Although there are multiple generations each year, populations tend to peak in spring and again in late summer.Ĭyclamen mites use their piercing-sucking mouthparts to feed on plant material. The entire life cycle of the cyclamen mite is less than 3 weeks and therefore populations can build quickly. Female mites lay their eggs on strawberry leaves that hatch into tiny, white, six-legged larvae (Fig. Female adults overwinter in strawberry crowns and also can be present on transplants. Masses of eggs in leaf crevices can be so numerous that they look like tiny piles of salt. The eggs are translucent and comparatively large, about ½ the size of an adult (Fig. 2) with males being smaller than females. And unlike two spotted spider mites that prefer dry conditions, cyclamen mites thrive in humid conditions.Īdult mites are oval-shaped and a glossy creamy orange (Fig. If miticides are needed there are many excellent miticides that can be found in the Mid-Atlantic Commercial Vegetable Production Recommendations guide for strawberries.Īdult cyclamen mites are usually never seen as they are only a quarter of a mm long and a 20X hand lens or dissecting microscope is needed to see them. Using oils now also will greatly reduce any development of mite resistance to other chemicals over the course of the season. Oil is a good management tactic to use at this time of year as the plants are small and any possible burn from using the oil is a very low risk. Using two horticulture oil applications about one week apart it is possible to control not only the adults and nymphs, but the eggs too. These are the areas where mites can still be found even after a few sprays and need to be carefully checked a few days after an application. The underside area of the leaf that usually sees very little chemical deposition is in the ‘palm’ of the leaf. Many of the spray applications do a good job of covering the top of the leaves but do a poor job of reaching the underside of the trifoliate. The most difficult thing to achieve for good control is getting adequate spray coverage. Overwintered female two spotted spider mite If mites are found now you need more than 5 mites per leaflet (1/3 of a leaf) to justify the expense of a miticide application.įigure 1. Growers should check their strawberries for mites now, especially if you have them in a high tunnel. Feeding damage by mites that occurs before fruiting can cause the most loss in yield, but after the first strawberry harvest plants can tolerate much greater rates of infestation. The light yellowish eggs are pearl-like in appearance and are attached to the undersides of leaves or stems.
Spider mites overwinter in the soil or leaf litter, although they may remain somewhat active in high tunnels through the winter. 1) and most of the mites that can be seen with a naked eye will appear reddish in color. Overwintering female two spotted spider mites are an orangish-red (Fig. There were two species of mites found: the two spotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae and the cyclamen mite Phytonemus pallidus. Jerry Brust, IPM Vegetable Specialist, University of Maryland the cooler weather we have had of late I was surprised to find low levels of mites in strawberry fields, with a few hot spots of mites in some high tunnels.
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