It is not yet known how important fungi are as food, but mites are definitely attracted to bulbs, corms and tubers infected with fungi. This relationship complicates trying to estimate how many bulb mites it takes to injure a plant. Management This is the difficult part. We are in deep trouble with bulb mite control using pesticides. Bulb mites are resistant to pesticides in several chemical classes.
Most products registered specifically for mite control are ineffective.
Pyrethroid insecticides are not effective. Drenches of Kelthane after planting are not as effective, but do help. Kelthane is still registered on greenhouse ornamentals, but the treatments mentioned above are not on the current product label. Experiments at the University of Minnesota showed that Avid applied as a drench or bulb soak and Vendex drenches provided some bulb mite control. Neither of these products is registered for use as a drench or soak.