The Aphid Destroyer Info Page

Chrysoperla species  (kry-SOPE-er-lah)

   

The Aphid Destroyer 
Why should you use Green Lacewing instead of Ladybugs?
Lacewing will not fly away after they are released, they will feed for about 3 weeks as larvae before changing into attractive egg laying adults.
Lacewing are fresh, ready to use, aggressive predators always looking for pests to eat.
Lacewing are raised in commercial insect farms, ladybugs must be harvested from the wild and much of the year they must be stored for months in refrigeration.
Lacewing feed on Aphids, caterpillars, Loopers, Mealybug, Scale crawlers, Spider mites, Thrips, Whitefly and many other pests. Ladybugs mostly only feed on Aphids.

They Are So Small, I can’t See Them How Do I Know They Are Working ?
When Lacewing hatch they are tiny, about 1/32 of an inch long, They will grow larger, to about 3/8 to 1/2 inch long, quite quickly. Signs that your Lacewing are working are the white dried out Aphids on the leaves or flowers of your plants. These are Aphids that the Lacewing have eaten. Additional signs are an overall reduction in the soft bodied pests in your garden.

How Often Should They Be Used ?
Three applications 2 weeks apart will provide the basic results for home gardens. Intensive gardeners and commercial landscape management or nursery production will require applications every 2 to 3 weeks apart through the growing season to keep pests under control. Just as most pesticides require regular applications of 3 to 14 days apart for effective results so do most predators and parasites. Effective pest management requires regular control or prevention measures. The use of lacewing can greatly reduce or eliminate the need for most garden insecticides.

The benefits to the environment and personal health effects of this sound pest management practice make Lacewing an obvious choice for part of your bio control program. Treating the soil with beneficial nematodes is another means of preventing many plant feeding pests from ever emerging from the soil to begin with.

 
Chrysoperla spp., Green Lacewing spp., Aphid Destroyer

 

INSECT TRAPS - DON’T GET STUCK WITH THE WRONG INFORMATION 
Traps make an excellent partner for monitoring the levels of your pest infestations, but by themselves are not effective at controlling pests. They need to be combined with our bio controls. With the knowledge gained from monitoring your traps you can time your beneficial insect releases with maximum effectiveness. Place our insect traps out shortly after planting to monitor for your plant pests. Then release your bio controls. Professional crop managers use traps as indicators for their bio control programs. Your production goals maybe lower, but your pest control practices should be just as strong, i.e. Grow Like A Pro.

 
Application of The Aphid Destroyer  

ALWAYS RELEASE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE

1) Make your application any time of the day, just avoid direct sunlight on the containers during the application process because it will sterilize or kill them.

2) Do not apply to dusty trees and plants. It is best to wash down dusty plants and trees. Dust kills beneficial insects and pest Spider Mites are attracted to dusty plants. Wait until the plants are nearly or totally dry and then make your application.

3) Remember the minimum amount of Lacewing eggs/ larvae you want is 1 to 5 per small plant (tomato) 2 to 10 per medium shrub (rose bush) 50 to 100 per tree. per tree

Do not release on rain days. Hot weather is fine.

Ideal temperatures range from 67F to 90F, higher temperatures are tolerable. Relative humidity of at least 30% or greater

Releasing Loose Lacewing eggs- Aphid Destroyer

  • The most effective way to release the Lacewing eggs is to hatch them.
    Green eggs are fresh and take about 5 days to hatch from the packing date
    Gray eggs, were green and are the eggs that are about to hatch within 2 to 3 days
    White eggs, are those that were gray and have hatched.

When releasing as eggs place the white bags on your plants with paper clips or into the crotch of strong stems. Then mix the Lacewing eggs (that are in the small cup) and the rice hulls (in the bag) together and pour the mixture into the white bags. The eggs will hatch and the larva will begin to hunt down the soft bodied insect and Spider mite pests in your garden.

RELEASING GREEN LACEWING LARVAE & MEDIA MIX
After hatching the larvae are often found on the lid of the container so pop the top and look for them. They will be tiny 1/16” to 1/8” long Alligator shaped like larva. They will grow up to 1/2” long. Release promptly, they will eat each other if you do not. The larvae are often near the top of the container so gently shake the cup to move the eggs and larva around the whole container. 

When releasing the larvae disperse the bran or vermiculite and Green Lacewing larvae mixture onto the foliage and flowers of your plants. Take the container of lacewing larvae and shake it lightly of the tops of your plants or place the mix in the crotch of the fruit trees. You can also attach the white bags to the tree or plant and disperse the mixture in the white bags.

USING BLACK LACEWING EGG CARD STRIPS
The Lacewing eggs are distributed on the cards at the rate of a little more than 250 per set. Each segment of 5 tabs has about 10 to 20 eggs each on it. Some have more, some have less. When releasing as eggs place the hang the black card strips from the plants. If you have more plants than cards, then cut the cards in half or in quarters and attach to the plants with the french fry bags. Some of the eggs may have fallen off the cards into the rice hulls (rice hulls are for excess moisture and fallen eggs) Place the bran or vermiculite into a french fry bag and attach to a plant.

Tomato Pest Defense Kit  Moth & Looper Destroyer  Aphid Destroyer, Garden Pest Defense Kits  Fruit Tree Pest Defense Kit are Trademarks of Applied Bio Pest. Copyright 81999 Applied Bio Pest, all rights reserved. Please call Chris or Jamie at (805) 984 9224 or go to our question and answer forum at our web site biopest.com with any questions you may have 8 am to 6 p.m. (EST) .