Tomato leafminer

Mining by the caterpillar causes malformations. Damage to fruit allows fungal diseases to enter, leading to rotting fruit before or after harvest. Life cycle [...] creamy white to bright yellow, darkening in the embryonic phase and becoming almost black near eclosion. The first-instar larvae are whitish to yellowish [...] the dorsal surface. Caterpillars can temporarily be found outside the leaf mines or fruit. Pupation takes place in the soil or on the surface of a leaf, in

Sciarid flies

minute (0.1 to 0.25 mm) and yellowish white in colour. They are laid on the ground surface close to plant roots. The larvae can grow to 5 to 12 mm in length [...] damage to crops belong to the genera Bradysia and Lycoriella . Lycoriella species are mainly found in commercial mushroom cultivation where they can cause [...] generally do little harm to healthy plants, sciarid flies are particularly problematic in cuttings and other young growing plant material. Damage symptoms

Encarsia formosa

the crop, if possible approximately 75 cm under the plant head Avoid to hang cards at places exposed to direct sunlight The dosage of En-Strip or Enermix [...] the host, leading to its death and thereby contributing to the reduction of whitefly numbers. Encarsia formosa is highly adaptable and can adjust its parasitism [...] parasitic wasp, native to temperate and subtropical regions, has become an important natural enemy for farmers and gardeners aiming to reduce the reliance

Thrips Identification Guide

develop within a single gall. Adults exit galls and migrate to new terminal leaves to begin a new generation. The life cycle takes about 30 days. Thrips move [...] Broad range of host plants, both vegetable and ornamental plants. Females 0.8 -1.0 mm long. Males smaller and very rare. Light yellow to brown in colour. [...] Behaviour and life cycle Damage Host plants Females 1.2 mm long, males 1 mm. Variable in colour, from yellow to dark brown. 8 antennal segments. Long

Neoseiulus californicus

than Phytoseiulus persimilis . It can survive longer than Phytoseiulus persimilis when spider mites are scarce and can control small spider mite populations [...] californicus is a selective predator of Tetranychid mites, i.e. it prefers to feed on spider mites but can also feed and survive on other prey, including other [...] sources. They can also survive longer than Phytoseiulus persimilis in the complete absence of food, remaining in the crop to await the arrival of new prey. Life

Fly pollination

leading to improved fertilization and higher crop yields. Benefits of flies Lucilia sericata is a generalist when it comes to choosing plants for pollination [...] flower to flower in search of nourishment, they inadvertently transfer pollen from one bloom to another. This accidental pollination contributes to the genetic [...] or other small isolation units with a few plants or when the amount of produced pollen is low. Lucilia flies can be easily combined with bumblebees and honeybees

Aphidius colemani

aphids to drop from the leaf and fall to the ground. Although many aphids die as a result, many will survive and migrate to other plants to begin new colonies [...] density and should always be adjusted to the particular situation. Start introduction preventively soon after planting of the crop. Introduction rates typically [...] effective searching behaviour, which enables the wasps to track down and parasitize aphids , even when they are at low density. The behaviour of the female

Citrus mealybug

search for a new feeding place and are capable of moving a reasonable distance over the plant. The male nymph attaches itself to the plant, whereas the [...] lived and can be hard to spot. They are smaller than the females, have two pairs of wings and two long tail filaments. Their sole task is to fertilize [...] citri ) can also appear in cucumber, melon and aubergine. Damage symptoms Although most species of mealybug feed on the aerial parts of the plant, some species

Western flower thrips

prefer to feed on developing plant tissues such as growing tips and flower buds. When these tissues develop further, the leaves and flowers can appear [...] Thrips cause damage to plants by piercing the cells of the surface tissues and sucking out their contents, causing the surrounding tissue to die. The resulting [...] the crop. The vigour of the plant is reduced by loss of chlorophyll. When infestations become serious the leaves themselves can shrivel. Western flower thrips

American serpentine leaf miner

miners cause damage to plants both directly and indirectly. The most direct damage is caused by the larvae mining the leaf tissue, leading to desiccation, premature [...] subtropical areas this can lead to burning in fruit such as tomato and melon. Loss of leaves also reduces yield. In full-grown plants of fruiting vegetable [...] hard to distinguish from feeding spots. The larvae of Liriomyza trifolii are entirely ochre-yellow. When the larva hatches from the egg, it begins to eat