Does the fruit moth eat clothes. Food moth in products: how to get rid of it? Do food moths eat clothes? Physical ways to fight

If larvae resembling small worms have appeared in dried fruits, and the product itself crumbles before our eyes, this means that the fruit moth has tried. It is impossible to delay: it is necessary to physically eliminate the pest as soon as possible, process the storage place and take measures to reduce the risk of re-infection by an uninvited guest.

Description of fruit moth

The fruit moth is a small and unremarkable butterfly: the length of its body is approximately 1 cm, and on the wings gray color and body there are horizontal stripes, slightly different from the main color. It is easier to notice the pest with the onset of the evening, because the insect is nocturnal. In the dark begins active years, while during the daytime the insect prefers to hide in secluded corners, and you can see the fruit striped moth only by chance, for example, by opening the supply closet where it hid.

The life of an insect is short: it lasts an average of 2–14 days. The female dies after laying her eggs in food. Soon voracious larvae will hatch from the masonry, which harm the food. Adults do not feed, therefore they are dangerous only as successors to offspring.

Damage

The harm of fruit moths is to use food as food sources for their larvae, so they lay their eggs in jars, stock boxes in kitchens, pantries and other storage areas. The emerging larvae begin to feed intensively, gnawing the food available to them. Especially often fruit lives, but the larvae can also eat nuts, etc.

In addition to causing mechanical damage to products, fruit moth larvae leave chitinous scales in dried fruits, shed after molting, and toxic waste products. They are dangerous to human health, because when they get into digestive system cause poisoning.

How does fruit moth get into the house?

Fruit moth can appear even in clean house where no others live harmful insects. There are several ways to enter a home from outside, for example:

through open door, a window or a window leaf, a butterfly flies into the premises in the warm season;
through the ventilation system;
when buying contaminated products: if you buy dried fruits with larvae, the worms will infect new supplies in the closet, and then turn into adult butterflies that continue to breed in the house.

Therefore, everyone can face the problem of damage to dried fruits by insect larvae. The risk is especially high in the warm season.

Pest control methods

To save supplies, you need to know how to get rid of fruit moths in the house. Insect control is not easy, because you can not use the most effective means- chemical insecticides. They are toxic, so the treatment of food with pesticides is strictly prohibited: this can cause severe poisoning in humans.

Therefore, it remains to use harmless means. Traps and adhesive tapes designed to kill flying insects will help reduce the number of adult fruit moths in the house and prevent them from laying eggs. They should be placed near the place where dried fruits are stored, for example, near a cupboard or pantry.

But such means do not guarantee safety from the pest.

First steps

As soon as the larvae were noticed in the products, measures must be taken immediately so that the rest of the food stocks do not suffer:

Everything that turned out to be infected with pests must be thrown away without regret, because such dried fruits are unsuitable and even dangerous for human consumption.
It is necessary to process the jars in which the products were stored with a solution of vinegar.
Also, shelves and cabinet walls with affected dried fruits are treated with vinegar essence. If eggs or larvae remain there (they may be in cracks and hard-to-reach places), they will infect new products that they put in the cabinet.

Careful treatment with vinegar essence should be carried out with gloves so as not to get a chemical burn on the skin of the hands. It is better to leave vinegar on surfaces for up to half an hour to guarantee the complete destruction of pest residues. The substance has bad smell, so you need to leave the cabinet to be ventilated when open window until the excess flavors are gone.

Folk remedies

Throughout the history of human struggle with a pest, they have been developed. They are simple, easy to use and, most importantly, safe for health. After all, this natural products, the smell of which is unacceptable to most insects.

Using folk remedies in the fight against pests, you need to remember that insects gradually develop immunity. Therefore, they should be changed periodically: this way the result will be better, and the dried fruits will remain intact.

Effective against fruit moth:

Lavender. The grass has a strong aroma that all moths, including fruit moths, cannot tolerate. Therefore, fabric bags with dried lavender have long been placed in closets to protect clothes and food from this insect. As an alternative, you can use dried mint and lemon balm, which also have a rich smell.
Bay leaf. A few leaves placed in the closet will scare away the pest. But the effectiveness of laurel is lower than that of lavender.
Zest of citrus. It is saturated with essential oils, also strongly smelling. Aromatic substances quickly disappear, so the crusts must be constantly replaced with new ones.

All types of pelargonium (geranium) contain a large number of essential oils, which creates unfavorable conditions for the insect.

Prevention

To reduce the risk of fruit moths in the house, it is recommended to perform the following actions:

Store food in tightly closed jars so that the butterfly cannot climb into it.
Regularly check the status of supplies.
About once a month in the warm season, wipe the cabinet inside with a solution of vinegar essence.
Physically destroy the moth that has flown into the house.

