Recent research has shown that hot pink cards are the most effective color for attracting thrips. IPM of Alaska has used hot pink and found that under most Alaska growing conditions, this color is not as effective as yellow or blue. Our pest scouts are trained to monitor activity on crops known to be sensitive to thrips infestation. Certain crops or varieties are often thought of as thrips magnets and will be the first to show thrips activity. We will keep an especially close eye on these crops and place extra sticky cards near them.
Thrips survive year-round in the greenhouse.
In cool weather, their life cycle takes much longer and control is easier. Keeping thrips populations in check during the cool season will make later control efforts much easier. Warm weather means shorter life cycles, increased plant movement, and flowering of outside native plants and wildflowers. All of this adds up to increased thrips pressure and an opportunity for a population explosion. Growers should initiate a multistage control program targeted at controlling larvae, pupae and adult thrips.