Strictly speaking, they are not maggots, but rather the larvae of the raspberry beetle, which cause serious damage to the fruits of the raspberries. What you can do about the unpleasant garden inhabitants.
What to do against maggot infestation in raspberries?
Maggots in raspberries are usually raspberry beetle larvae that damage the fruit. Preventive measures include a sunny location, regular thinning, planting autumn raspberries, collecting beetles in spring and laying out special attractants.
Raspberry beetle - the most common pest on raspberry bushes
If the raspberries have a lot of maggots, the raspberry beetle is usually responsible. The three to four millimeter large pest lays its eggs on the leaves and in the flowers of raspberries from mid-May.
The larvae develop from this and attack not only the leaves, but especially the raspberry fruits. They either take care of the bush or don't even ripen.
The pest infestation only occurs on early-flowering varieties, the summer raspberries. When the autumn raspberries begin to bloom, the mating season of the raspberry beetles is already over. They then no longer lay eggs in the flowers.
Preventive measures against the raspberry beetle
There are only a few measures that actually help:
- Choose a sunny location
- Thin out bushes regularly
- Plant autumn raspberries preferably
- Collecting the raspberry beetles in spring
- Lay out special attractants
Choose a sunny location
Raspberry beetles feel particularly comfortable in a shaded location. Therefore, plant raspberry bushes in as sunny a place as possible. The pests spread less there.
Make sure there is enough space between the rods. The closer the shoots grow, the easier it is for the raspberry beetle to spread. More than 15 canes should never be left on one bush.
Collecting the beetles
If you want to eat the fruit of your raspberries, you must not use any chemical agents. Not only do they poison the beetles, but they also harm beneficial garden creatures. Chemically treated fruits are not edible.
If your raspberry bushes are infested with raspberry beetles, collect the beetles individually from the bushes in spring. This is inconvenient, but it is the only effective method.
To do this, hold the shoot with two fingers and gently tap it with your other hand. This means that most of the beetles fall off and just have to be picked up.
Tips & Tricks
The gardening store offers special attractants (€19.00 on Amazon) that you can use near the raspberry plants. They should exude the aroma of raspberries and thus entice the beetles to lay their eggs on the attractant.
