Discard tomato spotted wilt virus infected plants. Remove all plant debris on benches and floors. This is where scouting helps time applications of pest control materials accordingly. You can also use the neonicotinoids including imidacloprid, acetamiprid, dinotefuran, and/or thiamethoxam. They reported that Lemon Gem marigold would not be acceptable as banker plants because very few of the Orius nymphs reared on this marigold developed into adults. Then, rotate to a third class of insecticides, and finally, return to the original material and repeat the whole process. The Insecticide Resistance Action Committee (IRAC) is an organization of chemical companies and researchers that has classified insecticides and miticides into different modes of action groups. Depending on environmental conditions and nutrient levels, WFT females lay 150-300 eggs during their lifetime. Western Flower Thrips Biology and Control. Biological control of western flower thrips, in general, can be very difficult or more challenging than using insecticides. Once thrips acquire INSV or TSWV, virus multiplies within the salivary glands and other tissues of the thrips and is later transmitted to new plants by the feeding of the infected thrips after it has reached the adult stage. First and foremost, to effectively manage WFT, it is critical to develop a scouting program, which combines the use of yellow or blue sticky cards to monitor adult population trends, and visual inspection of crops to assess infestation levels of the nymphal stages. Pepper plants attract the thrips and also serve as indicator plants for early detection. Reflective mulches can help to hide your plants from thrips. Small droplet sizes are best because they penetrate better into the protected areas of the plant where the thrips are found and can provide better control if coverage is thorough. For example, in cut roses, removing all flower buds (including non-marketable flowers) can significantly reduce thrips populations … different age structures or life stages simultaneously over the course of the crop production cycle. But the key to implementing a successful biological control program is to release natural enemies early enough in the cropping cycle. When infestations become serious the leaves themselves can shrivel. Tolerance levels or damage thresholds determine the damage that is likely to occur at a particular population level. Western flower thrips can be difficult to manage for a number of reasons. Western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis P. (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) is a major agricultural and horticulture pest worldwide (Kirk, 2002; Kirk and Terry, 2003).It causes damage and spoilage to a vast number of economically important plant species through feeding, oviposition and spread of several plant diseases, most notably tospoviruses (Morse and Hoddle, 2006). Western Flower Thrips Biology: These tiny thrips (1-1.4 mm long) damage plants in both their larval and adult stages. Ornamental pepper plants have been used  in spring crops as banker plants at a rate of one plant per 1,000 sq. As such, those materials with translaminar properties are more likely to be effective in killing WFT in terminal or flower buds. Remove "pet" plants and avoid keeping leftovers such as holiday cacti and cyclamen. Place Amblyseius cucumeris slow release sachets in hanging baskets that cannot easily be reached. The Orius will lay eggs in the same area where thrips lay eggs, usually in or near flowers. Photo of larvae. Organic sprays, such as natural pyrethrum (e.g. Enhancing the activity of insect-killing fungi for floral IPM. PDF: Developing an Effective Western Flower Thrips Management Program, SePRO Announces Personnel Moves for Next Phase of Growth, Proven Winners ColorChoice Brings Back Shrub Madness Bracket Competition, University of Florida Releases New Video on Monitoring Hydroponic Systems, What Consumers See in Their Gardens of the Future, Culture Report: New Guinea Impatiens Harmony Colorfall Series, Vaughan’s Horticulture Announces Sudden Passing of Matt Willoughby, UF to Host Virtual Field Day on Compact Vegetable Evaluation, EHR Strengthens Team with Former Gloeckner Reps. Sanitation is the first and most important step in implementing an effective pest management program. Below are some key points to contemplate when implementing a pest management program against WFT: • The first line of defense in any pest management program is sanitation. Blue sticky cards are more effective in detecting thrips than yellow sticky cards. Table 1. Treating just a portion of the crop with Marathon® will help to slow the development of pest resistance. There are many insecticides registered for WFT, but overuse of pesticides can lead to resistance in the WFT populations you are trying to control. Greenhouse IPM for Western Flower Thrips. Tolerance levels will vary depending upon the crop, its stage of growth, local market standards and whether or not either INSV or TSWV are present at the site. The egg stage lasts from 2-1/2 to 4 days. Symptoms of WFT feeding include leaf scarring, distorted growth, sunken tissues on leaf undersides, and flower deformation (Figures 1 through 3). Young plants are especially vulnerable to infection. Van Driesche R.G., K.M. Keep flowers off of plants as long as possible to reduce populations. In the past 30 