The Green Spot 



Dealing with Mites 



You've probably heard the saying, "It must be 

 something in the water." Well, when it 

 comes to mite control, the water itself is the vil- 

 lain (at least to the mites). 



The two-spotted mite (Tetranychus urticae) is 

 an eight-legged web-forming pest of a huge as- 

 sortment of economically important plants. They 

 can overwhelm many of these, even those of 

 great size, in a wide variety of conditions. 

 They'll do the most damage, though, when the 

 conditions are hot and dry. 



Logically speaking, one might assume, based 

 on the information above, that the two-spotted 

 mite might be suppressed if the growing condi- 

 tions were less than ideal — cool and humid. 

 Well, you know what they say about assuming.... 

 but in this case, one would fare well. 



The two-spotted mite can be suppressed by fre- 

 quent misting of the plant material. This action 

 lowers the leaf temperatures and raises the leaf's 

 microclimate humidity. Moreover, the new condi- 

 tions will better support predatory mites, which 

 should be par for the pesticide control course. In 

 fact, the successes far outnumber the failures 

 when it comes to the biological control of mites — 

 the results are largely predictable. 



Want more? Try being a Web Wiper (just be- 

 fore you inoculate with predatory mites). As the 

 name implies, grab a sponge and start wiping 

 heavily webbed areas. Under a microscope, it is 

 clear the two-spotted mite's webbing is Mite 

 Central Station: expecting females, newborn 

 mites, unhatched eggs — a real nursery situa- 

 tion—which can be wiped out with a sponge, in 

 a snap. Wipe out one web; rinse the sponge 

 thoroughly; wipe out another. 



Just can't trust the water — for fear of spreading 

 the pests? Put a little insectical soap or other bio- 

 friendly product on the sponge between swipes. 



Don't like mites? Rain on their parade, then 

 blot them up and send in the dogs to finish the 

 job. And remember-these mites hold no affec- 

 tion for you either, so don't feel too badly about 

 mopping up their community center. 



Mike Cherim, president of The Green Spot Ltd., 

 Department of Bio-Ingenuity, 93 Priest Road, 

 Nottingham, NH 03290-6204, can be reached by 

 phone (6oj-g42-8g2^) or fax (603-942-8932). 



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604 Main Street, Cromwell, CT 06416 

 Phone (203) 635-5500 FAX (203) 635-3685 



:%^K^^ Trees Since 1929 



^illane 9?ursenes,^nc. 



Growing 500 Acres of New Englanc) s Finest Trees i Shrubs 



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Growem 



251 North Village Road. Loudon, NH 03301 

 Phone 603-783-9561 Fax 603-783-9562 



TH E PLANTSMAN 



