US (MI): Seasonal occurrence of pests and beneficials in tunnel berries

Berry crops are increasingly produced in high tunnels, which provide growers with the opportunity to extend their production season. This is particularly beneficial for the northern region of the United States with short and unpredictable growing seasons and where rainfall limits fruit quality. However, little is known about the effect of high tunnels on the community of pests, natural enemies, or pollinators, especially in berry crops, and there are few reports of the insect community in raspberries in this region.

A new study compared the abundance of these insects during two growing seasons in field-grown and tunnel-grown floricane and primocane producing raspberries through direct observation and trapping at five sites in southwestern and central Michigan.

The study found eight key pests, including spotted wing Drosophila, leafhoppers, and thrips, and seven key natural enemies including parasitoid wasps, spiders, and lacewings, that were common across all sites. Pest populations were up to 6.6 times higher in tunnels, and pests typical of greenhouse systems became more dominant in this environment. Natural enemies observed on plants under tunnels were also more abundant than in the field, but this trend was reversed for natural enemies trapped on yellow sticky cards. There was also a reduction of both honey bees and wild bees under the high tunnels, which was balanced by use of commercial bumble bees.

These data not only provide much-needed information on the phenology of the insect community on raspberry plantings, they also highlight the entomological implications of protected raspberry culture.

Access the full study at Oxford Academic