire, falling into winter sleep. By the way, these animals sleep very lightly. There were cases when hunters did not even have time to get to the bear’s den, when the animal heard them in a dream and ran away from there.
