What to do if midges are on tomatoes. There is a black midge on tomatoes. How to deal with it? How to get rid of black midge on tomatoes

» Tomatoes (tomatoes)

It's nice to pick a tomato grown with your own hands from the garden, just eat it or cook something tasty and healthy. But it becomes insulting to tears when pests spoil the crop. In appearance, small, but far from harmless white midges, drink life-giving juices from the plant, multiply, but they are controlled. In this article, we will find out how and with what you can deal with these tomato flies, and whether you can get rid of them forever.

High fecundity leads to the fact that the leaves are completely covered with it. More often, white and black midges settle on tomatoes. The first is called the whitefly, the second winged aphid is popularly called the cicada.

Whitefly close-up on a leaf

It also suffers from the enzymes of midges, in the spores of which there are sooty fungi that destroy green tissues. The surface of the leaves acquires a brilliant sheen, and the wounded places become covered with bloom, blacken.

At the sight of yellowed curled plants, some begin to moisten the soil abundantly, do not rush. Initially, you need to inspect or touch the plates. If a flock of small white insects took off, then the problem is not drought.

Black cicada and the reasons for its appearance on seedlings

There is a black small midge with wings and without them. Its life cycle depends on the presence of ants on the household plot. Ant nests serve as a home for them at night, they can also lay eggs there. They do not have good flight ability, but in case of danger they quickly move to neighboring bushes and form mass clusters. They feed, like whiteflies, on nutritious juices, more often they affect the inside of the leaves.

The reasons for the appearance of both are similar:

warmth, high humidity, lack of wind;
planting density, both in greenhouses and on open ground;
application of untested fertilizers, incl. infected manure;
planting seedlings infected with pest larvae.

With the climatic factors listed above, white and black insects can spread to all cultures over the summer. Pests live up to 25 days, i.е. during the warm season, several generations are replaced.

Some summer residents try to deal with small pest formations with a hose, washing them off with water, or destroying them with their hands. Such manipulations are ineffective. Rather help:

Fumigation method. It is carried out in greenhouses at least 2 times a year. Evaporation, stale air, heat in them are an excellent environment for midges and the formation of soot fungus. Sulfur candles will help. Previously, it is better to temporarily carry the tomatoes away.
Chemical attack. It is carried out with mild pesticidal, organic insecticide substances with an abundance of insects. Means on pyrethrins, fatty acids, vegetable esters will be safer. Popular against midges: "Aktafit", "Fufanon", "Pegasus". Gardening stores offer many options. Strictly according to the attached instructions, solutions are prepared. Tomatoes are processed 3 times every 5 days. There are single use drugs. You need to carefully study the composition and rules for working with them.

In an effort to quickly get rid of pests, do not use aggressive pesticides. They are able to accumulate in the ground, are difficult to remove. Also, the substance must correspond to a certain stage of insect development (adult, larva, caterpillar).

Fly killing methods proven over the years

It would be preferable to give first place to folk methods of dealing with whitefly or black cicada. Chemical treatment should be started when they did not help. The main enemies of midges are laundry soap and vinegar (alkali, acid). Solutions are prepared with them:

take 2 tbsp. tablespoons of liquid soap, dissolved with 0.5 liters of water, add sunflower oil;
10 g of soap, diluted in 10 liters of warm water with a glass of ash;
1 st. a spoonful of 9% vinegar per liter.

He does not like aphids and individuals of its varieties hot peppers, garlic, mustard. 200 g of chopped garlic insist in a bucket of water, stirring. Before use, 50 g of dry mustard and 20 hot red pepper are poured. The onion peel will also help. It is boiled for half an hour, the solution should have a high concentration: 300 g per small bucket.

Processing tomatoes with pesticides

Treat with such recharge twice: in the morning and in the evening.

Pulling out weeds, tops, digging up the earth, removing compost will also not be superfluous and will help get rid of flies. If possible, tomatoes are taken out in a cool place. You can build a trap in the greenhouse. Spaced pieces of bright yellow plywood are smeared with glue. A regular sticky tape from flies will come in handy.

