Can persimilis predatory mites finish the job?

GreenLogician

GreenLogician

Well-Known Member
Hello!
I'm in the beginnings of a spider mite issue, and considering predatory spider mites.
A local place stocks Phytoseiulus persimilis and Neoseiulus californicus.

A sentence in the description of californicus caught my eye:
"Californicus is able to survive well even at low prey densities due to their ability to use alternate prey and pollen as a food source."

I think this implies that persimilis do not survive well at low prey densities.
Does that mean they will die off before my spider mite levels drop to zero?
 
L

Lacedwitgame

Well-Known Member
Ive noticed this site responds more to politics then it does to growing...try another thread with the headliner "i love donald trump" & see how many hits your thread gets.....
 
~MoE~

~MoE~

Well-Known Member
Its possible that a lot of ppl don't have access to predatory mites, like myself and don't have any information on the subject, however it would be good if someone did have some kind of decent info as I would like to know also,
 
D

draxhemp

Active Member
buy the hottest damn pepper you can find grind it in with about 2 cups of water and spray your plants. wont hurt plants AT ALL no matter how much you use. all insects hate it. onion works just not aswell.
 
GreenLogician

GreenLogician

Well-Known Member
I got a response from the business :)

"Neither Persimilis nor Californicus will completely eradicate spider mites; they just bring the population down to a more acceptable level.
Persimilis are quite voracious towards spider mite and really need a large population initially to maintain themselves, but will seek to maintain an equilibrium once the population is reduced.
Californicus however can survive for a short time on other things if necessary, and hence are ideal for a low level population or as a preemptive control.

Kind regards"
 
pinner420

pinner420

Well-Known Member
Just ordered 6000 for the greenhouse hope they are hungry.... seems to me a guy needs to figure out how to grow and maintain his predator mite population at a black belt level.
 
Soilwatcher

Soilwatcher

Member
Lacedwitgame said:
Dont waste your time or money...these things dont work...
Click to expand...
Sure they do, but you may not have received good info on how to use them. I had a similar experience in '97 and wasted a few hundred bucks at similar (and same) place(s). I new theses worked, and finally called a producer (Koppert Biological in Michigan) and told them straight up I was a medical cannabis grower and needed some help. They referred me to a distributor that new what they were doing. But heads up, Integrated Pest Management is a program, NOT a silver bullet you pick up at the local grow shop. Also, if you are a small grower (< 12 plants) it may not be cost effective unless you can co-op with another local grower or two. If you put the time in to learn how to do it right, you will reap the rewards.
 
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