The latest insights on biological product use in the greenhouse

A New Predatory Mite for Greenhouse Vegetable, Ornamental Growers

Brian Spencer, President of Applied Bio-Nomics, offered a closer look at the Vineland Research and Innovation Centre's development of a new predatory mite, Anystis baccarum, and its path to broad release (read more about this in a story by Vineland's Dr. Rose Buitenhuis).

"People have tried to rear Anystis in the past, but gave up because it can be very hard to control," Spencer said. "We set up a model with Vineland on a way to develop it and learn more about how it feeds."

Here's what else the collaboration between Vineland and Applied Bio-Nomics has learned:

• Dubbed a "crazy mite" by Spencer, Anystis is pernacious and moves very quickly when hunting for pests (Spencer showed a video of aphids actually fleeing from it on a leaf)
• It is a predator at each stage of its life cycle, which is why Spencer recommends growers cycle applications among life stages
• It will target any instar larvae, including large ones
• During trials at Applied Bio-nomics, Anystis did not attack the company's other predator products. "In fact, it often stepped right over them." Spencer says.
• While some Vineland trials showed that Anystis might interfere with Orius, another predator, Spencer said his team has not seen this
• The first signs of success when using Anystis were in cut gerbera, where it targeted thrips, aphids, and even spider mites. "We were able to figure out an order of preference," said Spencer, who cautioned that this was specific to gerberas. "Sometimes biocontrol rules are based on the plant, not the pests targeted."
• Anystis is comfortable at a broad range of temperatures, meaning it can target pests that remain active even in cool weather.

So what's next? Spencer said Anystis is available now in Canada, and Applied-Bionomics is currently working on a petition with USDA that will hopefully lead to eventually access for U.S. growers.

"While I don't see it as being a silver bullet for insect control, it should be a helpful tool," Spencer said.

Managing Greenhouse Vegetable Diseases with Microbials

Zamir Punja, a Professor of Plant Pathology at Simon Fraser University, provided a closer look at managing disease in greenhouse vegetables, with a particular focus on cucumbers.

Continue reading.

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Source: Greenhouse Grower