It is worth trying the biological method, which consists in attracting insects that eat midge larvae. . Prudent summer residents plant fragrant herbs next to tomato seedlings, they attract:

ladybugs;
wasps, bees;
lacewing;
hoverflies.

White and black midges do not tolerate the smell of calendula, dill, onion, garlic.

The sweet liquid secreted by harmful insects attracts ants. The presence of trails near the beds signals their presence. Therefore, anthills also need to be disposed of, because eggs are stored there.

In order for tomatoes to grow healthy, you should not plant them densely, even if there is not much land. When plants are next to each other, a lack of light and nutrients in the soil is formed. The shoots are weakening, and the whitefly is not asleep. She finishes the culture, ruins the harvest. So no need to make a close landing. Preferably, fewer large whole tomatoes than more diseased fruits from one area.

Sometimes not only bees and bumblebees hover around flowering tomato bushes, but also small black midges that are not related to pollinating insects. The appearance of midges should alert the gardener - most likely, the plants were attacked by winged aphids or leafhoppers, a dangerous pest of tomatoes.

Pest characteristic

The winged aphid is an insect 1-2 mm long with a black body and transparent wings. Adults, like larvae, feed on the juice of cultivated and weed plants, hiding on the underside of the leaves. The insect reproduces intensively, up to 5 generations of midges can hatch per season. Thanks to their wings, pests easily move from bush to bush, spreading along the planting.

The danger of winged aphids for tomatoes

A rapidly growing population of midges can cause serious damage to tomato beds, depleting individual bushes until the plants die. In addition, pests are carriers of viruses and leave honeydew on plants - a favorable environment for the reproduction of fungi. With a significant damage by leafhopper, the loss of tomato crop can be about 30%.

Signs of damage to tomatoes by winged aphids:

wilting and twisting of the lower leaves;
black sticky marks on the plant;
dark spots on stems;
the appearance of a dry brown crust in place of the spots.

How to distinguish from a tomato mosquito

Black midges may be representatives of another species - a mushroom or tomato mosquito. The insect often appears on seedlings, while the peak of reproduction of winged aphids occurs during the flowering period of tomatoes, but with excessive soil moisture, the pest can appear in the greenhouse at any stage of plant development.

The mushroom mosquito looks like a black midge larger than the cicada, reaching 3-4 mm in length. Adults also drink plant juice, preferring the delicate tissue of the apical shoots, so they can damage the growing point of tomatoes. But the insect larva causes the greatest harm to tomatoes. Midges lay transparent white eggs in the ground, from which white worms appear from 3 to 8 mm in length with a black head. In this phase, insects constantly live in the soil, feeding on the roots of plants, after which they pupate.

The tomato mosquito is less dangerous for tomatoes than the winged aphid, it poses the greatest threat to young plants with an undeveloped root system. Minor damage to the roots is unlikely to significantly affect the condition of adult tomatoes. But pests should not be ignored - a large accumulation of larvae in the soil can lead to a slowdown in the growth of bushes, the absence or weak formation of ovaries. In addition, the tomato mosquito is a carrier of bacteria.

On a note!

The presence of a large number of ants near plantings of tomatoes speaks in favor of the defeat of aphids.

Fight against winged aphids

Regardless of which insect attacked the tomatoes, aphids or mosquitoes, both pests can pose a threat to the crop, so you need to remove them from the site. It will be more difficult to expel winged aphids. A large-scale defeat can force the gardener to use chemicals, however, during the flowering period, when pest invasion is usually observed, the use of pesticides is limited.

Specialized preparations

The most effective among the chemicals for winged aphids are systemic insecticides. The preparations guarantee long-term protection, but they are highly toxic and are removed from plant tissues for a long time. A more suitable option would be intestinal-contact agents, such as Aktara or Decis Profi. The active substances of these funds are excreted much faster.

The safest option, which is best used for processing tomatoes in greenhouses, is biological pesticides - Fitoverm, Aversectin, Aktofit. To combat midges, it will take about 3 sprays with a break of 5-7 days.

