Farmers increasingly using ‘good bugs’ to combat pests in crops

ABC NEWS (Australia)

20 years ago, using insects to combat pests in crops, was seen as something of a fringe idea. Now, it's mainstream, with so-called good bugs dispatched far and wide, ready to hatch on delivery and get to work devouring the bad ones.

Transcript

00:00Nurseries across Australia are getting ready for Christmas.

00:05These poinsettias are growing at a wholesale nursery in South East Queensland.

00:11And they're under attack from bugs.

00:15They're treating the issue through IPM, or Integrated Pest Management,

00:20using a combination of beneficial bugs along with other methods.

00:24We wanted to get away from chemicals.

00:26We wanted to reduce our environmental footprint

00:29and just try to incorporate these bugs into our system.

00:34Bugs for Bugs have three insectary locations across South East Queensland.

00:39It's in Donnybrook the bugs are bred in large greenhouses.

00:45This is what the team here call reverse farming.

00:48They are growing crops to have them intentionally attacked by bugs.

00:53And it's a really delicate balance to keep the plants alive

00:56while introducing so many pests.

00:58And they reckon that if they were to ever turn up to a farm and see this,

01:02they'd be horrified.

01:07These greenhouses generate millions of bugs, cultivating both baddies and goodies.

01:13Accompanying this are insectaries which are more lab-looking.

01:17Dan Pabacek is one of the company's founders which started in 1981,

01:24well before IPM was considered anything but woo-woo.

01:29When I started, I was very much fringe.

01:32I felt very much out in the wilderness.

01:35In fact, we got a lot of critical comment.

01:38The bugs used are often minuscule, but with a mighty job.

01:42These are California's mites here.

01:45They're part of a group of protein mites that are really important in biological control.

01:49We use these predominantly for control of spider mites in a range of crops.

01:53They're very aggressive, they're very active, and they're also a bit of a generalist.

01:58They'll feed on other things such as immature thrips and they'll also feed a bit on pollen.

02:04They're so incredibly tiny. How did you ever find them?

02:07Yeah, they are amazing.

02:09Obviously, a lot of the stuff we're working with is down at this level.

02:13I think that's one of the things that people don't realise,

02:16that things that they can't even see are doing such a powerful job

02:18to help manage pests out there in the field.

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