Crops: A new ally for farmers in controlling soybean aphids

A diminutive wasp has joined the growing number of natural predators which are helping to control otherwise costly aphid infestations in the province’s $194 million soybean crop

by MARY BAXTER

While scouting for soybean pests last year, Ed Kaiser noticed some black spots on the bottom of his plants’ leaves. “They could have been dust, for all I knew. They were very tiny and didn’t seem to be of any consequence,” says the Napanee-area farmer.

Better Farming - April 2008