Folk remedies

It is worth starting the treatment of bushes with the use of folk remedies, not least because of their safety for pollinating insects (even biopesticides pose a threat to beneficial insects). But with their help, only a small population of pests can be removed, and the treatment should be carried out several times.

The most powerful home remedies for aphids:

Soap and wood ash. 20 g of soap chips must be dissolved in a bucket of warm water and mixed with 250 g of wood ash.
Vinegar. A tablespoon of vinegar is dissolved in a liter of water and the planting of tomatoes is sprayed. The dosage is indicated for 9% vinegar, respectively, 3% for the same volume of water will require 3 tablespoons.
Garlic, pepper, mustard. Chopped teeth from 2 heads of garlic, 2 tablespoons of red hot pepper and 6 tablespoons of mustard powder should be poured with a bucket of hot water and infused for 2-3 days. Processing is best done not by spraying, but by wetting the leaves, paying special attention to the lower tier of the bush.
Celandine. 4 kg of crushed green parts of the plant are poured with a bucket of water and insisted for a day. The resulting infusion is brought to a boil and simmered for 30 minutes. After straining, 1 part of the infusion is diluted with 10 parts of water and left to infuse in a dark place for another 48 hours. After that, the product is ready for spraying. Reuse of the infusion is allowed after 5 days.

Removal of tomato mosquito

Measures against the pest should be aimed at destroying larvae and scaring away adults from planting in order to prevent laying eggs in the ground near the roots of plants.

Advice!

If midges appear on seedlings, a clove of garlic or a pinch of chopped tobacco should be buried in each container.

To breed adult tomato mosquitoes, the use of pesticides does not justify itself - it is enough to let the top layer of soil dry out and set up traps for the mechanical destruction of midges. As traps, yellow cartons are used, smeared with honey, vegetable oil, petroleum jelly or other viscous and sticky substance, periodically replacing them.

Spraying folk remedies

You can scare away the midge from planting by treating the bushes with decoctions and infusions with a strong aroma. Suitable infusions of vinegar, pepper and mustard, which are used to remove winged aphids. In addition, the mushroom mosquito does not like:

Dandelion. Shredded leaves, stems and roots of dandelion are poured with water at the rate of 1 kg per bucket. They insist for about a day. The remedy acts both against adults and against larvae, if you pour it on the near-stem circle of the bush.
Garlic. 2 crushed heads of garlic are poured with a liter of water and infused for 5 days. Before use, dilute with 5 liters of water.
Onion. 650 g of onion peel should be poured with 10 liters of boiling water. After cooling, the infusion can be used to spray the bushes.
Tops of tomatoes. Grind tomato leaves and pour hot water (20 tablespoons of raw materials per 5 liters of water). Should insist 12 hours.

Soil treatment

Tomato mosquito larvae die in dry soil, therefore, to destroy them, it is enough to stop watering the planting for a while. But during the flowering period of tomatoes, this measure should be used with caution - a lack of water can cause the ovaries to fall off. An alternative and safer option is to dust the beds with wood ash.

To destroy a large population of black midge larvae, insecticides are used against soil pests:

"Bazudin" - valid for about 1.5 months;
"Thunder-2" - protects against larvae for 2 months.

The funds are mixed with sand, distributed in the trunk circle of a tomato bush and sprinkled with a two-centimeter layer of soil. Two or three days after such treatment, tomatoes can not be watered.

At sufficiently low temperatures in winter, tomato mosquito larvae that have gone into the soil die, therefore, if possible, it is advisable to dismantle the greenhouse in order to freeze the soil.

Healthy!

At the time of the fight against midges, it is worth abandoning fertilizers from manure and bird droppings, since adults prefer to lay eggs in soil saturated with decayed organic matter.

