A Study of Soil-Inhabiting Mites from Connecticut Apple Orchards1

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Abstract
The sod from five Connecticut apple orchards was sampled at 12 to 16-day intervals for a period ranging from 8 months to 1 Year, and the mite fauna in each orchard was analyzed. The orchards included an abandoned orchard, a lightly sprayed orchard, and three heavily sprayed orchards. In the first two orchards a relatively large number of predatory species occurred with no one species making up an excessively large portion of the total number of individuals. In the three heavily sprayed orchards the number of species was smelter, and the great majority of individuals belonged to only one or two species. Leioseius minusculus Berlese was very abundant in all three heavily sprayed orchards, although it was also present in the other two orchards sampled. Tetranychidae were also most numerous in the heavily sprayed plots. In one of them a pronounced rise in numbers of two species of Parasitoidea, Parasitus americanus Berlese and L. minusculus was observed following the application of mulch. It is believed that the increase of P. americanus was due to an increased supply of Collembola and Acaridae.

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