Strawberry

Biological pollination and pest control… common practice in your strawberry crop!

IPM makes the difference

Biological products are an essential aspect in the cultivation of today's strawberry crops. But why, precisely, is it such a good idea to choose IPM or integrated crop protection?

• You help prevent pests and diseases from becoming resistant to chemical pest control methods.
• You comply with the strict regulations and meet the demands of the consumer.
• You choose residue-free methods and, therefore, produce healthier strawberries.
• You reduce the risk of yield losses.
• You reap a rich harvest by choosing IPM. How? You can count on increased cost-effectiveness and improved fruit quality, to help optimise your competitive position.

Biological pest control for strawberries

Will you also take the step to implement biological strategies in your crops? If so, Biobest offers a wide range of solutions that can be used safely at any time. You can utilise:

• a wide range of natural enemies, such as Phytoseiulus-System and Californicus-System, for controlling spider mite;
• the nutritional feed supplement Nutrimite™, which ensures that predatory mites − such as Swirskii-System − are working at full strength when an infestation occurs;
• pheromone traps and sticky traps, such as Bug-Scan^®, to monitor and scout pests in the crop;
• the biological fungicide Prestop^® 4B distributed via the Flying Doctors^® Hive to treat flower botrytis;
• the thrips pheromone ThriPher to lure thrips out of their shelters;
• the natural product Bluestim^® to control abiotic stress;
• the Droso Trap^® with the attractant Dros'Attract^® to catch the Japanese fruit fly Drosophila suzukii.

Bumblebee pollination of strawberries

In spite of the fact most strawberry varieties self-fertilize, bumblebees can contribute significant added value to your crop. Bumblebees are larger and have hairier bodies than honeybees, which means they can bring greater quantities of pollen to the flowers and have greater contact with the flowers. The result? Bumblebees visit more flowers in a shorter space of time and facilitate the thorough pollination of those they visit. For you, as a grower, this means larger, higher quality fruit, which means you can achieve greater yields. Biobest helps you to achieve these results with its wide range of bumblebee hives.

Bumblebee pollination and biological pest control with Flying Doctors^®

Our Flying Doctors^® can also help prevent fruit rot. When you choose our Flying Doctors^® Hive, you combine pollination and crop protection in one strategy. The bumblebees not only head out of their hive to pollinate your flowers, they also protect against Botrytis by distributing Prestop^® 4B − a biological fungicide. These Flying Doctors^® do all the work – pollination and protection.

Did you know that...

… bumblebee pollination has become well established in strawberry production? From covered crops to open-air applications… it is all possible! And, as a strawberry grower, you can count on biological pest control to keep your crop healthy naturally.