If you do not comply with these simple rules, then you can skip the moment of infection. The pest will be detected only after spoiling an impressive amount of dried fruit.

Fruit moth is a pest of human edibles, preferring dried fruits. She infects them and turns them into dust. But folk remedies, together with preventive measures able to prevent the activity of moths and save products from insects.

Olga Nikitina

Reading time: 8 minutes

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A gray-brown butterfly (food moth) can start up with every housewife. The reason may be purchased packages with cereals, flour and other dry bulk products, infected with moth larvae. Moths are attracted by long-stored cereals, and, going towards their goal, neither closed packs nor plastic bags stop them.

How to get rid of moths in products?

First you need to get rid of cereals that have already been visited by moths.

After a thorough revision, you can fight food moths with proven folk remedies:

The smell of lavender and citrus moths does not tolerate. Arranged peels of orange, lemon in the corners of cabinets, as well as lavender oil applied to cotton swabs or wrapped in gauze small bouquet of these flowers will help get rid of food moths.

Cleaning cabinets with vinegar is also effective. First you need to thoroughly rinse everything hard-to-reach places, cracks with soapy water, ventilate the room, and then wipe the entire surface of the cabinet where bulk products are stored with vinegar.

Garlic will come to the rescue in the fight against moths. If you put garlic cloves in containers where cereals are stored, then its smell will scare away uninvited guests. The smell of cereals and their taste qualities garlic has no effect.

Bay leaf is also not to the liking of food moths. It is necessary to lay out bay leaves around the perimeter of the shelves with cereals, as well as in jars where products that attract moths are stored.

Moths are repelled by the smells of cloves, geraniums, wild rosemary, tansy, fir, rosemary, basil. Aroma oils with these odors should be applied to cotton pads and spread out in places where moths can start.

Moth does not like the smell of wormwood. Small bushes of wormwood, spread out in places where food is stored, adored by moths, will scare them away.

Leaves walnut having a specific smell, well help in the fight against moths. It is enough to spread a few fresh walnut leaves in the corners of the cabinet so that the moth for a long time forgets the way to the products stored there.

A proven remedy is natural camphor and camphor essential oil. The camphor smell will prevent moths from settling in food cabinets.

Moth tobacco smell is unpleasant. Shelf tobacco is a good remedy from food moth.

Pungent odors repel moths. It is possible, after thorough cleaning and elimination of contaminated products, to sprinkle with perfume in the locker. Thus, the smell unpleasant for moths will not spoil the products.

After buying cereals in the store, be sure to calcine it in the oven, and then pour into glass containers, cans or plastic container with tight lid
Keep the kitchen clean: wipe the shelves with a bite, ventilate, apply plant oils with a smell unpleasant for moths;
Review inventory periodically and long-term cereals, if necessary, fry in the oven for 15 minutes at a temperature of 60 degrees;
It is worth dismantling the littered corners of the house: long-lying things, grandmother's dowry (shawls, feather beds, blouses, pillows, rolled carpets). After all, moths can live not only in cereals, but also in things. And, if you do not completely eliminate her lair, then after a while she will visit the kitchen again.

Ah, how beautiful are the colorful fluttering butterflies! Even ordinary cabbages and chocolates cheer up and make you smile. But you can’t say this at all when you see a gray, nondescript relative of these beauties in your kitchen. Started up in your house! And if you find one or two flying individuals, most likely, their offspring are already actively developing in one of your kitchen cabinets. No panic! You can fight moths and, of course, you need to. The main thing is to know how to do it right.

Features of development and life cycle

Food moth and fruit moth are “twin sisters”. Their only difference is that the food one lays eggs, mainly in flour, the fruit one prefers dried fruits. In fact, there are a huge number of species - this is wax, and barn, and.

Life cycle and their stages of development are the same, the difference is only in food cravings and appearance. The food moth can be distinguished from the one that eats the coat by color. The kitchen is darker, gray, sometimes brown. Individuals flying around the kitchen do not cause tangible harm - they do not eat anything at all. They lack the energy reserves that they accumulated as larvae.

But the larval stage of the moth is extremely unpleasant for hostesses. An adult insect lays eggs in flour, seeds, dried fruits, and even breadcrumbs. Soon little caterpillars emerge from the eggs. But their size is deceiving - they are extremely voracious. In order to move to the pupal stage, the larvae must eat intensely, which is what they actually do, turning, for example, a bag of dried fruits into a substance unsuitable for food.

Where does it come from?

The appearance of food moths in the kitchen should not shock you. Even if you have perfect order, you are absolutely not immune from its appearance, and there are several reasons for this. The most common is that you brought insect eggs from the store. Yes, yes, exactly, in a carefully packed pack of pasta or a bag of flour, these pests can already be found.

