Why those wasps SHOULDN’T buzz off.

While most everyone would assume that bugs in your greenhouse are a bad sign, YB Farm practices organically principled pesticides revolving around a number of insects.

What?   Insects as pesticides?!  Specifically, YB farm uses two types of insects to control our aphid population : ladybugs and aphidius wasps. They are considered beneficial insects.  Beneficial insects are any insects that perform a valuable service to the planet.  This can include pest control (what we use our insects for), pollination, and propagation.  Bill and Ron are working alongside our lovely little wasps and ladybugs to bring you healthy, lush produce grown in pest-controlled living conditions!Related image
What are aphids?  Aphids are small bugs that feed on the sap of plants’ leaves and stems, causing extensive damage to fruit and vegetable crops.
ladybug-1533227And how do ladybugs help control the aphid population? Ladybug (also known as lady beetles or ladybug beetles) young are highly energetic predators of soft bodied insects (most specifically, our friends the aphids!).  A long time friend of the farming community, these ladybug babies can be found far and wide at YB Farm. It’s not a complete harvest without shaking these little guys off of our produce before packaging our vegetables and other produce and it out to a store or restaurant near you!

 

 

Screen Shot 2016-03-02 at 10.45.31 AMWhat about the wasps? Our aphidius wasps are small, efficient hunters.  They help to control our aphid population by laying eggs inside of the pests, allowing their young to grow from within and in the longterm killing them. With the young glued inside of them, aphids affected by the wasps turn papery and brown, eventually becoming what are called “mummies” and serving as a safe environment for the baby wasps to grow and mature.

 

There are so many positive reasons to eat locally, one of them being that at YB Farm we do not use chemicals to keep harmful bugs off of your food.  We use the good old insect food chain.

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Come and see our bug friends working hard alongside Farmer Ron and Hydro Bill!