Prevention

General measures against both pests, which also prevent the appearance of many other pests and fungal diseases on tomatoes, will be:

Regular removal and burning of weeds during the growing season, as well as autumn cleaning of the site. Weeds are breeding grounds and an excellent wintering ground for insects and fungi.
Deep digging of the soil in autumn.
If black midges are wound up in the greenhouse, after harvesting, sulfur should be fumigated, burning 200 g of the substance per 1 m3. After the procedure, it is advisable to keep the greenhouse closed for at least 4-5 days, then ventilate it. This tool acts on aphids and tomato mosquitoes in all phases of development.
Measures to prevent the attack of winged aphids are also effective against other species of this pest. Prevention in this case is justified as much as possible, since aphids can cause serious damage to tomatoes, potatoes, cabbage, cereals, melons.

Ant breeding. Insects feed on aphids, and therefore contribute to its spread throughout the plantings. Cases have been recorded when winged aphids hid in an anthill at night. Therefore, first of all, it is necessary to detect all anthills on the site and destroy them chemically.
Attract beneficial insects. Winged aphids feed on wasps, ladybugs and lacewings. By sowing dill next to the planting of tomatoes, you can lure these insects.
Attract natural enemies of the pest. Aphids feed on warblers, tits, linnets.
Sowing repellent herbs. Pests avoid fragrant plants, you can scare away aphids by sowing garlic, basil, peppermint, marigolds, cilantro, fennel between the rows.

It is easy to avoid the appearance of a tomato mosquito - it is enough to observe the irrigation regime, avoiding excess moisture in the soil.

Both insects love a warm and humid microclimate, so greenhouse tomatoes are often affected. White midges (whitefly) may also appear in the shelter, greenhouse conditions are favorable for many pests and fungi. In view of this, special attention should be paid to the prevention and inspection of crops growing in closed ground.

Each owner of a summer cottage sooner or later during the season suffers an unpleasant phenomenon - an attack on plants by pests. If they are detected in time, then in most cases vegetable crops can be saved. Otherwise, insect attacks end in the death of plants.

Pests can appear in the greenhouse, on seedlings and in the garden, there is no guarantee that they will not penetrate into closed ground. Especially often small unpleasant insects with wings attack tomatoes. In the absence of experience, it is difficult to detect them.

The main signs of the appearance of black midges

One of the signs that aphids (small black midges) have attacked tomatoes is the wilting of the leaves. Many decide that the plant lacks moisture and water it abundantly. If the pests appeared a long time ago, then dark spots appear on the stem, which eventually turn into a dry brown crust.

This signals that it is necessary to carefully examine the plant. Most often, a small pest with wings can be found in the lower part or axils of the leaves. An inexperienced eye can not immediately see aphids, so it is better to inspect during the day, when the sun is shining brightly.

If no aphids were found on one of the withering tomatoes, inspect all plants. Even without seeing pests, it is better to carry out preventive treatment, this ensures that unnoticed individuals disappear.

Another sign of the appearance of black midges on tomatoes is a large number of ant trails near the beds. Ants protect aphids, because the sweet liquid secreted by pests is the best food for them.

Chemical methods of struggle

One of the best preparations for the destruction of midges on tomatoes is Fufanon. Before the summer season, it is better to stock up on this tool, which will certainly come in handy. When diluting the drug, act strictly according to the instructions.

Do not neglect the means of protection when processing plants. Mandatory must be:

thick clothes with sleeves;
headdress;
mask.

It is not recommended to use chemicals in greenhouses, here you will have to use more gentle folk methods.

How to deal with aphids in a greenhouse

Experienced summer residents are advised to start pest control even before planting plants in closed ground. It is best to plant crops that repel insects for this.

For this purpose, fragrant herbs or flowers can be sown in the greenhouse. Aphids do not like the smell of such plants:

nasturtium;
marigold;
lavender;
marjoram;
sweet pea.

If there is not enough space in the greenhouse for extra plants, garlic or onions planted between rows of tomatoes will perfectly scare away pests. It is better to plant these crops before sending tomatoes to the greenhouse - this way you can save the seedlings if the pest has already appeared on it.

Folk methods

If there are a small number of black midges, you can try to wash them off with water from a hose. This method is good only for adult plants, but is ineffective on seedlings. Tender weak seedlings can be injured.

How to deal with aphids

Another effective way to get rid of aphids on tomatoes is to spray them with a mixture of:

vegetable oil;
liquid soap;
water.

