. Cranberries; : the national cranberry magazine. Cranberries. Dapsis spid. That second stage involved a col- laborative effort by Ocean Spray, , university scientists, including those from the Univer- sity of Massachusetts, and BIO- SYS, a private biological pest con- trol company in Palo Alto, Calif. Dapsis also credited Dave Simser, researcher for New Alchemy Insti- tute in Falmouth, Mass., for his work in the field. NEMATODES are unsegmented roundworms embracing sopie 500,000 species, ranging firom the microscopic variety this article is about to 30 foot long tapeworms. Some nemato
. Cranberries; : the national cranberry magazine. Cranberries. Dapsis spid. That second stage involved a col- laborative effort by Ocean Spray, , university scientists, including those from the Univer- sity of Massachusetts, and BIO- SYS, a private biological pest con- trol company in Palo Alto, Calif. Dapsis also credited Dave Simser, researcher for New Alchemy Insti- tute in Falmouth, Mass., for his work in the field. NEMATODES are unsegmented roundworms embracing sopie 500,000 species, ranging firom the microscopic variety this article is about to 30 foot long tapeworms. Some nematodes are harmful to plants and animals, others, as scientists now know, can be beneficial. According to Jeff Rundell, Ocean Spray senior public relations representative, it isn't the nema- tode itself which kills the black vine or root weevil. Rather, the worm carries a species of Xenor- habdus bacteria which destroys the larvae of the insect. The nematode also reproduces in the carcasses of the larvae, thus releasing more nematodes into the soil. So much for biological study and theory. How are they produced in massive quantities and applied to the bog? That's where BIOSYS came in. The biotechnology com- pany is headed by Dr. Venkat Sohoni, a from Bombay, India, with 17 years experience with Sandoz, where he was vice presi- dent of the crop protection division. First of all, BIOSY developed a liquid culture, a mix of nutrients and bacteria in which the prolific, microscopic worms thrive. In eight to ten days, a batch of the mix will contain l'/2 trillion nematodes. BIOSY also formulated a plastic bead to hold or contain the worms. A number of beads are then placed in an 8 X 10 X 2 inch mesh bag. Each bag holds one billion nematodes. The grower then places the mesh bag in five gallons of water, much like you would put a tea bag in a eapot. Only, instead of absorbing tee the grower's water absorbs nematodes, which hate dry, love Page 4 CRANBERRIES October 1989 â â¦Â«i
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