Fighting the olive fly with targeted treatments

 Index

How to eliminate the olive fly - Bactrocera oleae: conventional defense

Fighting the olive fly with organic solutions

How to eliminate the olive fly Bactrocera oleae

The limiting factors for the proliferation of the olive fly are drought and temperature: the favorable one ranges from 23 to 26 degrees up to a maximum of 31 °-33 °.

As a result of the summer rains and the increase in air humidity, in fact, the climatic conditions favorable to the development of the fly itself are created.

There are various systems and means for the control of this pest. The first attacks can take place as early as July. To carry out a guided fight and treat only in case of need, 2 or 3 Dacus Track Plus traps can be placed per hectare and intervene only when the alarm threshold is reached. 

How to eliminate the olive fly - Bactrocera oleae: conventional defense

A) Decis Evo at 60-70 cc/hl

B) Cobre Nordox at 150 g/hl. 

In this case, we recommend the addition of Kendal Te to optimize the intervention. This product, in addition to having an action of inducing resistance against the most common diseases (peacock's eye, mange, leprosy), also has a confusing action towards the fly, which, therefore, will lose its appeal towards the drupe. In addition, we suggest adding a foliar fertilizer, to improve the quality of the fruit and the plant in general.

Despite the sure effectiveness of the conventional strategy, the Perfarelalbero team is increasingly inclined and prefers eco-sustainable management. This is a choice made both because the biological pests we recommend guarantee an effectiveness equal to conventional strategies, and because they are more environmentally friendly. Let's see together how to fight the olive fly with organic solutions.

Would you like to receive our advice? Subscribe to our Newsletter - 8% discount now for you

Fighting the olive fly with organic solutions

• Kaolin = 3 kg/hl + 
• Cobre nordox o Cobre nordox PFnPE = 100g/hl

It is a completely biological intervention, which acts mainly to dissuade the fly and move it away from the drupe. To ensure greater effectiveness, our suggestion is to treat and cover the plant evenly. One of the reasons why Perfarelalbero's technicians decided to use kaolin has to do with the fact that this active ingredient, in addition to reducing the thermal impact, hides the drupe from the sight and smell of the female fly (naturally attracted by the green color).

We suggest that you proceed with the first treatment as early as June, taking care to retort only in case of rains that can wash away and reduce the kaolin layer.

(Example of olive tree treated with kaolin)

It is our concern to tell you, however, that in periods when the peaks of the presence of the fly are high, the strategy with kaolin may not be completely safe. For this reason, we recommend that you also use "attract and kill" traps.

B) "Attract and kill" traps: the various types

• Eco Trap in number of 60-80 per hectare: To be placed from the end of June. They have a range of action of about 10 meters and a duration of about 6 months.

•  Dacus trap protein bait for catching the olive fly = Take a 1.5 lt plastic bottle, remove the cap and insert about 800 ml of protein bait. Then make 4 holes with a diameter of about 1 cm on the neck of the bottle (the holes, they will be the points from which the fly will enter). Attach the Cap Fly cap to the bottle and hang it on sunny branches, at eye level. Use one bottle for every two olive trees.

Even if this control system is adopted,  it will be useful to set up monitoring traps and, if the physiological threshold of presence is exceeded, Asset Five will have to be used at a dose of 1 liter per hectare, to bring the population back within a physiologically acceptable threshold.

A further strategy to be integrated can be:

C) Spintor Fly, in the dilution of 1 liter in 4 liters of water, will be  the dose necessary for one hectare of olive grove.

It should be sprayed on a very small surface of a few square centimeters, on only one side of the plant (west side). Treat only after monitoring and repeat after any rainfall.

*****

The use of COBRE NORDOX is important in the summer because it fights a fungus that lives on the drupe at the expense of the olive tree and emits a chemical signal that attracts the fly.

These products reduce such fundamental signals for the fly in choosing its target. In September, however, these products are necessary not only for the function mentioned above, but also to prevent the attack of peacock's eye*, anthracnose or leprosy* which develops in a humid environment with temperatures between 16° and 25° (its optimum is at 22° and 24°).

We have published here a complete article on olive growing