Predatory mites
- What they are
- Tiny mites, about half a millimetre long, that hunt other mites and small insects on leaves and flowers.
- What they control
- Spider mites (Phytoseiulus persimilis, Neoseiulus californicus), and whitefly and thrips (Amblyseius swirskii).
- How they work
- They eat pest eggs, young and adults, and keep multiplying while there is food.
Parasitic wasps
- What they are
- Tiny wasps, harmless to people, that lay their eggs in or on pests.
- What they control
- Whitefly (Encarsia formosa, Eretmocerus species), aphids (Aphidius colemani), mealybugs (Anagyrus species) and leafminers (Diglyphus isaea).
- How they work
- The young wasp feeds on the pest and kills it, then a new adult emerges to find more.
Predatory bugs
- What they are
- Fast-moving bugs that pierce pests and suck them dry.
- What they control
- Thrips (Orius species), and whitefly and the eggs and young larvae of Tuta absoluta (Macrolophus pygmaeus, Nesidiocoris tenuis).
- How they work
- They hunt through the whole crop and, released early, settle in for the season.
Ladybirds, lacewings and predatory midges
- What they are
- Predators that eat large numbers of soft-bodied pests, especially as larvae.
- What they control
- Aphids (the lacewing Chrysoperla carnea, the midge Aphidoletes aphidimyza) and mealybugs (the ladybird Cryptolaemus montrouzieri).
- How they work
- Released on the worst spots, they clear pest colonies that are already established.
Beneficial nematodes
- What they are
- Microscopic worms, applied with water to the soil or the plant.
- What they control
- Insect larvae in the soil, such as fungus gnats, weevil grubs and some caterpillars (Steinernema and Heterorhabditis species), and red palm weevil in palm trees.
- How they work
- They enter the pest and release bacteria that kill it within days, then multiply inside it and move on.
Bumblebees
- What they are
- Natural pollinators, delivered in hives that sit inside the greenhouse.
- What they do
- Pollinate tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, strawberries and other berries.
- How they work
- They vibrate each flower to shake the pollen loose (“buzz pollination”), which tomato flowers need and honeybees cannot do.