years, western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande) (Thysanoptera: Thripidae), has become one of the most important agricultural pests worldwide. The eggs of WFT are well protected and in general, pesticide sprays are ineffective against them. W… To set up a monitoring program using petunias, first remove flowers. Both companies have separate kits available for testing for INSV and TSWV. Using On-Site Test Kits to Detect Tospoviruses On-site test kits can be used to determine whether or not tospoviruses are present in greenhouse plants. A successful WFT management program does not require “eradication” of the pest, but instead maintaining WFT populations at levels such that no “major” damage is noticeable. Control measures include removal of infected plants and WFT control measures, such as spraying, or exclusion of thrips. Van Driesche, T. Smith, P. Lopes, J. Sanderson, S. MacAvery, T. Rusinec, and G. Couch. Sprays applied to control thrips disrupt biological control of other pests such as twospotted spider mites, lygus bugs, whiteflies, and other insects. Fact Sheet. General symptoms include leaf spots, necrotic areas, mottling and ringspots or target marks. This will avoid unnecessary applications of pest control materials, which reduces selection pressure and thus the potential for resistance. This implies that one mandible is usually longer than the other. Furthermore, consider releasing biological control agents such as Neoseilus (=Amblyseius) cucumeris, Amblyseius swirskii, or the minute pirate bug, Orius insidiosus. This was also true for sunflowers, which were also susceptible to powdery mildew as well as thrips damage. Western flower thrips can be difficult to manage for a number of reasons. © 2021 Great American Media Services & Greenhouse Product News. Begonias and poinsettias are much less susceptible to damage and thresholds are much higher. As long as the pepper plants are in flower and producing pollen, the minute pirate bugs will reproduce on the banker plants. If a plant is suspected of being infected with a tospovirus because the plant is showing symptoms of virus infection, a tissue sample can be collected from those parts of the plant showing symptoms. The eggs hatch into larvae, which usually remain protected in flower buds Early detection is critical to the control of WFT and to the prevention of tospovirus infections. White sugar at a rate of 1 pound to 100 gallons, dissolved first in warm water, then added to the tank mix. They are generally white when young but brown or black when mature. Check plants each day, looking for WFT feeding scars, which are whitish and have an irregular outline. Try to eradicate the vectors (thrips), especially if they are carrying tomato spotted wilt virus; you may have to close your greenhouse. Thrips can devastate fields and reduce yields as much as 50 percent. Cyclamen, for example, can show no symptoms for up to two months after infection. The following petunia cultivars are excellent indicator plants for the detection of tospoviruses: Calypso, Super Blue Magic, Blue Carpet, Cascade Blue, Summer Madness, Burgundy Madness, Red Cloud, Super Magic Coral. The IPM Practioner 17(4) pp 1-11. The western flower thrips were originally from the western US, but began to spread in the 1960s and are now a global pest. Lyon, S., R.G. Hsu C. and W. Quarles 1995. 1998. (Steinernema feltiae) early in the crop production cycle and make releases on a regular basis. Recent research in Canada reported  that the cultivar "Purple Flash" was more effective as a banker plant than the ornamental pepper variety "Black Pearl" which has been used over the past few years for this purpose. Control Of Thrips With Systemic Insecticides. Read on for some practical and effective suggestions to manage these destructive pests. However, it is important to note that any WFT Solabiol Bug Free, Doff Greenfly & Blackfly Killer) or plant oils (e.g. Information on pesticide use is available in the current New England Greenhouse Floriculture Guide, A Management Guide for Insects, Diseases, Weeds and Growth Regulators. During feeding, saliva is injected into the plant cell and the contents withdrawn. Samples may be sent to the University of Massachusetts Plant Disease Diagnostic Lab, 101 University Drive, UMass, Amherst, MA 01003 (a fee will be charged). Apply Hypoaspis miles (or Hypoaspis aculifer) to media. Thrips transmit both types of viruses in greenhouse and field crops. For more information on using biological control agents on WFT, consult the publication Western Flower Thrips: Management on Greenhouse-Grown Crops, which is available at http:www.ksre.ksu.edu/library/entml2/mf2922.pdf. Attach cards to a stake with a clothespin so that cards may be raised as the plants grow. Brown or black-edged lesions will develop on the edges of thrips feeding scars within three days if a tospovirus has been transmitted. This article is intended to provide applicable information so growers can develop effective strategies in dealing with WFT. There is evidence of predatory behavior in this species. This insect order is composed exclusively of tiny insects commonly called thrips, and includes more than 7,000 species. Once WFT populations reach “high” levels, then growers rely on pest control materials, and more frequent applications (at three- to six-day intervals) may be required; however, this may promote the