MAIN PESTS OF THE PEAR TREE AND THEIR BIOECOLOGY

Аннотация

The article studies the main pests of the peach tree and their bioecology. The research was mainly conducted between 2023and 2024. Pear lace bug (Stephanitis pyri F.) The adult pear lace bug is 3-3.5 mm long, with a dark brown to black body. The forewings are reticulated (net-like), transparent like glass, with irregular dark spots and prominent venation. The hindwings are reduced. The tip of the female’s abdomen is rounded. The eggs are elongated, about 0.4 mm long, dark gray to black in color. Nymphs are 0.6-2.3 mm long, flattened, and light brown. From the third instar onward, wing pads begin to develop. Keywords:Pear, biocenosis, pest, bioecology, infestation, distribution, generation, population. Introduction: In plant protection, the monitoring of fruit trees from the time seedlings are planted until they begin bearing fruit must be conducted continuously throughout the year. Our republic has highly favorable natural and climatic conditions for the development of horticulture. However, the relatively long vegetation period, along with abundant heat and light, also contribute to the rapid development of pests and diseases. Due to such favorable conditions, pests and diseases cause significant damage to orchard productivity. Therefore, the effective implementationof plant protection measures is ofgreat importance. Organizational and agronomic practices, as well as the selection of disease- and pest-resistant fruit tree varieties, play a crucial role. Biological control methods, along with the selective use of environmentally safer chemical agents, are also important. The pear mite sometimes reproduces massively on pear leaves, severely damaging a significant portion of the foliage and, to some extent, the fruits, weakening the overall condition of thetrees. As a result, the quantity of damaged fruits is substantially reduced sometimes by more than half. Many of the young fruits fall prematurely. In heavily infested trees, both leaves and fruits may fall offentirely well before ripening. The gall-inducing pear mite (Eriophyes pyri Pagst) is extremely small and invisible to the naked eye (without a microscope). The body of the mite is elongated, worm-like, with transverse grooves on the abdomen and rows of small tubercles on the dorsal side. The rostrum (snout) is short, and it has only two pairs of legs. Its size reaches up to 230 microns. The presence of this pest on pear trees can be identified by characteristic changes occurring on the tree. http://www.internationaljournal.co.in/index.php/jasass 66 Volume15 Issue05, May2025 Impact factor: 2019: 4.679 2020: 5.015 2021: 5.436, 2022: 5.242, 2023: 6.995, 2024 7.75 Figure 1.Leaves andfruitsinfested with pearmites The pear mite (Eriophyes pyri Pagst) overwinters in sheltered areas near the base of pear tree shoots, in front of buds, beneath bark layers and bud scales, and among fallen leaves. In spring, the mites crawl onto newly emerging leaves and begin feeding on their sap. As a result, galls (swellings) form slightly raised on the upper side of the leaf and flat on the underside. These galls are hollow inside and connected to the outside air through small openings on the inner side of the leaf. Initially, the galls are light green, but they later turn dark brown or black. The pests feed and reproduce inside the galls. As the galls merge, they form characteristic dark blotches. The pear mite produces several generations throughout the summer. The pear psylla (Psylla vasilievi Suts), both adults and nymphs, feed on the sap of pear buds, leaves, flowers, and young shoots, causing the trees to become severely weakened. Severely infested leaves blacken and fall off. If no control measures are taken, trees may lose all their foliage as early as the beginning of July. The shoots of affected trees become twisted and deformed; the fruits remain small, hard, tasteless, and are often covered with sticky honeydew secreted by the pear psylla. Figure 2.Shoots and leaves infested with pear aphids Adult psylla reach up to 3 mm in length. Their body color ranges from yellowish to light green-brown, with transverse black stripes on the abdomen. The wings are transparent, with a dark spot at the rear edge; the hindwings are shorter than the forewings. The adult female pear psylla (Psylla vasilievi Suts) is slightly larger than the male. Males have two transverse dark stripes on the underside of their abdominal segments, whereas females have two round dark spots. The tip of the female’s abdomen points downward, while that of the male is slightly raised. Overwintering pear psylla are somewhat larger and darker than summer generations. http://www.internationaljournal.co.in/index.php/jasass 67 Volume15 Issue05, May2025 Impact factor: 2019: 4.679 2020: 5.015 2021: 5.436, 2022: 5.242, 2023: 6.995, 2024 7.75 The eggs are tiny, white, and barely visible to the naked eye. Shortly before hatching, they turn yellowish. One end of the egg is slightly enlarged and has a small stalk th