Floral resources for predators in lettuce fields

Flowers have been planted into fields of several crops with the intent of providing food to beneficial insects and improving pest control. We present research results from organic lettuce fields, where growers plant flowers to provision syrphid flies. To determine whether the in-field flowers are functioning as intended, our project tests a sequence of ecological questions: (1) Do syrphid flies improve their nutritional state by feeding on flowers? (2) Does flower-feeding increase syrphid fitness? (3) When flowers are present, is pest control improved? We present results from visual observations, biochemical analyses, and field cage experiments.