Effective methods against the onion and bean fly

The onion and bean fly can cause major damage to onions and leeks. The dry spring is currently causing the onions to emerge slowly, which unfortunately increases the chance of infestation. In addition, this pest, partly due to the shrinkage of the range of remedies, demands an effective and future-proof approach.

Uireka has bundled all measures in one Factsheet.

Some effective methods:

• SIT (sterile insect technique) is sufficient in most situations.
• Housing natural enemies: ground beetles, short-rove beetles, soft-winged beetles, parasitic wasps. These insects eat or parasitize eggs and maggots of the onion fly. 
• Correct timing of application of organic material in compost, solid and liquid manure. Organic material is attractive to the bean fly. Think carefully about the timing of measures; waiting a few days can already make a significant difference.

Difference between onion fly and bean fly
The factsheet also contains an overview of the differences between the onion fly and the bean fly. Since the two species have the same external characteristics, it is difficult to distinguish between them. One difference is that the bean fly appears first and is only harmful for a short period after sowing, while the onion fly follows later and can also affect onions during the growing season. In addition, the onion fly is a specialist pest of Allium crops such as onion, leek, garlic and chives, while the bean fly is a pest with a very large group of host plants.

ICM approach
Integrated crop management (ICM) is an approach in agriculture that strives for future-proof crop protection in which crop protection products are used as little as possible. In ICM, crop protection is viewed from five factors that contribute to a healthier crop:

1. Crop diversity in space and time
2. Breed and cultivation method
3. Soil, water and fertilization
4. Targeted control
5. Monitoring and evaluation

More about diseases and pests
How do you recognize a disease or pest? What is the life cycle of the infection? And perhaps the most important question: what are the measures to combat this pest? The answers to these questions are bundled in the crop protection image bankThe information about diseases and pests contains photos and is arranged by crop, cultivation or type of pest.

_{Sources
Factsheet onion and bean fly in onion cultivation: Life cycle and ICM approach
What is ICM? - Weed control - Wiki Groen Kennisnet}

More information:
Groenkennisnet - Improving the onion fly approach through SIT and increasing organic matter - Crkls
Green knowledge network - Bean fly is a troublesome pest, also in onions: Organic matter attracts flies
Professional information for arable farmers