Thrip in polytunnel ! Help!

[jackyspratty]

We have an infestation of thrip in our new polytunnel, swarms of the blighters! Have bought some of those yellow sticky strips which are catching them by the bucketload. But they are also catching bees too. Its horrible! We have been misting the tom flowers and damping the floor to increase humidity etc, but I am new to this and not sure what else we should be doing. We have vents a nd door open in very hot weather. Any advise really welcome, we are over run with thrip. Many thanks

[Eden]

I've read about this before as I've got a fair few in the greenhouse and I think the only control are the biological ones. I can't remember exactly which ones you need, but you add them to water and water it into the soil. If you do a google search I'm sure you'll find what you need, good luck!

[kentvegplot]

You can spray against thrip - but check that the spray is approved for use on edible crops. Something containing pyrethrum or plant oils/extracts should be ok for most food plants. There is a biological contraol as Eden says, but you have to get one for the specific species of thrip that you're trying to control.......