This post was jointly written by Dr. Chevonne Dayboll and Dr. Sarah Jandricic
It’s hard to believe, but as the first snow hits the ground here in Niagara, that means its time to think about spring crops again!
This post gathers some of the most important things to plan and prep for in the greenhouse, including ordering inputs, preventative maintenance, and your pest management and PGR plans!
Think of this post as your “to-do” check list for the month of December, as the time to plan all this is NOW, before your spring production begins.
We’ve also linked to some helpful videos we’ve recorded from our GrowON webinar series that are relevant to spring crops. They’re worth a re-watch – or a first watch – if you haven’t seen them before!
This post was jointly written by Dr. Chevonne Dayboll and Dr. Sarah Jandricic
It’s time to think about spring again! This post gathers some of the most important things to plan and prep for in the greenhouse before your spring production begins in earnest.
1. Make sure your inputs are ordered
We can’t emphasize this one enough. COVID-19 and container boat issues are still causing shipping delays that are affecting many industries including greenhouses. Make sure you order potting mixes, plastic trays and pots, fertilizers, and production inputs well ahead of when you will need them. If you are planning on doing greenhouse upgrades in between seasons make sure you confirm delivery and installation timelines with your contractors. Many of them are facing delays too!
2. Now is the time for preventative maintenance
Heat loss from an older (left) and newer, more efficient boiler (right). (Photo credit: OMAFRA)
Now is a great time to schedule preventive maintenance for your boiler, irrigation and shading systems. Make sure that all motors and alarms are working before you need to rely on them. No one wants to find out that their temperature alarm failed on a cold February morning! Ensure you are getting the pressure you expect all along your irrigation system. If you rely on propane heaters for early spring production make sure they are venting properly. Damage from improper venting can present as stunted growth or leaf burn.
Take some time to inspect the greenhouse for wear-and-tear. Repair cracked poly and broken glass to keep heat from escaping. Make sure old torn energy curtains are replaced. A heat sensitive camera can help to identify areas of energy loss and help you plan for energy efficient upgrades in the future.
Up until this point, most of Ontario floriculture growers (and me!) assumed the only pest thrips we were dealing with was Western flower thrips (besides Echinothrips in a few crops like gerbera and poinsettia).
Western flower thrips adult on an open Mandevilla flower. Photo credit: Caitlin MacDonald, USEL student.
Now that the warm weather is finally upon us, it’s time to start worrying about thrips control.
What we’ve learned over the years is that pesticides just don’t cut it – the only reliable chemical for western flower thrips in Ontario is DDVP, which requires constant application. This means biological control is your best bet. Here’s a summary of the most effective tools, tricks, and timing, to ensure your biocontrol dollars are well spent.
Effective biocontrol programs for western flower thrips often usemultiple natural enemies. These includepredatory mites like N. cucumeris or A. swirskii, but also generalist predators like Atheta and Orius, which can feed on mite eggs and nymphs.
It’s an exciting time for Floriculture IPM! I am VERY pleased to announce the launch of the all newGreenhouseIPM website! GreenhouseIPM.org presents a compilation of up-to-date information on Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and biological control in greenhouses.
And, as part of the website launch, we are holding a FREE THRIPS WORKSHOP (with a free lunch!). The workshop will cover all the components of thrips IPM and how they fit into a greenhouse production system.
Dates are Nov 23rd (8:30-1pm) OR Nov 30th (8:30-1pm) at Rittenhouse Hall. Please RSVP Rose Buitenhuis: (rose.buitenhuis@vinelandresearch.com or 905-562-0320 x749). SPACE IS LIMITED SO RESERVE YOUR SPOT NOW!
The most current information on thrips and whitefly IPM is now at your fingertips at greenhouseipm.org.
GreenhouseIPM.org provides detailed descriptions of pests, biocontrol agents and detailed instructions on how best to use biocontrols within an IPM program.
Its initial format it focuses on two key pests – whiteflies and thrips – and their control. The site will evolve to encompass all common insect and mite pests, as well as diseases, in greenhouse crops.
Sorry for the back-to-back posts, but I thought those of you growing chrysanthemums would be interested in this post from MSU on recognizing Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus symptoms in your crop.
TSWV is vectored by thrips. With temperatures between 25 and 28 C for the next 10 days, thrips reproduction will be rapid. Control of thrips (and elimination of infected plant material) is necessary to reduce virus spread.
Thrips biological control can be achieved in floriculture greenhouses using the predatory mite Amblyseius swirskii and/or A. cucumeris in combination with the parasitic nematode S. felitiae and foliar applications of BotaniGard. Registered chemicals for thrips in Ontario include:
Well, now that I’ve gotten your attention, let’s be clear that I’m talking about bugs, here, people. Specifically, Western flower thrips and predatory mites such as N. cucumerisandA. swirskii.
Second instar (L2) western flower thrips next to a predatory mite egg (left) and 2 adult mites (right). Photo credit: Sarah Jandricic.
We all know that predatory mites only kill and eat the small, first larval stage of thrips (referred to as L1’s). Larger life stages (i.e. L2’s and adult thrips) are simply too large for the mites to kill.
But, that doesn’t mean they don’t help control them.
Predatory mites will repeatedly attempt to kill L2 thrips – attacking them up to 40 times an hour (1). The L2 thrips are able to fend off these attacks by either running away, or “slapping” mites in the face with their abdomens. You can watch the hilarity that ensues when mites attempt to attack too-large thrips larvae here.
But this “harassment” by mites takes it’s toll on thrips. Because thrips spend more time fending off mites, they spend 30% less time feeding (2). Over time, this translates to 40% less damage on plants with predatory mites, compared to no mites (2). And, the presence of mites can reduce survival of L2 thrips by up to 78% (1), probably because eating less means the thrips lack the nutritional reserves to complete development.
And all of this is accomplished just through “intimidation” of thrips by mites – not through consumption. Scientists term these “non-consumptive” effects, and we are just starting to learn the importance of these effects in biological control. Research is now suggesting that non-consumptive effects like “harassment” may actually account for 50% of the pest control we see in greenhouses (3).
This makes sense with our thrips example. Not only do mites reduce the feeding and survival of larval thrips, but ongoing research from Cornell University shows that the presence of mites reduces the number of eggs laid by adult thrips, and shortens adult thrips lifespan (4). Even the presence of predatory mite eggs on a plant has been shown to “scare” L1 thrips into eating less, according to research from Austria (5).
And, it would make sense that the more mites you have, the higher the number of “scary” encounters thrips will have with them, improving control.
So, lets give a hand to the hard working, harassing, predatory mite, who’s doing more than we ever thought in floriculture IPM. Stay creepy, little guys. Stay creepy.
References: (1) Jandricic, S.E., Schmidt, D., Bryant, G., and Frank, S.P, NC State University. Unpublished data. (2) Jandricic, S.E. and Frank, S.P. 2014. Too scared to eat: non-consumptive effects of predatory mites. IOBC/wprs Bulletin 102: 111-115; (3) Preisser, E. L, Bolnick, D. I., & Benard, M. F. 2005: Scared to death? The effects of intimidation and consumption in predator-prey interactions. Ecology 86: 501-509. (4) Loughner, R., and Nyrop, J. Cornell University. Unpublished data. (5) Walzer, A., & Schausberger, P. 2009: Non-consumptive effects of predator mites on thrips and its host plant. Oikos 118: 934-940.
Up until this point, most of Ontario floriculture growers (and me!) assumed the only pest thrips we were dealing with was Western flower thrips (besides Echinothrips in a few crops like gerbera and poinsettia).
