by Matt Gibson
The pepper weevil ( or Anthonomus eugenii ) is the pepper plant life ’s individual biggest enemy , and no capsicum pepper plant is safe from its grasp . Though weevils are not the onlyenemy of the pepper plant , they are by far the most fertile and the hard to extirpate . From bell peppers to jalapenos , all known commercially arise peppers are susceptible to attack from the white pepper weevil .
Do n’t let the threat of weevil imperil your pepper farm dark-green ovolo , however , as there are ways to crusade them off , as long as you overtake them ahead of time enough in the process . Peppers are a enceinte crop to acquire for use in the kitchen . They are low maintenance andincredibly healthy . So , by all means , grow a whole lot of Madagascar pepper , just look out for weevils .
Though peppers are the primary host for the common pepper weevil , they also tend to raven on any fellow member of the Solanaceae family , so be sure to splay your crop each season and go in a dissimilar direction other than Solanaceae every other year . ( That means to also persist away from tomato and eggplant crops when rotating . )
Aside from other members of the Solanaceae family , capsicum weevil can also prey on nightshade plant , especially smooth-spoken nightshade , but also black nightshade and horsenettle . Nightshade plants are canonic weeds , so you will want to take tutelage to root for up all get laid weeds that are anywhere near your peppercorn crops to keep weevil from gaining easy access .
Even nightshade plant on the outermost margins of your pepper subject area could be the reason why you got an infestation , so be diligent in ridding your property of nightshade weed before planting your peppers .
Location
Pepper weevil are the main pest to pelt industrial plant in Mexico , Central America , The Caribean , and The United States , in the main seen in southerly state such as Florida , California , Texas , Arizona , and New Mexico . They can sometimes spread much further compass north , however , and have been blob as far as New Jersey .
Identifying Pepper Weevils
Though smaller than a match head , the capsicum weevil is a big trouble when an plague hap . The ellipse - shaped pest is about ⅛ in long and have a enceinte snout . Adult weevils have a dark- color body that has a brassy sheen to it . Larvae look alike to adults , but are smaller and have no wings . They are off - ashen to gray eats worms with brown head , and are about half of the size of the grownup weevil when they are in full matured .
Pepper Weevil Life Cycle
so as to successfully control the pepper weevil , it ’s necessary to know about its life history bike . grownup weevil glut themselves on the fruit and bloom bud of your precious peppers . They also bore a yap , most often near the calyx of the fruit , where they deposit their eggs . In just a few curt days , the larvae hatch and begin to corrode the yield of the white pepper , work their way towards the seed pod .
The capsicum pepper plant weevil larvae are mussy eaters , and depending on the size of the pepper they are infest , and the amount of weevil larvae inside of it , the resolution is normally pretty obvious at first glance . The yield , more often than not , fall off of the plant before it can be harvest . Now , you may not think so at the metre , but this is actually a approving , as it lets you know that your capsicum pepper plant plants are infested with weevils . The last thing you desire is to harvest all of your capsicum and find out about the plague from exact a big bite .
The larvae grows apace , slough three multiplication before it stops chowing down . The weevil larva then pupates inside the fruit and emerges as a full grown adult when it has the strong suit to chew its way to freedom .
If you are n’t learn any fruit on the ground , it does n’t mean that you are home complimentary . Sometimes the larvae does n’t have the numbers to do enough damage to stimulate the yield to fall , and sometimes the peppers are too big for them to eat up enough away to cause the fall . Another way to check for a pepper weevil infestation is to check the calyx of your Piper nigrum plants . If the calyx is yellow , there is a skilful chance that there is a weevil inside .
Pepper raiser can also employ an aggregation pheromone trap to find out the presence of pepper weevils in your field . Use these traps at the margins of your pepper theatre of operations , as that ’s where the weevil come from , that way of life you catch them before they do too much legal injury .
It ’s absolutely essential to watch the common pepper weevil as early as possible if you require to preserve your peppers , as only the grownup weevils are vulnerable to insecticidal treatments . Once the weevil has laid its eggs in the peppers , it ’s too late to spare the crop . The only matter you may do at that tip is to clean up the mess and take preventive measures to insure that they do n’t deliver for next infestation .
Pepper Weevil Damage
big weevils provender on the yield and leaf buds . Larvae feed on the interior of the pods , often stimulate immature yield to drop down before mature . magnanimous peppers oftentimes do not dismiss from the plant , causing crop contamination .
How To Prevent, Control, and Kill
Pepper Weevils
Step One: Preventative Measures
The best way to foreclose white pepper weevil is preventive tactics . Growers who are proactive in their fields can oftentimes prevent an plague by cleaning up craw residue , limiting the length of clip a pepper crop is in the field , and by reducing pepper weevil memory access to the crop in the first spot . Here are a few other preventative measures that you could take :
Step Two: Identify The Problem
Estimate adult pepper weevil numbers by using visual interrogation and pheromone - baited yellow sticky traps .
Before bloom occurs , put your trap out to find any sign of grownup pepper weevil growth . Mount the traps on poles that can be raised or glower during crop growth , keeping the bottom of the traps right at or just below the tops of the common pepper plant . Check traps twice per week in the morning , or even more vigilantly if you already know that there are adult in the field . Apply treatments as soon as you know that they are present .
you could also catch pepper weevils in the number by continue an eye on the terminal buds of the common pepper plant . Check the two buds on each plant for adults and treat when one or more adult are name per 400 bud .
Step Three: Treatment
Insecticides can be put on in brusk interval once adult weevils are distinguish . There are many insecticides that purportedly work on common pepper weevil , but most only suppress the body process of the pest , and do not completely eradicate them from your land . check over your local pest direction guides to find a list of your available options . To fight against insecticide resistance , circumvolve the insect powder used for treatment .
As many of the recommended insecticide are toxic to bee , attention should be taken to ward off directly spraying bloom craw where bees are forage . Alternatively , you could use abee friendly pesticideto fight your weevil problem .
Some insect powder that have had succeeder treating pepper weevil are :
Step Four: Clean up and Rotate
After each round of pepper growing , discard all remnant fruit and pepper plant life residuum thoroughly . revolve the harvest that you uprise in the situation of your capsicum pepper plant craw next season , avoiding Solanaceae kinfolk plants .
Biological Control of Pepper
Weevils:
parasitical wasps do attack the pepper weevil , but they do not seem to be a reliable way to stop the problem entirely . Observations have shown that the WASP do very footling to operate the pest in the expression of infestations that have advanced to the point of being serious .
Want to Learn More About Fighting
Pepper Weevils?
Pepper Joe ’s has a cheap method to help you fight against pepper weevils in this inadequate video :
Want to see a Piper nigrum weevil in action mechanism ? This film shows a closing curtain - up of a pepper weevil larvae eat up a black pepper from the inside out :
For organic gardeners , check out this insecticide tutorial :
Want to Learn More About Fighting Pepper Weevils?
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