Reminder to Prep Our Trap/Banker Plants for the Season

Just a reminder for folks who are looking to integrate banker plants into their spaces - we want to make sure these are well established in our protected spaces before we come in with our spring crops! I've summarized some of the common banker plants used for our usual suspects for greenhouse pests below:

Bush bean trap plants are great tools for monitoring for two-spotted spider mites

• best when they are young and more succulent
• thrips like these as well
• replant throughout the summer to maintain an attractive trap plant

Figure 1. Bush bean trap plant inserted into a commercial crop. Photo taken from Tunneltalk webinar on Integrated Pest Management of High Tunnel Pests ft. Cheryl Frank Sullivan from UVM. 

Marigold trap plants are great ways to monitor for thrips

• If you have them in pots you can throw them out and replace with fresh ones throughout the season
• If you inoculate your marigolds with predator sachets, you keep the food source close to the beneficials introduced into the system

Figure 2. Marigold trap plant inserted into a commercial crop. Photo taken from Tunneltalk webinar on Integrated Pest Management of High Tunnel Pests ft. Cheryl Frank Sullivan from UVM. 

Orius is a great generalist that can operate through the main growing season outside of its diapause period

• ornamental peppers provide pollen that the Orius will feed on in the absense of pest pressure
• ornamental peppers are very slow growing and takes time to hit the point of maturity where pollen is produced - maybe best suited for heated spaces vs passive ones
• alyssum is a great alternative food source to support Orius

Mullein banker plants are natural host plants for Dicyphus, a common predator for managing whiteflies

• allows the predators to survive and reproduce even if the prey is scarce 

Figure 3. Mullein banker plant inserted into a commercial crop. Photo taken from Tunneltalk webinar on Integrated Pest Management of High Tunnel Pests ft. Cheryl Frank Sullivan from UVM. 

Grass banker systems will provide food sources for Aphidius colemani (wasp parasitoid) that feeds on green peach and melon aphids

• Grasses will serve as a trap crop for aphids that feed on grasses. These grass-loving aphids will sustain our parasitoid until our cash crop-loving aphids 

Figure 4. Grass banker plant inserted into a commercial crop. Photo taken from Tunneltalk webinar on Integrated Pest Management of High Tunnel Pests ft. Cheryl Frank Sullivan from UVM.

Fava bean banker systems maintain  Aphidius ervi (wasp parasitoid) to manage foxglove and potato aphids

• Hosts the pea aphid

Figure 5. Fava bean banker plant inserted into a commercial crop. Photo taken from Tunneltalk webinar on Integrated Pest Management of High Tunnel Pests ft. Cheryl Frank Sullivan from UVM.

For a full refresher on plant-mediated strategies for pest management, re-visit our webinar with Dr. Cheryl Frank Sullivan from April 2025