Selecting insectary plants for improving beneficial insects and pest management in southern vegetable production

Vegetable crops have an estimated value of $19.5 billion in the United States in 2023. Snap bean alone has a value of around $362 million. Intensive farming of snap beans and other vegetables can result in reduced beneficial biodiversity and ecosystem services they provide. Therefore, there is a need to develop habitat management techniques as an alternative pest management strategy to promote natural enemies and reduce the abundance of agricultural pests. Insectary plants incorporated around and /or within crop fields can aid pest management. These plants attract and maintain natural enemies through the provision of nectar, pollen, shelter and alternative prey. The objective of this research is to determine which insectary plants are most beneficial to natural enemies of key vegetable pests. This study was conducted in South Carolina (SC), where selected insectary plants (alyssum, buckwheat, marigold, mint, sunflower, zinnia) were evaluated with two common cash crops in the summer (snap beans) and fall (collards). Through several sampling methods, we identified the most common natural enemies in each crop (including Orius spp., Geocoris spp., carabids, long-legged flies, parasitoids, rove beetles, and predatory mites) and their effect on pest management. These results will help growers select and incorporate insectary plants for vegetable production systems in the southern U.S. Adoption of this alternative pest management strategy (insectary plants) has the potential to reduce reliance on insecticide inputs while increasing profitability, yield and land use efficiency, which ultimately improves the quality of life for the farmer, community fostering environmental, and economic sustainability.