First, dilute 150 g of liquid soap in a bucket of water, then add 100 g of oil. Spraying plants is best in the evening or early morning. Do not do this after rain or watering on wet leaves.

Also on the day of treatment of plants with folk remedies, it is recommended to refrain from watering. The next day, you can carefully pour over the tomatoes and wash off the dead pests.

Fighting with herbal infusions

Infusions on plants will effectively help get rid of black pests. There are several recipes that are easy to prepare even for an inexperienced gardener.

Quickly and safely help get rid of aphids in the open field and greenhouse such an infusion:

Hot pepper for infusion against aphids

200 gr garlic;
50 gr dry mustard;
20 gr red hot pepper.

First, send chopped garlic into a bucket of water, leave to stand for several hours. Stir occasionally. Just before use, add hot pepper and mustard. Spray tomatoes twice - in the evening and in the morning.

If time permits, you can use onion peel for the same purpose. Boil it for half an hour in water. The solution should be very concentrated, you will need a lot of husks - about 300 grams per bucket.

Infuse for a day, generously process the tomatoes. Usually one treatment is enough, but in the presence of a large number of pests after a week, you can repeat the procedure using a weaker solution.

White midges on plants

Sometimes it happens that white midges attack crops in a greenhouse or open field. It is more difficult to deal with them than with aphids, because whitefly larvae are not amenable to chemical attack.

The fight against whiteflies is most often carried out with the help of dill bushes planted between the rows of tomatoes. White midges are very afraid of the smell of umbrella culture and their appearance on tomatoes is extremely rare.

You can try to get rid of white midges with garlic infusion. In ten liters of water, insist 300 g of crushed garlic for a week. After that, strain and spray the tomato bushes abundantly.

Small pests on peppers and cucumbers

Other vegetable crops, such as peppers and cucumbers, are also not immune from the appearance of aphid colonies. In most cases, this is due to waterlogging of the soil in cool weather. To prevent this from happening, it is better to refrain from watering on cool days.

Sometimes the leaves are dotted with pests of cucumbers, in which case the bush will wither

If an unpleasant neighborhood on the plants nevertheless appeared, it is urgent to take up the destruction of pests. To do this, use chopped garlic or tobacco leaves, spread out under the plants.

You can use an effective tool:

juice from three lemons;
100 gr of liquid soap;
8 liters of water.

Combine these components and immediately spray cucumbers or peppers. Pay special attention to the soil - it is also thoroughly moistened with the preparation.

What is the best way to destroy midges on cucumbers and peppers?

It is better not to use chemical methods of killing midges on adult cucumbers and peppers - after all, after such exposure, it is forbidden to eat vegetables for a week or more.

Folk methods are more gentle, you can serve fruits to the table the very next day after processing.

seedling protection

The appearance of midges on seedlings is especially dangerous. Weak plants can die even from a small number of insects. If seedlings are grown on a windowsill, you need to carefully use protective equipment.

It is best to sprinkle the soil around the plants with wood ash abundantly for prevention. You can also add a crushed clove of garlic to each pot. For a long time, this method of protection is not enough, once every two weeks you will have to remove the old tooth and put in a new one.

Once a week, you can water the soil in pots with a mixture of lemon juice and water. It's a good idea to spray the seedlings with this liquid using a spray bottle. For good adhesion of the liquid, you can add a little grated laundry or liquid soap to the water.

Video: Mixture against pests in the garden and vegetable garden

For a good harvest of tomatoes, you will need not only careful timely care, but also a victory in the war against pests. The juicy roots of the seedlings are to the taste of the bear, the fruits will be spoiled with pleasure by the scoop caterpillar, the leaves are white midges on tomatoes and their black relatives are aphids. The latter will be discussed in this article.

You are a wonderful host, the earth in the beds is loose and wet. So why do your tomatoes look so dull? Most likely they were attacked by aphids. Colonies of black midges occupy the tops of young shoots and actively colonize the reverse side of the leaf blades. Harbingers of an aphid attack can be ants scurrying around tomato bushes. After all, aphids for ants are literally a delicacy. In order to get a sugar-containing waste product - honeydew, ants transfer aphids to new pastures - young leaves of plants protect them from predators.