In large industries, they try to carefully monitor and take measures to prevent such insects from entering the products. But there are many small factories where this control is not properly enforced. Yes, and the storage of goods in stores is often not entirely correct - damage to the packaging, violation temperature regime, poor sanitary conditions, and voila, moth eggs are already in the products.

Well, besides, she can fly to you through a window from the street or through a ventilation grill from a neighboring kitchen. It doesn't matter where the moth came from. It is important to know how to get rid of it.

Destruction

Of course, the surest thing would be to simply destroy both the adults of the moth and its larvae. But only chemicals- insecticides, and their use and even storage with food products Absolutely forbidden. The toxic effect of moth remedies can lead to poisoning and other unfortunate consequences for humans.

Safe can be considered, perhaps, special traps. Inside the trap is a sticky liner and a special filler that emits an aroma that attracts moths. Insects rush to the seductive smell and stick tightly. Your task is only to change the adhesive liners in time.

Physical ways to fight

These methods include banal cleaning and "audit" in the kitchen. Empty all kitchen cabinets and shelves, and carefully inspect all packages, bags, and boxes of supplies. For example, it is customary to store dried fruits in cloth bags, and if you find crawling caterpillars inside, throw away the entire bag without regret. The same should be done with flour or seeds.

Don't try to pick the grubs or sift the flour! Remember, the miser pays twice! You will not be able to get rid of flour moths in this way, but you will also put all packages bought later at risk of infestation with them.

Wipe everything thoroughly internal surfaces kitchen furniture vinegar. Pour all products in which larvae are not found in plastic or glass containers with airtight lids. If you managed to get moths out of the kitchen, think about how to prevent them from reappearing.

Ways to scare

Protecting yourself from kitchen moth intrusion is not difficult. These butterflies have a very sensitive sense of smell, and there are many plants and even spices, the smell of which is extremely unpleasant for them.

First of all, this Bay leaf. Put a couple of leaves in each container or container with flour, seeds or cereals. The use of "lavrushka" gives excellent results - the moth will never lay eggs where it smells it. Yes, and being on top of any bulk product, the bay leaf does not interfere in any way - it does not crumble and does not get wet.

The second most powerful moth repellent are orange peels. Collect fresh crusts and arrange in small piles in the corners of cabinets. The citrus smell will reliably protect your products from pest attacks. Do not forget to only occasionally replace them with new ones with a fresh smell.

Use lavender. It has the same effect on clothing and fruit moths. Arrange dry bundles where you see fit. Put some lavender oil on a tampon and put it in the cabinets. But keep in mind that the smell of essential oils is very strongly absorbed, so the products in the neighborhood must be well covered.

Prevention

Always inspect the purchases brought from the store. Pasta, flour, dried fruits, seeds - all this is subject to the most careful control. Always pour all bulk groceries into airtight containers. Wash the containers themselves from time to time with vinegar.

Ventilate kitchen cabinets. And best of all, ventilate the entire kitchen in winter. Moths don't like the cold very much. Try to keep the inside of kitchen cabinets clean - crumbs, spilled flour or cereals are unacceptable.

Food moth, fruit moth, kitchen moth - whatever it is called - it has no place in your kitchen. You keep food supplies for yourself, and not for her offspring. So don't neglect simple methods prevention, even if you have never met this insect in your apartment. Forewarned is forearmed. And you will never have to fight kitchen moths.

Fruit moth is the creature that can suddenly appear in any home. The insect is not so harmless: its attacks can contribute to the destruction of significant stocks of your food. To prevent this, people and chemical methods conducting insect control.

Fruit, or food, moth is a grayish butterfly, small size(about 9-10 mm). This insect is nocturnal, and therefore it is most active at night, when it can be seen flying around the room. In the morning he prefers to hide in secluded places. The life span of an adult can range from a few days to 3 weeks.

Important: insect control through chemical devices can have an extremely negative effect on interior decoration kitchens. There is a risk that products, as a result of contact with chemicals, will be poisoned, and through them - people. Therefore, this method should be resorted to only in extreme cases.

First of all, products can take a fancy to this insect, it gives preference to fruits, dried fruits, but does not disdain other food. Do not be surprised if a moth is found in loosely covered containers with tea, herbs, etc.

It may seem to many that, having settled in any products, the moth begins to feed on them, thereby exposing them to spoilage. But if you look, then the adult does not eat anything. Spoils products in a slightly different way - through offspring. By laying their eggs in food, a sexually mature insect provides food for its offspring after they have overcome the larval stage.

Attention: if a mole was found in the products, then care must be taken to get rid of it in the place where it directly nests. It would be useful to check other stocks for insects.

