Bumblebees can probably do the pollinating job for less money than you can hire it done!! Bumblebees will work 7 days a week!! No time off!! No sick days!! No payroll taxes!! Never too busy to pollinate, bumblebees seem to know exactly when the pollen is ready, resulting in excellent fruit setting. Order by Thursday noon – for next week delivery. (more...)

Whitefly is known to attack more than 500 species of plants, many of them economically important. The list includes cabbage, cotton, melons, poinsettia, squash, tomato, and many other ornamental and vegetable crops. Nationwide, dollar losses have exceeded $200 million annually. Production losses in these major crop plants cause increased costs to the consumer. (more...)

There are two types of thrips that can be pests to greenhouse operations, the Tobacco or Onion thrips (Thrips tabaci) and the Western Flower Thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis). Although Western Flower Thrips have been found to vector Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus and are slightly different in size than the Onion Thrips, the life cycle and feeding habits are similar. Thrips cut a slit in a plant and deposit their eggs into the slit. The eggs hatch into a nymph that feeds on the plant for 7 – 14 days. (more...)

Spider mites feed on plant cells and produce characteristic small, yellowish, speckled feeding marks. The feeding marks are usually the first sign of a mite infestation and are often confused with some fertilizer deficiencies. Fine, silken webs can be detected on heavily infested leaves and flowers with these plant parts quickly withering and turning brown. (more...)

Aphids feed on plant sap by inserting their mouthparts into plant tissue. They excrete a sugary liquid, or honeydew. The honeydew not only clogs the pores of the leaves, but also encourages the growth of black, sooty mold, which can prevent light from reaching the photosynthetic tissue of the plant. Aphids weaken the plant by draining it’s fluids, may cause severe distortion of growth, and are common means of transmitting plant viruses. (more...)