Product Availability for Week of Dec. 1st

Well things have been a little hectic this week at Rincon-Vitova, with the approaching holiday. All orders for the week were shipped Monday. Everything from my end landed without delay to our customers.

Everything is back to normal availability until Christmas week when we will once again not be importing the more perishable critters. Check the availability list link below, for details. Atheta is limited from Applied Bio-Nomics (our Canadian sister insectary), but then I had a customer who desperately need some. I explained how Atheta was the "Bad Employee of the Month." But she said she’d take whatever she could get. I put 3 units on order for her, thinking there was no way that she would get them. But the following Wednesday sure enough she got them. So just because something says "Limited" or "OK" on the availability report, it isn’t the last word.

Our own production department has been on alert because of the Santa Ana winds. They cause problems with everything from hillside fires to messing with the humidity levels in the lacewing larvae incubating room. Lacewing larval units need warm temperatures with over 50% relative humidity, otherwise the eggs may not hatch. Larvae units arrive to the customer containing a minimum guarantee of 500 living predators. (It’s often much more.) This product saves the Customer from having to hatch the lacewing eggs, plus it is better than putting out a "lacewing egg buffet" for the ants. Lacewing eggs on cards or in bags are sitting food for the ants. And, just because you don’t see the ants, doesn’t mean that they’re not there.

Photo Series: Lacewing Larvae Units

We're starting a series of photo posts here at The Bug Farm. Every few weeks, we'll be putting up some slices of life with quotes and helpful tips from the Rincon Vitova Team. The captions might be a bit formal, but we're working on a system to have some slide shows which will make it all the better. Stay tuned!

Resident entomologist Ron Whitehurst inspects a Lacewing Larvae Unit for larvae size and distribution at Rincon Vitova Insectaries in Ventura, Calif., on Wednesday, October 17, 2008. "They start out as an egg about 1/30th of an inch and are 5/8th inch when full grown," explains Whitehurst. Using syringe like pincers to inject digestive enzymes and liquefy their prey, the lacewing larvae "can become effective predators for any soft bodied insects."

Kyra Ankenbruck and Ron Whitehurst drop moth eggs into the lacewing larvae units in the assembly room at Rincon Vitova Insectaries in Ventura, Calif., on Wednesday, October 17, 2008. The eggs act as a food source during transit. "They'll have enough food while en route to end users plus they will eat any other lacewing larvae in the cell. [The customer gets] whoever wins." Ankenbruck says with a smile. Lacewing larvae are voracious predators resorting to cannibalism if there is no other prey.

Jan Dietrick demonstrates how to check the larvae by tapping the unit above white paper. Each unit is filled 115% to ensure each of the 500 cells will have a larva. "Our standard is to overfill the units," Dietrick explains. "You have to tap the back really hard, because the little larvae may hold onto the inside of the cells." This same method is used for in-field release of the larvae on infested foliage.

Stacks of Lacewing Larvae Units stand behind the glue board in the assembly room at Rincon Vitova Insectaries in Ventura, Calif., on Wednesday, October 17, 2008. The glue glob on the board has grown layer by layer as a paint roller is used to glue the organdy covers on. Kyra Ankenbruck encountered the glue board in May 2006. "It wasn't much smaller than now," Ankenbruck comments.

Kyra Ankenbruck waters down the floor of the Lacewing Larvae Unit incubation room at Rincon Vitova Insectaries in Ventura, Calif., on Friday, November 14, 2008. In dry weather, watering the floor keeps the high humidity the larvae need. "You wouldn't believe how many we've lost when the Santa Anas [hot California winds], blow in," says Ankenbruck.

For more info on Lacewings and their larvae, check out Rincon Vitova's Lacewing Bulliten.

All Images copyright: Bryce Yukio Adolphson © 2008 and may not be reused without express permission.

