Mites can be divided as phytophagous mites and predacious mites. Usually phytophagous mites are harmful for the crops. Those mites gather on the back side of the leaf. Mites are very complicated pests because of their special characteristics. In one group can live the mites of different growth period including eggs, nymph, young mites and adult mites. So it’s important to know the characteristics and the application method of the existing acaricides in the market.
The existing acaricides can be divided as: Inhibit the mites’ respiratory metabolism; Growth regulator; neurotoxic agent; Kill pests with mites; Physical action.
| Category | Name | Target | Lasting period | Temperature Susceptibility | Advantage | Disadvantage | |
| Mineral and botanical Acaricides | Lime sulphur | Red spider | Fast and short | Lose efficiency below 4℃ | Cheap, kill pests, fungi, acaricide, also offer Calcium | Possible to rise phytotoxicity in high temperature, can mix with few strong alkaline pesticides | |
| Mineral oil | All kinds of mites(not kill eggs) | Medium to long period | No sensitive to the temperature | Kill pests, inhibit fungi, kill mites, no resistance, environment-friendly | High price, has limitation to use in high temperature, drought and special phisiological period, cann’t mix with foliar fertilizer and WP pesticides. | ||
| Rosin wash | Red spider | Fast, short | Has phytotoxicity in high temperature | Inhibit fungi, kill mites, no resistance | Strong alkalineand hurt the tender leaves and the poor plants, can only be used to clean the field, can mix with few pesticides. | ||
| Azadirachtin | Red spider | Fast, short | No sensitive to the temperature | Non-pollution | Low killing rate, high cost | ||
| Organonitrogen acaricides | Semiamitraz | Red spider, Rust mites(effective for whole growth period) | Fast, short | Has good effect above 25℃ | Systemic action, Contact toxicity, Stock poisoning, can kill pests too | Can be absorbed by skin and cause poisoning, take care of the labor’s protection | |
| Amitraz | |||||||
| Organic tin acaricides | Azocyclotin | Red spider, Rust mites, kill nymph, young and adult, also kill eggs in high temperature | Slow, long | Has good effect above 22℃ | Long lasting, safe to mites’ natural enemies | Possible to has phytotoxicity for tender fruits and shoots. Fenbutain oxide is a little better. High toxicity for aquatic organisms, poor effect in low temperature | |
| Fenbutatin oxide | |||||||
| Organic sulfur acaricide | Propargite | Wide spectrum | Fast, long | Sensitive to temperature, good effect above 20℃ | Contact toxicity, stomach poisoning, good effect for nymph and adult mites, not kill eggs | In high temperature and high humidity conditions, may cause phytotoxicity for the tender shoots and leaves. | |
| Oxime acaricide | Pyridaben | All kinds of mites(eggs, nmyph, young and adult) | Fast, long lasting | No sensitive to the temperature | Versatile, Contact toxicity | Heavy resistance, usually used in spring only | |
| Pyrazole acaricides | Fenpyroximate | Red spider, Rust mite | Slow, long | Long lasting, also control some pests and fungi | Unsatisfied killing rate | ||
| Hexythiazox | Red spider | Slow, long | No sensitive | Can kill eggs, can mix in alkaline condition | Heavy resistance after long time application, no effect for rust mites | ||
| Tetrazine acaricide | Clofentezine | Red spider, rust mites | Slow, long | Sensitive, high activity in low temperature | Kill eggs mainly, also effective for nymph and young mites. Decrease female mites’ spawning rate and hatching rate | No effect for adult mites | |
| Antibiotics acaricides | Abamectin | Except gall mites | Fast, short | Sensitive to the temperature | Stomach poisoning, No residue. Effective for the whole growth period except eggs | Heavy resistance, slow effect, should mix with other quick-knocking acaricides during mites’ burst | |
| Tetronicacid acaricide | Spirodiclofen | All kinds of mites(eggs, nymph, young and adult) | Slow, long | Sensitive to the temperature, has good effect in high temperature | Best efficiency till now, also kill eggs, can cause sterilization for female mites | The resistance is increasing quickly after long time and wide-range application | |
| Spirotetramat | Systemic action, kill pests and mites | Low killing rate | |||||
| Etoxazole | Except gall mites | Slow, long | Sensitive to the temperature | Long lasting, environment-friendly | No efficiency for adult mites | ||
| Bromopropylate | All kinds of mites | Slow, long | No sensitive to the temperature | Versatile | Unsatisfied killing rate | ||
| Acyl acetonitrile acaricides | Cyflumetofen | Red Spider | Fast, long | No sensitive to the temperature | Good result | Expensive, unsatisfied result for rust mites | |
| Quinazolines acaricides | Fenazaquin | All kinds of mites | Fast, long | No sensitive to the temperature | Kill eggs, also kill white-fly | Expensive | |
| Hydrazine acaricides | Bifenazate | Red spider(whole growth periods) | Medium to long | No sensitive to the temperature | Good result | Expensive, unsatisfied result for rust mites | |
| Fungicides’ second profession | Fluazinam | Red spider, rust mites, kill both eggs and young mites | Medium | No sensitive to the temperature | Kill fungi mainly, also control mites | Expensive, sensitive to the melons | |