Beneficials Archives - Australian Apple and Pear IPDM

published - 11 March 2020
By Emily Crawford (Agriculture Victoria)

Controlling codling moth with parasitoid wasp

David Williams summarises the findings from his research project on the parasitoid wasp Mastrus ridens as a biocontrol agent for codling moth:

Further information:
See our other article Advances in Controlling Codling Moth in orchards

codling moth, mastrus wasp, parasitoid wasp

Beneficials

published - 4 March 2020
By Emily Crawford (Agriculture Victoria)

Securing pollination through revegetation

Dr Katya Hogendoorn discusses how growers can harness the pollination services provided by native and feral honey bees using strategic floralistic support at the APAL Grower Update:

bees, pollination, revegetation

Beneficials

published - 4 March 2020
By Emily Crawford (Agriculture Victoria)

Pollination under netting – Learnings from NZ

At the APAL Grower Update, Dr Lisa Evans discussed honey bees and how their behaviour can be affected under netting – focussing on her study in New Zealand kiwi orchards and the implications for apple production. She explores several management strategies to mitigate the effects of netting.

bees, pollination under netting

Beneficials

published - 20 February 2020
By Dr Stephen Quarrell (University of Tasmania)

Earwigs: ugly critters we should learn to love

Earwigs, everyone knows them, but most people hate them. That said, they are probably one of the best predators in your orchard!
Why are they so good? There are several reasons, in scientific IPM jargon they are what’s called a localised omnivorous predator. What the hell does that mean? The localised …
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beneficial predators, codling moth, earwigs, LBAM, wooly aphid

Beneficials, Pests

published - 4 December 2019
By David Williams (Agriculture Victoria)

Woolly aphid parasitoids

At this time of year woolly apple aphid colonies will be starting to expand as crawlers emerging from overwintering sites on the roots, begin to establish on the shoots, and aphids in colonies that survived on branches over winter begin to multiply. The tiny wasp (A.Mali) parasitises woolly apple aphids …
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parasitoids, woolly aphid, woolly aphid parasitoid, woolly aphid wasp

Beneficials, Pests

published - 23 September 2019
By David Williams (Agriculture Victoria) and Emily Crawford (Agriculture Victoria)

Cost of Biologicals versus Chemicals

Many growers ask the question: What is the cost per hectare for treatment for a pest such as mites? Are chemicals or biological control agents more expensive?
To answer that question we need to explore what is meant by “expensive”. The initial purchase price for biocontrol agents may be more than …
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beneficials, biocontrols

Beneficials, Useful Tools

published - 10 September 2019
By Dr Stephen Quarrell (University of Tasmania)

Think Pollination

As the 2019 production season draws closer it’s time to think pollination. By now you should already have had or are having discussions with your beekeeper about your pollination requirements for this season including the number of hives, the hive’s strength (number of bees per hive) and their position(s) in …
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bees, pollination

Beneficials, Weeds

published - 30 July 2019
By Emily Crawford (Agriculture Victoria)

Brush up on good bugs

Beneficial insects and mites may already be in your orchard working to reduce populations of pests. But did you know many are also commercially available in Australia?
If you can identify the beneficials in your orchard you may then be able to make more informed decisions and avoid accidentally wiping out …
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beneficials, good bugs, parasites, parasitoids, predators, predatory mites, predatory wasps

Beneficials, Pests, Resources

published - 12 June 2019

Mite Management

European Red Mite (ERM), Two Spotted Mites (TSM) and Bryobia mites all commonly affect apple and pear orchards.
David Williams (Principal Researcher, Agriculture Victoria) discusses how to identify, monitor and control mites in the following three videos:
Mite Monitoring

Mite Monitoring – understanding Cumulative Leaf Infested Days (CLID)

For more information on how to …
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Bryobia mite, CLID's, Cumulative leaf infested days, European Red Mite (ERM), monitoring, predator mites, Two-spotted mite

Beneficials, Pests