Biological Controls – Our Integrated Approach

At Red Lands Roses we use Integrated Pest Management (IPM), which is a bio-friendly approach to growing that focuses on managing insect pests, and disease through a combination of cultural, physical, biological and chemical methods. These methods need to be cost effective, environmentally friendly and socially acceptable. One of our main IPM strategies is the natural use of biological controls. Some of them are listed below, categorized under Predators and Bio-Pesticides:

PREDATORS

At Red Lands Roses we use predators that prey on roses’ pest. This gives us the opportunity to reduce the application of pesticides on the crop, with benefits for the crop itself, the staff, and the environment:

Amblyseius californicus and Phytoseiulus persimilus

These two mites are used to control spider mites, all working in slightly different ways with different feeding habits. Each species has its preferred temperatures so using them together can be a very useful tool in controlling spider mites. They can be difficult to spot without a hand lens and are unlikely to be seen on harvested crops as they prefer temperatures of >15 degrees.

Amblyseius cucumeris

A.cucumeris is a predatory mite that is useful for the prevention, control, and management of various thrips species. A. cucumeris are tough, flexible predators that happen to prefer thrips, mostly the immature thrips stages.

Amblyseius montdorensis

A.montdorensis is a predatory mite that feeds on many types of small arthropod prey and pollen. It is ideal for preventive control of white flies and thrips in greenhouses. A.montdorensis is active at a broader range of temperatures than other predatory mites, making it perfect for controlling pests in challenging environmental conditions.

Steinernema feltiae

Steinernema feltiae is an entomopathogenic nematode (EPN): EPNs possess many desirable characteristics, such as searching ability of hosts, safety to non-target organisms and the potential to survive in the environment. It is used in Red Lands to control thrips pupae and Sciaridae larvae in soil. These nematodes are visible only on through a microscope due to their size.

BIO-PESTICIDES

Bio-Pesticides have been used in Horticulture since the 1950s for natural pest control. The use of Bio-Pesticides does not bring any risk of resistance (loss of efficacy of insecticides due to continuous usage). By reducing the use of pesticides, we reduce the exposure to potentially dangerous chemical substances. At Red Lands Roses we use them to target different pest; some of them are listed below:

Bacillus thuringiensis

Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is a natural occurring, soil-borne bacterium that produces, during sporulation, crystal proteins that have insecticidal action when ingested by insects. At Red Lands Roses we use them to control various lepidopteran larvae, False Codling Moth (FCM) among them.

Beauveria bassiana

Beauveria bassiana is a fungus, naturally occurring in soils, acting as a parasite on various arthropod species, thus belonging to the entomopathogenic fungi. We use it in Red Lands Roses as a biological insecticide to control thrips, white flies and aphids.

Lecanicillium lecanii

Lecanicillium lecanii is another entomopathogenic fungus, widely distributed, that is used in Red Lands Roses to control Mealybugs and white flies. Insects are infected when they come into contact with the sticky fungal spores which then grow and invade the body, leading to their death.

Metarhizium anisopliae

Metarhizium anisopliae is a fungus that grows naturally in soils throughout the world and causes disease in various insects by acting as a parasitoid. It is used in Red Lands Roses to control Mealybugs.