When changing their place of residence, ant families must take aphids with them so as not to lose an uninterrupted source of sugars. And of course, they populate plants near the anthill. Aphids reproduce very quickly, in a month one midge produces several hundred thousand new individuals. Among them there are winged ones, flying over long distances. Aphids feed on plant juices, piercing the surface of leaves and young shoots with their proboscis. They can completely destroy a young plant. A more mature plant slows down growth, the leaves curl, the fruits become smaller, the ovaries do not form in place of the eaten flowers. Aphids not only deprive the plant of vital juices for it, but also infect with viral diseases.

Video “Description of the pest”

From the video you will learn a lot of fascinating things about the aphid pest.

What are the ways to get rid of it?

Considering the diversity (more than 4000) of aphid species, its unpretentiousness and extreme fecundity, it is necessary to start with preventive measures:

Small colonies of pests can simply be washed off with a hose or a sponge with soapy water. But if the bush is thoroughly covered with black midges, you will have to use pesticides. Aphids are also fought with folk methods. Their effectiveness is somewhat lower than that of chemical agents, but there are undeniable advantages. Let's analyze both methods separately.

How is chemical treatment carried out?

Chemical preparations that destroy black midges on tomatoes differ in the nature of the action and the way the insect enters the body. These are the three groups of insecticides:

contact ones that kill on contact with any part of the insect (Inta-vir, Arrivo, Fufan, Fury);
intestinal, entering the body with food (most often contact-intestinal insecticides are used - Confidor, BI 58-New, Tantrek, which are the most effective);
systemic, poisoning the plant with deadly poison for aphids (Aktara). All of them are toxic. Therefore, when processing plants, take care of your own safety measures. Harmful substances are not removed from plants immediately, the waiting period is from 14 to 30 days. Therefore, it is advisable to use insecticides before the formation of fruits on tomatoes.

This midge very quickly develops resistance to chemicals, so for greater effectiveness, they must be alternated. And another significant drawback of these drugs is that along with aphids, beneficial insects also die.

A separate line will highlight the drugs (Akarin, Fitoverm), the active substance of which is avermectin, it is a natural neurotoxin. They are classified as biological agents. The waiting period is quite short, up to three days. Insects do not die immediately, the full effect of the drugs is observed after a week.

They are the least toxic of all the above groups.

Chemical preparations are undoubtedly more effective than biological and even more so folk methods of pest control. In nature, everything is interconnected, we should not forget about it. And that drop of poison that, thanks to us, fell on the leaf of a plant, will inevitably affect the health of our descendants.

For those who care about the environment, there is a weapon from which only a malicious midge will suffer.

There are many fairly effective folk recipes for black midge on tomatoes.

It is often found, and brings quite a few problems, as it sticks around tomato bushes and interferes with the further growth of fruits. If the midge is not destroyed in a timely manner, this will lead to the death of the crop.

Leafhopper reproduction occurs very quickly, the larvae intensively settle throughout the plant. In a short time, the aphid moves with maximum speed to the tomato bushes in the neighborhood and fills the entire plantation. If the necessary measures are not taken to combat the black midge, the damaged stems begin to dry out and die.

Experienced gardeners are taking preventive measures to keep the leafhopper out of tomato bushes. Various fragrant herbs are planted next to the tomatoes, which attract insects dangerous for the black midge:

hoverflies;
lacewing;
ladybugs.

If there are anthills on the site, immediately get rid of them. Ants protect black aphids, as they love to feed on the sweet secret that they secrete.

Get rid of weeds in a timely manner, as aphids feed on the juice of tomato bushes, and settle on weeds.

The black midge does not tolerate the smell of some plants, so you can plant tomatoes next to bushes:

garlic;
horseradish;
calendula;
dill.

Black midges, sucking out vegetable juice, not only make tomato bushes weaker, reducing their resistance to disease, but are also carriers of viral and mycoplasmal diseases. As a result, tomato leaves quickly deform, turn yellow, begin to dry out and eventually fall off. The affected plant subsequently produces ugly and not quite developed fruits with a tasteless taste.

