Living With Greenhouse Biological Control

Lacewing

Since the beginning of agriculture, humans have endeavored to protect plants from adverse environmental conditions by growing them indoors. As greenhouse technology improved more sophisticated greenhouses flourished. Victorian England featured elaborate greenhouses built by wealthy individuals for botanical studies.

Growing plants indoors protects them from the weather, but not insect pests. Greenhouses can exclude the biological control agents, (predators and parasitoids that keep pest populations in check.) The idea of importing and managing populations of beneficial insects in greenhouses is credited to Remeaumur who wrote about the use of lacewings to control aphids. Today, lacewings are used in many pest management programs.