The black ladybird beetle is a mite predator. This species is discussed in the European red mite section in Chapter 4. Other predators and parasites include lacewings, predatory mites, and many parasitic wasp species. Monitoring Monitoring fruit plantings frequently and on a regular basis is the key to a successful IPM program. Monitoring can take several forms, and is accomplished by using various types of traps and by weekly scouting.
Pheromone traps lure male moths onto a sticky panel by means of a synthetic sex-attractant chemical.
Counting the number of male moths in these traps weekly allows the gardener to better time insecticide treatments. Other insect traps are apple maggot spheres and white sticky panels for trapping European apple sawflies and tarnished plant bugs. Scouting is the most useful technique for monitoring most pests. It should be done weekly during the growing season, and involves inspecting a sample of fruit plants to determine the presence and severity of various pests. During the dormant season, scouting should be performed at least once to determine levels of overwintering forms of some pests such as mite and aphid eggs and of San Jose scale.