The scale of sabotage

It is the larvae that lead to the fact that kitchen supplies are harmed. So, it is they who, in the process of growing up, break through channels in fruits and seeds, which gradually turns them into dust. Not without the fact that larval excrement, chitinous remains, etc. accumulate in the fruits. As a result, food becomes unfit for consumption.

Insects are creatures that can be scared away for your supplies. If you have already discovered fruit moth broods and do not want to see them in the future, it would be better to treat the surface of the cabinets where you store supplies with vinegar essence.

A moth is a creature that can enter a home through various channels or paths. Here are some of these ways:

Attention: moth - this creature prefers to settle in dried fruits, which after that can be completely destroyed. As mentioned earlier, the insect also does not disdain other products. Be careful not to run out of food supplies.

First of all, when you find an insect, try to get rid of all those products where the fact of its presence was reflected. Therefore, carefully sift the food. Having cleaned everything, go directly to cleaning: dilute the soap base in water and thoroughly wash the food storage container (with the addition of vinegar as a deterrent).

To prevent the further stay of moths, do not spare detergents, wipe the entire surface of cabinets, containers, other surfaces, moisten them with vinegar.

Vinegar is a dangerous element due to the possibility of burns. Treat the surface with them only in special rubber gloves. At the end of the procedure, do not forget to leave the premises, leaving to ventilate for at least 1 hour. At the end of the procedure, the mole will not be able to beg for mercy, since it will not be in the house.

But in addition to the traditionally used methods, there are also technically oriented devices designed at the level of the structure of the insect to turn it away from products. This is:

moth raptor;
aeroxon;
adhesive tape.

All of these are useful in one way or another. One point is important: all of the above means should not directly or indirectly affect the products. Otherwise, their use is not justified.

Attention: the moth is a creature from which no house is insured. In the most disgusting dream, this crumb is able to deprive you of a monthly supply of food. Be carefull.

Adhesive tape is a method of dealing not with moth larvae, but directly with an adult. Most importantly, this allows a certain number of mature individuals to be excluded from the chain in a purely mechanical way. And the smaller they become, the fewer eggs they can lay.

How to ensure the storage of products: folk methods

Since few people want to poison their family with chemicals, fighting annoying insects, it is often alternative become folk remedies. A lot in the bins of the Russian people are methods of dealing with fruit moths. It is permissible to resort to both several, and to one of the most productive.

To avoid the reproduction of moths, spoilage of products by it, you should resort to the implementation of the following measures.

All the information presented above will allow you to fully comprehend the idea of \u200b\u200bthe fruit moth. This is an extremely nasty insect that can be easily gotten rid of if you follow a series of simple procedures that were presented above.

Fruit moth can settle even if impeccable cleanliness reigns in the kitchen. It's simple: along with the next batch of products, there is a risk of bringing an unpleasant surprise into the house - moth eggs. Soon, larvae appear from the eggs, and the moth hatched from the larvae gnaws through the bag and gets out into the light, and then the whole kitchen already becomes infected with this pest.

To prevent this phenomenon, it is necessary to immediately pour all bulk products after purchase into glass, plastic or tin containers with hermetically sealed lids. And even if it turns out that a mole has started up in some product, then it cannot fly beyond the container.

fruit moth fight

But if the moth is already flying around the kitchen with might and main, and its larvae are found in the products, measures must be taken. Pest-infected foods will have to be thrown away, as they can damage health. In addition, if you regret throwing away some cereals or dried fruits now, then all the products that will be bought later may also turn out to be spoiled by moth larvae.

Kitchen cabinets need to be vacuumed, properly rinsed detergent and treat all the cracks with vinegar using a small brush. Then rinse with water and dry with a dry cloth. At the end of the procedure, it is better to leave the cabinet doors open for a while. In general, it is desirable to ventilate the furniture more often and open the window in the kitchen: the moth is afraid of fresh air.

Next to bulk products, you can place special traps for moths, all of a sudden, somewhere else there is a pest. It is also recommended to put garlic cloves inside food containers, and place bags of spices (pepper, parsley or cloves) on the shelves. The smells of these seasonings repel moths. For the same purpose, you can use citrus peel or small bags with dried mint, lavender, sweet clover. Plain indoor geranium It is also an excellent insect repellant.

Insecticides must not be stored or used near food. So you have to do without them. It is better to purchase sticky strips: their smell attracts moths, and it sticks to them. And so that the moth does not penetrate into the neighboring apartment or, conversely, from there into your own, it is recommended to close air vent frequent mesh.

To get rid of the fruit moth for sure, you need to adhere to for two to three weeks next rule: before using the product, carefully check if there are any larvae in it.