Product Availability: Week of Nov. 24, Thanksgiving Week

Doing the shipping and receiving for Rincon-Vitova Insectaries, I can say there is a lot involved in moving insects across international borders. For example, permits are required and a special inspection by the USDA during customs procedures. The border crossing time has also been roughly doubled since the creation of the Department of Homeland Security.

We now have a weekly availability report, but it doesn’t list the insects we buy from the insectary in England since availability from that side is never an issue. Regarding Aphidius colemani and Aphidius ervi, Dacnusa, Diglyphus and Eretmocerus species coming from England, if we get our order in to England by Thursday morning, we usually always have them by the next week. I will usually get them in on the following Tuesday and they will ship out from us right away on either the same Tuesday or Wednesday. I only hold them until Wednesday if they are going to travel with other products that fly in from Canada on Wednesdays (Encarsia, Delphastus, Cucumeris, Hypoaspis, and others). However, shipments from England sometimes become waylaid, and this week our box could not get onto the airplane in London.

This is why I encourage our customers wanting insects to be proactive rather than reactive when planning biological controls, because you may run into a SPEED BUMP or something like it. It’s better not to delay in case a problem goes out of control and timing becomes very critical. For instance a customer two weeks back called Thursday afternoon to order Aphidius colemani and the Dacnusa-Diglyphus mix (for leafminers). I get these from England since they aren’t grown commercially in the U.S.A. Since my customer missed the deadline by several hours, the next available shipping date would be two weeks later. In other words, their order unfortunately missed this week’s plane! With a new ship date for Monday or Tuesday of Thanksgiving week there could be also be delays from winter storms as well. I’m just crossing my fingers that it will at least reach them by next Wednesday.

For the weeks of Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years this year, the holidays fall on Thursdays. I will make up for that by shipping perishables on Mondays and Tuesdays only during that time. That’s to avoid the possible holiday delays on Thursdays. Shipments normally scheduled for Wednesday will be switched to Monday or Tuesday, and we won’t be importing certain perishable products from Canada on those weeks because they won’t fit in to the accommodations of the holiday schedule.

The availability list will show which products I won’t be able to import from Canada during holiday scheduling.

Once again, when it’s time to bring in the beneficials, don’t procrastinate. With so much else going on, make time to call 800-248-BUGS and get those little working predators on the prowl, procreating and targeting pests before things get bad.

You can also check out our Product Availability Page on RinconVitova.com.

Getting microbes on your team: Soil food web basics

When I started at Rincon-Vitova in July, I saw a book in the break room called Teaming with Microbes: A Gardener's Guide to the Soil Food Web. I've been gardening whenever I have the space since I was eight and plants are so interesting to me that I got a biology degree focused on them, but I'd never heard of a soil food web before. I know mostly about the macroscopic parts of a garden ecosystem: dirt, water, plants, and bugs. Of soil microbiology, all that was usually mentioned in my botany classes was the nitrogen-fixing Rhizobium bacteria and mycorrhizae, the fungi that help plant roots reach farther and absorb more. Books and websites I read to further my hobby talked about the negatives of soil biology – nematodes, wilts, damping off. This looked like an interesting change of pace. So I picked up the book and started reading.

The part of the soil food web that you can see – the bugs and earthworms around a plant's roots – rely on an entire microscopic world of bacteria, fungi, nematodes, and protozoa. You've probably heard about the qualities of good soil: dark, moist, full of organic matter and earthworms. Besides being able to hold water well, this soil supports life. Land that's been used for intensive farming and land that has recently been developed is missing this key living component. This is part of the reason why home gardeners are seen fertilizing their lawns and battling fungal diseases regularly. Dirt with no life in it doesn't support life very well.

