PA IPM has devoted a great deal of effort to designing IPM solutions for greenhouse production, particularly biological control. Biological control is the use of one organism against another organism. For example, a tiny parasitoid wasp may be released to control white flies on greenhouse grown tomato plants.

Greenhouse production in Pennsylvania is a diverse enterprise. Greenhouse businesses range from small family run operations to very large greenhouse operations that have several acres under glass or plastic. Moreover, both food and non-food crops are produced in greenhouses in the state. The non-food production is part of the green industry. Food crop production primarily consists of the production of vegetables and herbs.

A semi-permanent type of greenhouse, high tunnels, have been becoming quite popular in the state recently. To learn more about high tunnels visit the plasticulture website.

PA IPM also has ongoing education programs in central and western Pennsylvania. Read on to learn more about greenhouse IPM in Pennsylvania.

  • Greenhouse IPM Manual with an Emphasis on Biocontrol.
  • Vegetable Integrated Pest Management with an Emphasis on Biocontrol: A Guide for Growers in the Mid-Atlantic.

PA IPM Greenhouse Education Program

PA IPM is contributing to a Penn State effort to reduce pesticide use and increase biological pest control in campus greenhouses. A biological pest control program developed by the College of Ag Sciences reduced the need for pesticides in their teaching and research greenhouses. They were awarded a grant from the Penn State's Center for Sustainability to expand their biological control program and extend the program to other campus greenhouses.

The isolation and controlled climate in greenhouses creates an optimum environment for pests to flourish and damage greenhouse crops, causing economic losses. Pesticide use can effectively reduce pest populations, but poses a suite of significant environmental and exposure hazards that disrupt work schedules and interfere with harvest and sales. Using biocontrols within an IPM program is catching on because many growers are looking for viable alternatives to using pesticides. Since most pests have various parasites, diseases and predators that can kill them, beneficial organisms can be a significant means of control.