onset of resistance. Adult WFT are about 1/16th of an inch long, and are long and narrow shaped, like grass seed. Currently there are no recommendations for soil drenches aimed at thrips pupae. These are the two stages that acquire the tospoviruses (mentioned below), which are then transmitted by adults. Be sure to remove all weeds, which are reservoirs for WFT and potential inoculum sources for the viruses transmitted by WFT. Floral Facts, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA. Lyon S. 2002. All rights reserved. Another thing to consider is once plants are purchased and placed into gardens or landscapes then WFT populations are subject to a variety of factors that cause mortality (death) including natural enemies (e.g., predators) and weather (e.g., rainfall). This site is maintained by Center for Agriculture, Food and the Environment in the College of Natural Sciences. About 60-80 pirate bugs can be released per flowering pepper plant. Sometimes flower buds abort. Keep thrips-infected plants isolated in a separate area to prevent them from moving throughout the range. Pest Thrips of the United States: Field Identification Guide, 2009, Center for Agriculture, Food, and the Environment, Center for Agriculture, Food and the Environment, Aza-Direct, Azatin XL, Neemix 4.5, Ornazin, Molt-X, Marathon II, 1% Granular, 60 WP and many others, Avid 0.15EC, Abamectin E pro, Flora-Mek 0.15 EC and others, 1300 Orthene TR, Orthene TT&O, Orthene TT&O 97. It is very similar in appearance to Amblyseius cucumeris. Brownbridge M., M. Skinner and B. L. Parker. Usually one release onto the banker plants is all that is needed. Mode of action is the way a chemical works, so chemicals in different chemical classes may have the same or similar modes of action and be causes of pesticide resistance. Bug Clear Gun for Fruit & Veg, Neudorff Bug Free Bug and Larvae Killer), fatty acids (e.g. Growers sometimes ask about adding sugar to their tank mix to improve the effectiveness of the insecticide. Adding sugar may cause more feeding injury if the insecticide is not effective. Sanderson J.P. Western Flower Thrips Biology and Control. As the weather warms, make 3-4 weekly releases of 1 Orius per 10 sq. WFT damage potential is due not only to its ability to directly damage greenhouse-grown crops by feeding on leaves and flowers, but also because they may vector destructive tospoviruses. It is important to understand that the biological control agents do not feed on all life stages (larvae, pupae and adults) of the Western flower thrips. Winged adults are weak fliers but may be carried on air currents and employee's clothing. However, the virus is systemic in fava bean plants and once infected, plants should be discarded immediately so as to not serve as a source of infection. WFT population monitoring is necessary to detect incipient WFT problems in crops and to determine if control actions have been effective (see Chs. These ways may be called the pesticides "mode of action". To delay development of resistance, a standard recommendation is to use long-term rotations among types of pesticides. A contact insecticide such as horticultural oil can be used outside the perimeter of the greenhouse prior to mowing or using herbicides. * Mention of specific products in this article does not constitute an endorsement. 6 Elkhart, Indiana 46514www.agdia.com, For more information see fact sheet: Diagnostic Test Kits, Another option for detecting tospoviruses is to send a plant sample to a plant disease diagnostic clinic. Thrips will move on air currents. A 10 or 20x hand lens will help to distinguish adult thrips from pieces of peat moss or other debris. Three to five applications in a seven to 10-day period may be needed to obtain sufficient kill when WFT populations are “high” and there are different life stages (eggs, nymphs, pupae, and adults) and/or overlapping generations present, which occurs mainly from spring through late fall. Weeds serve as host for WFT and INSV and managing weeds inside and outside the greenhouse is critical for thrips management. Use a rate of at least one card per 1,000 sq.ft. Thrips spot unique asymmetrical mouthparts. Adults however, do not transmit the virus to their young and there is no transmission from adult to egg. GPN recognizes 40 industry professionals under the age of 40 who are helping to determine the future of the horticulture industry. Identifying the species of thrips may reveal that it is harmless in certain situations and no control action is needed. Overlapping generations of thrips within a greenhouse may result in continuous virus transmission. Pest control materials with translaminar properties (the material penetrates and resides in leaf tissues forming a reservoir of active ingredient) may provide enough residual activity even after spray residues have dried. These individuals are today’s movers and shakers who are already setting the pace for tomorrow. Thrips feed by piercing plant cells with their mouthparts and sucking out their contents. Pest control materials must be applied before WFT enter terminal or flower buds because once they do, it is very difficult to obtain adequate regulation and prevent injury. Treat with compatible pesticide to reduce populations. Some growers make the mistake of rotating after each treatment, which will increase resistance. Western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis, are