The microbes in soil can help plants in a few different ways. I mentioned mycorrhizae earlier. They are fungi that evolved a handy symbiosis with plant roots. The roots secrete simple sugars at the root hairs. In exchange for this food, the mycorrhizal fungi pass water and nutrients to the plant. Of course, plants can absorb nutrients and water without the fungi, but the fungi increase the amount and range of stuff the roots can absorb. Besides mycorrhizae, there are microbes that help break down decaying material and unlock the nutrients, microbes that bind soil together into water-holding clumps, microbes that release chemicals that stimulate plant growth, and microbes that protect the plants from other microbes. The last category is one that many gardeners probably notice without realizing it. Without the defense of beneficial microbes, plants are vulnerable to root-knot nematodes and a whole slew of fungal diseases. There are a few ways gardeners can help out these microscopic workers. Incorporating compost, manure, or other organic matter into the soil can give the microorganisms already there a moist and comfy home, as well as a food source. If a lot of the microbes have been killed off, they can be replenished with a well brewed compost tea. Commercial inoculants of specific species are also available. There are many facets of a health soil food web. As I learn more about the soil food web, I'll share it with you.

Organic Methods Could Help Rescue Honeybees

Effects of pesticides on Apis mellifera, the European honeybee, is at the top of the agenda of the new California Apiary Board appointed by the Secretary of Food and Agriculture. With the spread of Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), this is an extremely urgent matter to investigate. The nutritional health of the bees is also an obvious factor that might relate to CCD. This season being so dry (witness the extensive wildfires), there isn’t as much forage for the bees. Fewer summer wildflowers (and less pollen) decrease winter food reserves, which may contribute to bee die off. Corn and soybean pollen offer little nutrition for bees.

However, arthropod pests also decimate bees, probably more so when they are weakened by pesticide exposure and poor nutrition. Bee pests include varroa mites, tracheal/external mites, small hive beetles, wax moths, ants, and also other bees, wasps, bee lice, dragonflies, spiders, predatory bugs, cockroaches, earwigs and termites. As a hobby-beekeeper with an avid interest in biological pest control, I would like to recommend that the new Board look closer at the non-toxic biological controls that may protect bees from insect and mite pests. Here are some examples:

Varroa mites have been reduced with insect eating fungi (entomopathogenic). Tests by USDA with a particular strain of Metarhizium anisopliae, showed good reduction of the varroa mite with no apparent harm to the bees. Follow up studies were done with another strain that was not effective. The price for treating a hive looks like $1-$2 per hive which seems competitive for organic. Currently there is no commercial supply in US. There are producers in India that can ship to US. Production is simple on cooked rice. This fungus is used in huge quantities in North Africa to control the desert locust, and is called green muscle after the green fuzzy spores sprouting from the dead insects.

Conidiobolus coronatus is a gossamer, phantom fungus, quite unlike anything you have ever seen before. It eats a lot of soft-bodied insects but not bees (hymenoptera). It seems to be good at reducing varroa mite, hive beetle, wax moth and termite. This product is only developmental, not sold as a control. However, it is sold as an inoculant for the hive. Powdered sugar helps. A screened bottom board with a sticky plastic sheet traps mites for monitoring.

Tracheal Mite can be controlled with menthol or a combination of thymol, eucalyptus and menthol. Some trials with smoke from eucalyptus or citrus leaves showed promise for this strategy. Grease patties and powdered sugar work well. Some predator mite may be found that would live in the hive and feed on the pest mites – Hypoaspis was tried without good results.

The small hive beetle Athina tumida, North America's newest bee keeping pest, was first discovered in Florida in the spring of 1998. The above fungi are possibilities for the larvae in the hive. The larvae drop to the soil to pupate where you can treat with insect eating nematodes, such as Heterorhabditis bacteriophora (Hb). This nematode is commonly used to control white grubs in lawns. A suspension of the nematodes is sprayed on the ground around the hive and watered in.

Wax moth larvae eat the comb in weak hives or stored frames. Trichogramma, a minute parasitic wasp lays its eggs in moth eggs and the wasp larva eats the moth egg. Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis), a bacteria that makes caterpillars sick, can be sprayed on comb before it is stored, though it is not currently registered for this use. Light traps can reduce the adult moths in storerooms.

