Application Help

Successful biological control starts with proper handling and placement. Follow these guidelines to ensure your beneficials are applied safely and effectively. Each format—bottles, tubes, and sachets—has unique steps designed to protect predator activity and maximize performance in your crop. Review the instructions below before use to maintain quality and achieve the best results.

Application Instructions

Instructions for Bottles & Tubes - Canopy Predators

• Keep containers horizontal and cool until use.
• Do not expose to direct sunlight.
• Immediately before opening, gently rotate the container to distribute mites evenly throughout the carrier material.
• Open each container in the crop or near plants when ready to use.
• Shake small quantities onto leaf foliage, directly onto the canopy. Some material may fall to the soil. Mites are small and hard to see, the carrier material allows you to see where the mites have been applied.

Instructions for Bottles & Tubes - Soil Predators

• Keep containers horizontal and cool until use.
• Do not expose to direct sunlight at any time.
• Immediately before opening, gently rotate the container to distribute mites evenly throughout the carrier material.
• Open each container in the crop or near plants when ready to use.
• Shake small quantities onto each plant. One to two taps of the bottle per plant is typically sufficient. 

Instructions for Sachets on a Stick

• Open shipping box of sachets within the crop or near plants if possible.
• Hold sachets by the stick or top. Avoid pressing directly onto the sachet pouch to avoid damaging beneficials.
• Stick one sachet into each propagation tray, pot or shuttle tray.
• Place sachet stick into the plug tray or pot/rockwool cube and have sachet sit approximately 1/8” above the growing media.
• Mites will emerge for about 3 - 6 weeks.

Instructions for Hanging Sachets

• Do not hang adjacent to heating pipes.
• Do not hang sachets where they will be directly exposed to intense sunlight.
• Open the shipping box of sachets in the crop and/or near plants.
• Hang sachets so that release hole is facing inward, toward the dense part of the canopy.
• Temperatures and humidities need to be conducive for best effects.
• Do not alter the sachet in any way, i.e. altering the release hole, opening one side of the sachet, etc., they are designed to be hung 'as-is'.
  • Spidex Boost sachets are the only sachet that requires modification, for Spidex Boost cut or puncture near the cardboard hook before placing.
• Proper storage should include a way to maintain the moisture content of the sachet
• It is wise to do a quality control check prior to hanging the sachets, i.e. upon receipt, open one sachet and check for overall activity.
• Regular scouting is crucial to the ongoing and long-term efficacy of the sachets. Periodically check for the presence of predatory mite release throughout the production life of the sachet.
• Make sure to hang the sachet in and around the densest part of the canopy. Avoid hanging them in areas that have been defoliated, and re-hang them after defoliating.