likely the most serious pest of greenhouse crops in the world. Western flower thrips control in spring bedding plants: which formulation is best? However, research by Raymond Cloyd, Kansas State University showed that the addition of brown sugar and other sweeteners to lure thrips from hiding does not work and in some cases can cause the growth of black sooty mold. Western flower thrips (WFTs) are difficult to control for several reasons. Flowers and plant tips can be shaken over a piece of paper for additional monitoring. Yellow sticky cards are best used for general pest monitoring because they are also attractive to whitefllies, winged aphids, leafminers, fungus gnats and shoreflies. This is vital to the development of an effective and “sustainable” WFT management program. Photos of INSV symptoms on greenhouse plants (scroll to see various crops). Pesticides are often used to control western flower thrips ( Frankliniella occidentalis) in horticultural crops. Fava bean plants can also be used as an indicator plant. • Use pest control materials with broad modes of action early in the crop production cycle and if populations are starting to increase (based on numbers of WFT captured on sticky cards) then incorporate pest control materials with site-specific modes of action. When tospoviruses are present in the saliva, these are transmitted to the plant during the feeding process in as little as 15-30 minutes. Sprays applied to control thrips disrupt biological control of other pests such as twospotted spider mites and lygus bugs. Ideally, insecticides should be applied with equipment that produces very small spray particles (<100 microns). ft of growing area. Mention of a pesticide does not constitute an endorsement of any product and any omission from this list is unintentional. Monitoring . In fact, two weeks before you anticipate shipping the crop, take a leisurely walk through your greenhouses and if you don’t see any noticeable crop damage and the crop looks marketable then consider not applying any pest control materials. Monitor for thrips as soon as plants or cuttings are received. If thrips feed within developing buds, the damaged cells fail to grow as the leaf or flower expands, resulting in deformed leaves or flowers. WFT damage plants by feeding on leaves and flowers. Because the prepupae and pupae are mostly in the soil, these stages are not affected by insecticides applied to the foliage. The first larval stage lasts one to two days and second larval stage, two to four days. Place the cards just above the crop canopy in an even pattern throughout the entire greenhouse. This is why WFT are typically present in secluded habitats on plants, which again protects them from exposure to contact insecticides and biological control agents. Western flower thrips (WFT) are the most important insect pest of horticultural greenhouse-grown crops worldwide. Get one year of Greenhouse Product News in both print and digital editions for free. Although WFTs have piercing-sucking mouthparts, they do not feed exclusively in the phloem sieve tubes like aphids and whiteflies. Pear thrips (Taeniothrips inconsequens) Western flower thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis) . The carbon dioxide will bring thrips out of their protected areas. • Scout crops routinely using colored (yellow or blue) sticky cards. You want to preserve these compounds for when you are dealing with “high” WFT populations. Determine which crops, and even cultivars, are “most” susceptible to WFT and pay particular attention to these in your scouting program. Symptoms vary depending on plant species, cultivar, developmental stage of the plant, and environmental conditions. Damage 2000. The lifecycle (from egg to adult), generally takes two to three weeks. Plant Health July 2012Developing an Effective Western Flower Thrips Management Program By Raymond A. Cloyd. Stack New England Greenhouse Floriculture Guide, A Management Guide for Insects, Diseases, Weeds and Growth Regulators. However, development time from egg to adult is host and temperature dependent, with the optimum range between 79 to 84° F. Under these temperatures, the life cycle from egg to adult may be completed in nine to 13 days resulting in multiple generations occurring during a single cropping cycle. It is believed that the sugar is an insect feeding stimulant. Western flower thrips attack a wide range of plants including: carnations, chrysanthemums, corn, cotton, cucumbers, eggplants, gerberas, grapes, impatiens, melons, peaches, peanuts, peas, and peppers. TSWV is a problem mostly on vegetable plants such as tomatoes and peppers, while INSV is the predominant tospovirus found in ornamentals. To accelerate the development of WFT pupae in the soil, and eliminate the emerging adults, close greenhouse vents and keep the house heated and empty for a week or more between crops. Each MoA group is assigned an Insecticide Resistance Action Committee Group number (IRAC code). There is no cure. By stimulating feeding, the thrips had more contact with infected spores on treated leafs, resulting in better control. Release Orius late in the day when the louvers are closed and thrips are active. Thrips have spread throughout the horticulture industry on plugs, cuttings, and small plants. However, the screening material for WFT is so fine that proper ventilation