How to release OriLiv (Orius insidiosus)
What’s in the OriLiv bottle?
- Predator: Orius insidiosus
- Carrier: Vermiculite and buckwheat hulls
- Food: Bugfeed– sterilized ephestia eggs
How to release Orius on crops:
- For best results, release as soon as receiving shipment.
- Gently rotate bottle, in a horizontal position, to evenly mix the predators.
- Shake the bottle while rotating to release the contents. You can sprinkle the material directly on top of the plant canopy or on dry rockwool slabs.
- In a commercial scale environment apply in groups of 75-100 to encourage mating and establish a population. For small scale or one pot application release at least 7-10 Orius per plant.
- Avoid pesticides (organic or synthetic) before and after release.
- Avoid top watering or washing plants after release.
Can you store Orius Insidiosus?
Orius insidiosus should be released as soon as possible. Storing is not recommended.
How to check the quality of the predators?
During shipment Orius tends to huddle in the middle of the tube. If you don’t see any movement at first, allow the shipment to come to room temperature for an hour before conducting a quality check.
To check gently rotate bottle in a horizontal position. Pour a small sample on a white piece of paper and look for Orius crawling from the pile.
How to promote establishment?
Temp and humidity: To promote breeding Orius should be released in temperatures of 25-26°C and relative humidity of 60% or more.
Environment: Orius is a diapausing insect and becomes inactive during shorter cooler days unless additional lighting is provided. It needs a minimum of 12 hours of light to stay active.
Supplementary food: Bugfeed, Pollen
How to spot Orius after releasing?
Adult stage of Orius is black with cream markings on its body and the juvenile stages are orangish yellow. To spot after releasing tap the plants, especially flowers, over a white piece of paper to see the predator and monitor thrips.
How long till you see results and how often should you be reordering?
If the environment is optimal (abundant food, temp/humidity), you will find newly hatched juvenile Orius within 10-14 days. It may take longer if the temps are cool.
Reordering rate depends on the grow environment (greenhouse, grow tent, house plants etc) and the infestation level. If you are using Orius to control an established thrip infestation, it is generally recommended to release Orius weekly till thrip population starts to decline.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use sticky traps with Orius? Is Orius attracted to yellow or blue traps?
The traps are going to catch Orius regardless of the color, research does indicate it prefers yellow over the blue.
I have some orange bugs in my bottle. What are they?
Those are the juvenile stages of Orius. They will turn black within a day or two.
I released Orius but it only lasted 7-9 days on my plants, what happened?
Orius naturally starts to die within 7-9 days as part of its life cycle. If it had enough food (pests or bug feed) during that time it will lay eggs and the life cycle will continue. Establishment is rare in indoor plants due to environmental factors.