Fighting methods

When there are few black midges on tomatoes, you can simply crush them with your hands, and then wash the bush with water pressure. However, it is worth taking into account that the surviving pests will rush back to the tomato bushes as quickly as possible.

Adults can be easily disposed of with a special adhesive tape for flying insects, and larvae that live in the upper layer of the earth can be removed with a weak solution of vinegar, or potassium permanganate.

If you sprinkle a little tobacco dust into a container with seedlings, or put garlic cloves, the smell will scare away midges, which means they will not be able to breed.

Chemicals

If there are too many black midges, you will have to resort to the help of chemicals, such as pesticides, organic insecticides. Safer preparations for use in horticulture are those based on fatty acids, plant oils and pyrethrins. They not only help fight aphids, but also increase the plant's resistance to disease.

The most effective drugs to combat black midge are:

Fozalon;
Aktafit;
Fastcord;
Aktar;
benzophosphate;
Fufanon

Any of these means has a fast and strong action, as well as a long period of protection. Each drug is accompanied by detailed instructions indicating the dosage and method of its use. It is necessary to carry out at least three treatments with an interval of approximately 7 days.

Plants are treated from early morning and always in dry weather.

Some gardeners use sulfuric smoke in greenhouses with tomatoes to fight midges. After processing, the entire population dies, both adults and their eggs. Smoke is obtained by spreading sulfur powder on hot baking sheets.

Chemical preparations should not be used when the ripening period of tomatoes begins, in which case it is better to resort to safer folk remedies.

Folk remedies

To effectively combat the black midge, experienced gardeners use time-tested folk remedies that are not only safe for all plants, but also do not harm human health.

Solutions are prepared with the addition of household or any liquid soap for better adhesion to the plant, and any of the following is used as the main component:

red ground pepper;
mustard powder;
arrows of garlic;
onion peel;
ash;
sagebrush;
dandelion leaves.

To prepare a poisonous potion for mosquitoes, you can combine the listed ingredients.

Aphids do not like a decoction of celandine with wormwood very much:

one part of the herb is infused for 20 minutes in two parts of hot water;
the decoction is diluted 1:10;
20 g of laundry soap is added; ·
plantings of tomatoes are plentifully sprayed.

An effective and most common remedy for combating black midge on tomatoes is a solution of ash and garlic:

finely chop 7-10 cloves of garlic, pour a liter of warm water and leave overnight;
pour a glass of ash into a bucket of cold water;
pour in the garlic mass;
add a little household, or any liquid soap;
Spray plants generously.

The prepared solutions are effective until the first watering, then their effectiveness is already reduced, so treatments will have to be carried out often.

Save seedlings

Due to too abundant watering in cold weather, midges can start on tomato seedlings. To fight it, folk remedies will help, since chemicals are harmful to young shoots.

Tomato seedlings should be watered with a slightly pink solution of potassium permanganate, or 1 tablespoon of vinegar diluted in a liter of water.

Many gardeners, in order to avoid the appearance of midges on young shoots, sprinkle ashes over the soil in pots. Insects will not be able to hide in the ground and lay eggs.

Preventive measures to combat cicada

If the black midge attacks annually, and given its rapid fecundity and unpretentiousness, it is necessary to take preventive measures to reduce the insect population.

Plant odorous plants with a pungent and unpleasant odor along the tomato rows: garlic, onions, fragrant herbs. They repel pests.
Kill all weeds in the greenhouse. Adult aphids live on grassy vegetation, flying to tomato bushes, laying eggs.
Do not dig up accidentally grown dill in the beds with tomatoes. Beneficial insects that eat aphids live on it, or rather on its umbrellas.
Aphids hibernate on fruit and berry bushes and trees, it is necessary to remove exfoliated bark in a timely manner and whitewash with lime. ·
Take action against ants.
After harvesting, destroy all vegetation from infected beds.

Some gardeners in greenhouses put containers with a vigorous infusion of onions and garlic, and mustard is planted along the rows.