is a challenge and this limitation should be considered. Adults emerge from the pupal stage after approximately six days. The following biological control program using natural enemies in combination with insecticides was tested for spring crops in commercial greenhouses in Massachusetts. See section on monitoring. Flowers and leaves have a characteristic “silvery” appearance due to the influx of air after the removal of plant fluids (Figure 4). Monitoring and Controlling Western Flower Thrips. If there is a very big thrips problem in your area, some plants have resistant varieties. The drawback to using ornamental pepper plants is that the peppers need to be removed to keep plants continually flowering which is necessary to maintain the Orius population. Also, be sure to develop rotation programs that involve pest control materials with different modes of action (refer to Table 1). Pesticides labeled for greenhouse use against WFT are listed in Table 1. This information is useful in determining the efficacy of a treatment or control measure. We believe that WFT do not overwinter outdoors in Massachusetts but WFT are known to overwinter in soil and clover in the Mid-Atlantic states and southern Pennsylvania. They are used in biocontrol programs when the weather warms in spring and beyond, in addition to other biocontrol agents already being used. Heinz, J.C. van Lenteren, A. Loomans, R. Wick, T. Smith, P. Lopes, J.P. Sanderson, M. Daughtrey, and M. Brownbridge. Give yourself some credit, at this point, you have done all you can to maintain WFT populations low enough to avoid economic crop damage. Trap counts and keeping records are meaningful in two ways. One common question asked by greenhouse producers is associated with the effectiveness of systemic insecticides against the western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis. Maintain a 15 foot weed-free barrier around the greenhouse to help reduce thrips entry. HG03003 aimed to deliver on going effective chemical management of western flower thrips (WFT) by providing crop specific resistance monitoring and the identification of novel and new chemicals. Screening can be used to mechanically exclude WFT. In all crops, soil drenches of nematodes such as Steinernema feltiae may be directed against western flower thrips pupae and prepupae in the soil. For example, Saintpaulia is very susceptible and treatment thresholds are lower than 5-10 thrips/trap/week. Some thrips are beneficial because they kill other pests to your plants, so you want some thrips on flowers. Reduce the spray interval to 3 days if greenhouse temperatures are higher, and increase the spray interval to 7 days when greenhouse temperatures are lower. Indicator plants and sticky cards are the best available means of providing early warning of thrips and TSWV/INSV in greenhouse production areas. Adults have two sets of narrow, clear, nearly veinless wings that have dark, hairy, fringes. For onion and western flower thrips, try releasing minute pirate bugs or the predatory mite Amblyseius cucumeris. They release Orius on and around these planters. Using Predatory Mites to Manage Western flower Thrips in Bedding Plant Greenhouses. Applications conducted after flowers open are, in general, too late since damage has already occurred. Box 128 Note that it has been reported that populations of WFT have shown resistance to Conserve®. However, frequent applications may result in WFT populations developing resistance. The maxillae then ingest the fluids from the cells, but not directly from the vascular tissue. This year, growers have had even more reason to worry about thrips, since Iris yellow spot virus was recently discovered in California. However, the bad ones need to be controlled and there are some specific ways to go about controlling thrips. WFT are small (about 2.0 mm long) insects with piercing-sucking mouthparts. Female thrips particularly like to lay their eggs on the flowers and fruit of plants. Labor will be saved if this is done when baskets are being hung. Larvae are very tiny and difficult to distinguish without magnification. This mite performs better during warmer temperatures (summer) and in addition to thrips, it also consumes whitefly eggs. Western flower thrips is a key pest of most floriculture crops. Corporation) for his feedback regarding the industry perspective on managing WFT. University of Massachusetts, Amherst Western Flower Thrips in Greenhouses: A Review of Its Biological Control and Other Methods. Releases must be … The key to WFT management with pest control materials is to initiate applications when populations are “low,” which avoids having to deal with MOA group numbers are found on many pesticide labels and are listed below for selected materials listed for managing WFT. p. 14-16. When chemical control is necessary, spray pesticides two to three times five days apart based on greenhouse temperatures ranging from 70-85°F. Petunia plants (Petunia x hybrida) are excellent early indicators for the presence of WFT feeding and the transmission of tospoviruses because petunias are not systemically infected with either TSWV or INSV. with additional cards placed near the doors, vents and thrips-sensitive plants. Applications of pest resistance no transmission from adult to egg occidentalis, are likely the most important in. 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