New Nesi-fighting pheromone available

Earlier this year, the Dutch company, HortiPro, introduced a new pheromone line, SemeonPro. They have now expanded that range to include PheroNesi, a pheromone that detects and monitors the predatory insect, Nesidiocoris Tenius, a feared threat to particularly tomato growers.

This bug, commonly dubbed Nesi, originated in the Meditteranean but is now found all over Europe. It was introduced as an efficient predatory insect to organically control whitefly (greenhouse & tobacco) and tomato leafminer eggs. They cannot survive Dutch and Belgian winters, where they are only present in greenhouses.

The problem is that, in large numbers, the Nesi can significantly damage fruit, leaving rings on their stems. HortiPro, therefore, developed PheroNesi, a pheromone that attracts both male and female adults.

"By using this and the yellow sticky traps, you can optimally detect and monitor these harmful insects," says commercial manager Jürgen Brokelman. "That is useful to deploy resources at the right time. That's, of course, vital, especially when working with green agents. We've had very positive results from several demos at different tomato growers."