2,000 Live Adult Predatory Mites - A Mix of Predatory Mite Speciesl - Ships Next Business Day!l

6'ft x 7'ft indoor grow. 7 medium to small plants. Temperature 65 to 75°F, RH 50 to 70%. Drip system using organics with synthetic inputs as needed.Purchased 2,000, then purchased a second 2,000 one week later. Each shipment arrived next morning and appeared to have lots of life. Under a microscope I could also see eggs. I'm not an entomologist and have no idea what species of eggs were in the vials. I can't even tell the difference between the predatory mites, the pictures of the different species all look the same to me.My first experience with bio control was almost a year ago. This was pure chance. I had a bad case of fungus gnats. The swarm kept getting larger and none of the bottled products seemed to do anything. After one day, my sticky yellow cards would almost be entirely covered. I did apply some mosquito dunks (BT) at the beginning of my battle. One night I noticed a mite in my growing media. No idea what species, but the body was a teardrop shape. Somehow, this predator found its way into my grow room. A week later I saw more of these mites and I could find them in all my pots. As this mite population grew, the swarm of fungus gnats shrank. It took time, maybe a month or two, now I only see an occasional gnat flying around and I can live with that! Bio control, in this case, worked. It was not immediate, it took patience. To this day, I still find these mites in my media. They never crawl up the plant, they only stay in the pots. Cannot rule out BT, it may have played a role.Now for the spider mite battle...I have tried everything over the past year to get these things in check. Even cleared out my room, no plants, bombed, sprayed, all the nasty stuff. Only to have them come back. I don't like the nasty stuff and have been spraying insecticidal soaps atleast once a week, more when needed. I thought this special blend of predatory mites would be the answer, since my fungus gnat experience went well. A week before I ordered these, I sprayed every other day. The last 2 sprays were straight water, I didn't want to take any chances with residues. I know the S mites have resistance, but wasn't sure what kind of resistance these predators have. My S mite problem has blown up into serious infestation since applying the predators. I continue to knock them down with water, waiting for these predators to get established. With S mites, time is something you don't have. They get out of control quickly. Each day I inspect the leaves and have only seen 2 of the red predators moving slowly. They were nice and plump, maybe pregnant? I hope! I know this will work, it will just take time. I will keep stalling the S mites as best as I can...My yard is filled with pests and very few predators. Thrips, mites, etc all around. I live in a rural farming community, so this may explain why. It's no wonder why I have this problem in my indoor garden. I think it might be helpful to get these outdoor pests in check.Bio control takes patience. I don't think it will ever completely rid your garden of pests. Life is resilient. But, it can keep the pests in check. My plants can deal with an occasional pest.

I ordered this product in August of 2015 with the intention of eliminating (or at least managing) an ongoing infestation of two spotted spider mites in an indoor garden. I live in an area where the mites have developed a resistance to common insecticides, and frankly I hate spraying (both in terms of labor as well as exposure of myself and others to chemicals). In theory, predatory mites seem to be a wonderful solution. However, as with so many things in life, the devil's in the details.I wish I had done the research I've done SINCE ordering this product before I had ordered it. I'm writing this review in an effort to save others the hassle of doing so. Specifically, the article "Population dynamics of interacting predatory mites, Phytoseiulus persimilis and Neoseiulus californicus, held on detached bean leaves." (NIH research paper - Google it) swayed me in favor of not introducing these predators into my garden at all. Never mind the fact that the order arrived late and with an estimated half of the population dead from lack of cold during transit (problem #1), but Californicus is a GENERALIST predator and will not just eat the spider mites - it eats the other predators! Thus, while it sounds good to "triple whammy" your garden with this blend of predators, the fact of the matter is, you're prolonging your infestation by introducing a predator who eats 2/3 of your solution! Yes, Calif. will eat spider mites along the way, but why would you put something in your garden that's going to reduce the effectiveness of your solution to the problem, then linger around and eat subsequent booster shots of any non-Californicus species you choose to apply later? You're really shooting yourself in the foot here.There were other problems with the shipment, but per the tips and guidelines, I'll address those in the feedback section rather than in the product review. However, per the guidelines which state "Do compare to similar products or services and share how long you've used this product", I'll state that after lengthy research and talking with those using predators exclusively for spider mite control, I went with natural enemies bio control in Oregon as my solution. Pricier, yes, but these guys have been at it for close to a decade and they know their stuff. I receive ZERO compensation from them, just one of a number of satisfied customers. I am confident in the results I'm already seeing in my garden.I encourage anyone reading this review to do a lot of research into the temperatures, humidities and tolerances of the predators you want to use, and also talk with other people who use predator mites to accomplish and maintain control and get their opinion on suppliers. I won't use this product or any similar "blend" product, personally - now that I understand what's really happening, such products don't make sense.Bottom line? Yes, predatory mites are the right answer, but drill down further and find the RIGHT blend of predators that work WITH each other rather than killing each other off - and buy them from someone who packs the product properly. Quick fixes often aren't - and this product is a prime example of that.

I've used beneficial mites in the past, with mixed results. But I always start with a proof of life magnified survey before I open the container. In my container all I could see were dead mites. I went ahead and applied them to my plants, but I wasn't initially hopeful, as I thought I had 2000 dead mites. I sat the lid on my desk, and saw about 50 or so apparently dead mites. Most looked mangled. After a couple hours I looked over, and saw two mites running laps in the lid, moving very fast... Finally proof of life. I will update review with the results, but I was releasing the mites at an application rate of 1000 mites per sq ft, so I expect to see a quick reduction in the population of bad mites.Update...A day later, I cannot find any pest mites... There were thousands of them visible, if you got some web on your finger, you could see 200 mites with a 20x loup. Now a finger full of web has no mites. My results are not typical, since I over-dosed my curry trees, but before they move to my new house, they need to not be infested. I'll buy another batch of predatory mites for a preemptive step protecting the house's sunroom once I have it ready. Spider mites are a big problem here... And curry trees are too... Such a fragile and sensitive tropical plant if your local growing conditions are not just right. They suffer frost damage at 40 degrees, so it is a tree that can't survive outside... But the flavors it gives to food has no substitute, it's not something you can dry and store in a bottle or buy in an American grocery store... And you eat the leaves, so no insecticides can be used unless you want those in your food too. Beneficial insects are a blessing.