CULTIVATION TIPS JOHN PEETERS No high flyers
Phorids and sciarids. A feared and familiar enemy of every mushroom grower. There are so many tips giving advice on controlling and preventing these minute pests that entire volumes and trade journals have been filled with them. The issue with flies, and sciarids in particular, is not the damage and nuisance they, or their larvae, cause. The greatest problem is the ability of these pests to carry disease spores and spread them from one growing room to another. Phorids are generally seen near lamps and are tricky to manage. These phorids have started to decline recently, especially in Western Europe. Sciarids remain the greatest threat. They crawl over the beds, attracted by the smell of disease, and can cause the widespread and rapid transmission of diseases. Until about 30 years ago, growers could rely on an entire armoury of pesticides (not called crop protection products back then) that comprised more or less toxic products that required wearing personal protective equipment such as a full-face mask with the correct filters, a protection coverall, gloves and boots. Products such as Thiodan, Basudine, Decis, Bladafum were widely used by growers to control or prevent infestations. Practically all these chemicals have now been banned, a change often met with mild resistance among growers, but undeniably also relief among the professionals in the sector. Pest control today largely depends on skill. The only weapon left is biological control in the form of nematodes (Steinernemae feltiae) or preventing sciarids from entering growing rooms in the first place. Effectively controlling sciarids is only possible if we understand more about their behaviour. They are quite lazy and not keen on flying. They prefer to crawl over the beds and lay their eggs on the compost. When a disease is present in a growing room, sciarids act as a vector and fly just enough to spread the disease and infect another room. Sciarids rarely fly high, they prefer to crawl under doors or through tiny gaps in rubber door seals. Placing battens with yellow sticky tape along doors in the growing room and work corridor is a proven method of trapping sciarids. Spraying glue in the right places to catch them is also effective. Replace the sticky tape and apply a new layer of fly glue each time a cropping cycle starts. Ensuring the doors are sealed properly and checking the rubber seals can help prevent a lot of problems. Some growers attach a layer of wide adhesive tape around the doors first and then apply the glue. This makes it easier to remove and replace it again afterwards.
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48 MUSHROOM BUSINESS
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