Managing spider mites in strawberries with chemical, botanical, and microbial pesticides

Twospotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae is a major pest of strawberries in California.  Several growers release different species of predatory mites, but chemical control continues to be a major part of spider mite management.  Field studies were conducted in commercial strawberry fields in Santa Maria to evaluate the efficacy of chemical, botanical, and microbial pesticides against spider mites.  Impact of the treatments on predatory mite populations was also measured.  Non-chemical alternatives demonstrated their potential to be a part of spider mite IPM.