Have you incorporated biocontrols into your greenhouse operation? If so, you’ve got plenty of company. An anonymous online survey by Greenhouse Grower magazine in December 2014 of more than 156 ornamental plant and flower growers across the U.S. found 81 percent used biocontrols in 2014.

Through acquisitions and new products, many crop protection companies are making firm commitments to the future of the biocontrols industry.

Lloyd Traven, a speaker at the upcoming Biocontrols 2015 Conference & Tradeshow, was one of the industry’s early adopters of biocontrols in the greenhouse. Traven, owner of Peace Tree Farm, is evangelical about the technology as an effective tool for resistance management, as well as improved plant quality that contributes to a grower’s bottom line.

Make sure the shipment of beneficials that just arrived is viable and ready to go to work in your greenhouse, nursery, or field. Here are five steps you can take to ensure success with your biocontrols.

Biocontrols can be very effective when the greenhouse operator makes a serious commitment to using them for integrated pest control. See how Parkway Gardens has successfully used biocontrols for the last nine years.

Biopesticides generally pose fewer risks than their chemical counterparts , making them a viable alternative for conventional and organic programs.

A journey just over the United States’ border led Cascade Cuts of Bellingham, Wash., to begin using biocontrols. Alison Kutz, owner of Cascade Cuts greenhouses, explains the challenges and opportunities brought about with biocontrol implementation.

Co-owner Maria Kreidermacher explains how biocontrols became a necessity, what growers should look for in suppliers and how to go about assimilating them into application methods.

Nemasys and Millenium beneficial nematodes from BASF help provide biological control of fungus gnats, western flower thrips and shore flies.

D.S. Cole Growers has been having great success integrating a predatory mite release schedule with chemical controls to finally get the upper hand in the endless battle with spider mites.

D.S. Cole Growers has been having great success integrating a predatory mite release schedule with chemical controls. Here’s […]

For Greenhouse Grower’s 30th anniversary look at the future, we spoke to experts in robotics, web technology and production technology to get their opinions on what new opportunities may be in the pipeline for greenhouse growers.

Thrips are a perennial problem in greenhouses everywhere, but biological control is an increasingly popular tool for greenhouse growers to manage these pests.