Ants can be excluded (along with roaches, earwigs and termites) with water or oil traps on the legs of the hives. A bait of boric acid, sugar and water, placed in plastic bait stations around the hive, will be taken back to the colony where it will knock down the colony. AntPro is the best of the bait dispensers.

Roaches and earwigs are attracted to yeasty baits like beer into mechanical traps. Slug Saloon with powdered beer bait traps earwigs and sow bugs as well as slugs. To make a roach trap, coat the inside neck of a pint jar with petroleum jelly and bait with a small piece of white bread moistened with beer.

I would like to see organic protocols for beekeeping be a top priority, which is a big challenge with invading pests. Of course a well-designed hive, good forage, and supplemental feeding gives the bees a chance to take care of themselves. When pests and diseases show up, beekeepers need access to knowledge about natural, integrated treatments that don’t stress the bees. The appointment of the new bee board shows the importance for California agricultural of honeybees for pollinating, especially almonds. Do you have other angles on bee problems, tips, suggestions, or questions? I look forward to hearing from everyone interested in organic beekeeping.

Product Availability: Week of Nov 17th

I am starting a report for the coming week about availability of organisms that sometimes have issues. Hopefully if you are planning an order of beneficials this will give you a heads up on what to expect in the next week or so.

Lindorus production here at Rincon-Vitova Insectaries has been in a puzzling slump the last two months or so, but I am happy to report that we have it back up. We had a summer intern who tended the culture and devised some ingenious techniques. After he left we gradually figured out that one of the techniques to boost egg laying just left us with hordes of hungry larvae eating up all the scale and not making it through the pupal stage. Our system wasn’t designed to feed so many predators! When it fell to me to fill orders without enough new adults coming on, it became a very rewarding experience helping those little beetles get their life cycle on. It’s a give and take situation, figuring out the right amount of food, and when to rotate said food, and how to not over collect. So when a customer gets shorted a vial or so, it’s now because there are lots of orders and we need to keep enough beetles laying eggs for future orders. There is now plenty to go around.

Brian at Applied Bio-Nomics (our Canadian supplier) reports his “Bad” Employee for the month of November is Atheta. “We have detected a parasitic mite (phoretic) and are re-culturing. This is a common problem with Atheta. We should be able to be back in business soon. This contamination is only apparent in the high densities of a commercial culture and does not affect their performance in the field…. We might be able to supply a little bit this month, but I can’t make any guarantees.”

Our Orius source remains unpredictable, so first come first serve works.

Check here every Wednesday for weekly updates or you can see a detailed list at the Product Availability Page at RinconVitova.com. You can also call us for details at 800-248-BUGS.

Holy Caterpillar

October 30 2008
Wow! Holy-caterpillar!

Yellowish-green and black and white striped, kind of plump and two to three inches long, the Monarch butterfly caterpillars just jumped out at me as I took a quick peek into the Butterfly, Bee and Beneficials (B3) garden. Well, I mean the caterpillars didn’t really jump out at me; in fact, the insects attracted to the B3 garden are by and large all safe, but the Monarch caterpillar’s colors did jump right out of the B3 garden plants.

The brilliant contrast of colors between the bright red and yellow Milkweed blossoms and the colorfully striped Monarch caterpillar---beautiful!

See link to caterpillar and B3 garden pictures here. It’s really a double bonus when you see the beauty of these plants adding color to a garden or yard, while at the same time feeling good that you’ve been providing essential habitat for beneficial insects like the Monarch caterpillar and others. –end—

First Monarch!

On September 20, 2008, the first Monarch visited our Asclepias (milkweed) or Butterfly Weed in the B3 Garden (Beneficials, Butterflies and Bees).

The Butterfly Weed was planted by Daniel in January 2008. Duke and Gianna helped put down cardboard sheet mulch for weed control before planting. A weed problem started anyway at the Butterfly Weed and moved past the adjacent creeping Ceanothus. Kikuyugrass got established in a planting hole. It has exploded in the beneficial insect habitat.