Use Predatory Mites
There are many varieties of predator mites. Get those best suited to the environment of the garden. Apply predator mites at the earliest sign of infestation. Most predator species reproduce faster than spider mites, but if the mites get a good head start, the predator population can never catch up.
Even in optimal conditions, control with predator mites is very difficult. Four effective species are
Phytoseiulus persimilis, Amblyseius swirskii, Amblyseius fallacis and
N. californicus.
In the same article the use of citric acid is mentioned numerous times as a treatment to eradicate mites.
Learn about how to target, control and prevent mites in your marijuana grow, and the many varieties of predator mites you can use as to control cannabis crop destroying mites.
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"For best results, apply andersoni to cannabis plants when pest mite numbers are still low. The predatory mites will then be able to feed on small colonies of mites and prevent them from growing and causing major damage."
OVERVIEW: Cannabis is a specialized crop grown for human consumption; therefore every effort should be made to grow the crop without the use of chemical insecticides, fungicides or herbicides. In a modern greenhouse, these plants can be grown year-round, at a faster rate, and with less physical...
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Preventative and curative controls
The two key biocontrol products used in medicinal cannabis for spider mite control are Californicus-System and Phytoseiulus-System.
Amblyseius californicus is a predatory mite best used as a preventative control for spider mites. It is able to colonise plants and survive in the absence of the pest by eating pollen and other sources of nutrition - such as fungal spores and hyphae. It controls spider mites by locating small populations and predating upon them - containing and slowing their development; however,
it is not so effective at operating within webbing or dense colonies.
Curative option
In this situation, the predatory mite Phytoseiulus-System is an excellent curative choice. Able to move easily through webbing, it can entirely and quickly eradicate a population of spider mites
if the outbreak is caught in time.
Regular scouting is important, as
while Californicus can dramatically slow down a spider mite outbreak and reduce it from spreading, detecting hotspots early and treating with a curative predator - such as Phytoseiulus - is also important to maintain control.
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Even places that sell predatory mites imply that they're more of a preventative rather than a cure once an outbreak occurs.
I'll continue spraying citric acid if I find any mites. I know it works immediately and is safe. I'm not going to just sit by waiting for one bug to eat another bug. I'm going to kill the bugs now. Not tomorrow, not in 8 days, but right now within minutes.
