Pest Control For Your Commercial Cannabis Facility

Pest Control For Your Cannabis Growing Facility

A commercial cannabis growing and production facility can be host to many pests and diseases. Providing moisture, food and shelter to pests as well as conducive conditions for plant disease infections. Protecting your facility from pests is essential for any commercial cannabis business. As pests can play a key role in significantly hurting your business, from consuming and damaging products to delaying operations and even causing structural damage to the facility. In order to keep your cannabis production facility pest-free, you need the assistance of a professional pest control expert.

Using over 120+ years of industry leading expertise and knowledge, Orkin Canada have outlined the most common pests you need to watch for in your commercial cannabis facility.

Common Pests To Watch Out For In Your Cannabis Production Facility 

Fungus Gnat

Fungus gnats are small flies about 2 to 4 mm long with long legs and wings, they breed in moist soil and other moist organic materials. Their larvae primarily feed on fungi that grows in moist soils and organic matter and some species feed on roots, making commercial cannabis greenhouses ideal for these pests.

Watered, moist soil provides ideal conditions for fungal growth, which are easy food sources for fungus gnats. The moist conditions provide ideal conditions for breeding, making your commercial cannabis facility susceptible to an infestation in the process. Adult fungus gnats stay close to breeding sources, hence they can be major infestation nuisance around the plants, creating a cross contamination risk for your cannabis plants.

Aphids

Aphids are significant pests of cultivated crops and a common pest to watch out for, as these pests often can infest cannabis greenhouses in large numbers. They are small, pear-shaped, pale-green, soft-bodied insects, measuring about 4 to 8 mm long and can be winged or wingless. They feed on both the plant sap and the plants themselves while producing sticky honeydew that can be messy.

In large numbers, they can weaken and even destroy your cannabis crops significantly, creating a large operational issue for commercial cannabis production facilities. Aphids multiply quickly, so it is important to have a professional and reliable pest control company on call to manage the population in order to prevent a possible infestation.

Spider Mites

Spider mites are significant and common pests of cultivated crops. They are very tiny, size of a pinhead, almost too small to be seen, making it easy for these pests to invade your cannabis production facility without raising the alarm. Like aphids, they pierce the plants and suck up sap especially under the leaves. They can also transmit diseases between the plants while feeding. In large numbers, spider mites can cause visible damage to your cannabis crops by causing stunted growth or killing the plants eventually, if the population is not controlled.

A common sign of a spider mite infestation might include seeing patterns of tiny spots or stippling on the leaves of your cannabis crops. As increased feeding occurs, your cannabis products may start to change colour, curl and fall off. You can also recognize possible spider mite activity by the tight webs that are formed under leaves and along stems.

 Crawling Insects

Most crawling pests such as ground beetles, earwigs, sowbugs, centipedes, crickets, spiders, caterpillars and springtails originate from the exterior of your facility. They enter indoors through cracks and crevices, gap under doors and around utility pipes, or unscreened vents and windows. Many of these crawling pests are often small and can be more active during the evening, seasonal or during extreme weather conditions making it difficult to recognize that they are invading your cannabis facility.

Some crawling insects such as earwigs are not only a nuisance but they also can feed on your cannabis crops causing significant damage, while centipedes and spiders may pose health risk to your employees and customers as they can bite (*If in a retail cannabis setting).

Looking to protect your commercial cannabis facility from pests? Contact Orkin Canada today!

Resources

• • How To Identify And Address High-Risk Areas At Your Facility
  • Where to Find Pests in Your Facility
  • Landscaping Tips To Protect Your Facility