Banker Plants
Aphid Banker Plants provide an open rearing system as a means to introduce aphid parasites or predators before aphids appear in the crop. Banker Plants consist of barley plants infested with cereal aphids, which attack only monocotyledonous plants and will not transfer to dicotyledonous plants. These aphids serve as hosts for parasitic wasps (e.g. Aphidius spp.) or as food for predators (e.g. Aphidoletes). When using the Banker-System, there is a continuous production of beneficial insects. Early introductions of the Banker-System can prevent an aphid infestation.
