Rapeseed crops face threats from flea beetle larvae and irregular flowering

Agricultural experts are warning of potential damage to rapeseed crops caused by the rapeseed flea beetle. The Institute of Plant Protection - National Research Institute (IOR-PIB) notes that while adult beetles damage leaves and cotyledons, the larval stage poses a more significant threat. Larvae burrow into the main veins and leaf stalks, which can reduce the plant's photosynthetic surface and lead to plant death.

In the autumn, a single female can lay up to 800 eggs in the soil near host plants. These larvae can weaken the rapeseed plants, making them less resilient to winter conditions.

Additionally, some fields following rapeseed harvests are showing unexpected flowering. This phenomenon may involve stunted rapeseed plants that survived winter and frost, or potentially a third flowering cycle, which is considered an anomaly. In many cases, these flowering plants may actually be other species from the same family that thrived due to weeds filling gaps left by weaker rapeseed density.