Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Need some advice on using my sticky traps. I have recently read several articles regarding sticky traps that say you should only use them once a week for monitoring purposes only. I have recently seen some whitefly in my AP greenhouse, and added additional yellow sticky traps. They are still present, and I'm now rethinking my strategy. Should I remove them and then just add them once per week and then record results? Or leave them in to try and help trap the flies? My concern is that I'm also trapping beneficials as well as pests. I'm studying the various beneficial wasps and am trying to get a good reference for IDing them. If anyone has suggestions for threshold levels and additional control measures, please share them with me. Thanks!

I personally would not use them unless they are overwhelming. I like to use Praying Mantis for everything... Plus they are great fun to watch.

Mantis' won't do much for my whitefly. Lacewings, parasitic wasps, and ladybugs will.

Biological Control:

Whiteflies have many natural enemies, and outbreaks frequently occur when these natural enemies have been disturbed or destroyed by pesticides, dust buildup, or other factors. General predators include lacewings, bigeyed bugs, and minute pirate bugs. Several small lady beetles including Clitostethus arcuatus (on ash whitefly) and scale predators such as Scymnus or Chilocorus species, and the Asian multicolored lady beetle, Harmonia axyridis, feed on whiteflies. Whiteflies have a number of naturally occurring parasites that can be very important in controlling some species. Encarsia spp. parasites are commercially available for release in greenhouse situations; however, they are not generally recommended for outdoor use because they are not well adapted for survival in temperate zones. An exception is the use of parasite releases for bayberry whitefly in citrus in southern California. You can evaluate the degree of natural parasitization in your plants by checking empty whitefly pupal cases. Those that were parasitized will have round or oval exit holes and those from which a healthy adult whitefly emerged will have a T-shaped exit hole. Whitefly nymphs can sometimes be checked for parasitization before emergence by noting a darkening in their color. However, some whitefly parasites do not turn hosts black and many whitefly nymphs that occur on ornamentals are black in their unparasitized state.

Traps:

In vegetable gardens, yellow sticky traps can be posted around the garden to trap adults. Such traps won’t eliminate damaging populations but may reduce them somewhat as a component of an integrated management program relying on multiple tactics. Whiteflies do not fly very far, so many traps may be needed. You may need as many as one trap for every two large plants, with the sticky yellow part of the trap level with the whitefly infestation. Place traps so the sticky side faces plants but is out of direct sunlight.

Commercial traps are commonly available, or you can make traps out of 1/4-inch plywood or masonite board, painted bright yellow and mounted on pointed wooden stakes that can be driven into the soil close to the plants that are to be protected. Although commercially available sticky substrates such as Stickem or Tanglefoot are commonly used as coatings for the traps, you might want to try to make your own adhesive from one-part petroleum jelly or mineral oil and one-part household detergent. This material can be cleaned off boards easily with soap and water, whereas a commercial solvent must be used to remove the other adhesives. Periodic cleaning is essential to remove insects and debris from the boards and maintain the sticky surface.

If you want to read the full article or more ...here link.

http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7401.html

forgot to say...like you have noted if you have the sticky traps as well as beneficial bugs it's a gamble!

I personally go for the bugs only methods.

I've always wondered about this myself. If you leave something yellow like this hanging up, you're just attracting pests like whiteflies so I can understand the recommendation to only hang them once per week. I don't like wearing yellow shirts around the garden for this reason either. I can tell you from experience that the yellow sticky traps work on white flies and gnats but won't get rid of an infestation as mentioned in BA's post.

I think of the traps more as a way to see what pests have already arrived that need to be controlled. I'd look for a different method of control so I'd pull them out. Biological Control is probably the way to go with AP.

I've got sticky strips hanging near my White Fly infestation, and by far the majority of bugs they have caught are White Fly, there's also a few regular flies, a mosquito or 2, some small bird feathers and a few unidentifed insects. I'm attempting to get some Red and Blue Beetles interested in the White Fly larvae ATM.

thanks!!

"Such traps won’t eliminate damaging populations but may reduce them somewhat as a component of an integrated management program relying on multiple tactics."

This is from the article I've posted, looking at TRAPS ....did you actually read it?

My comment was typed before you ever posted, your post was up when I went to post so I skimmed the excerpt and added the reference since I felt it fit with the statement you quoted below. Granted they used them as a component not the only treatment. My point was only that you would never get rid of them completely using sticky traps and that I had personal experience with that.

Back on point...my real concern was not simply using them(sticky traps), but whether I should leave them in the system, or remove them and use them occasionally/regularly for monitoring. I know Ryan said he has had predators that controlled his pests..including whitefly, and he only used traps on occasion to monitor. I was worried about trapping too many beneficials as well. I used glue boards to trap rats, and caught a baby rabbit as well as a bird. Went back to snap traps and peanut butter- much more specific. I still have whitefly in the GH, but have seen some signs of bios as well...so just monitoring for now. I can't order wasps until March, and hopefully, by then I'll be able to remove the poly and have my own naturally..at a much better price.lol