Managing Pests in Vertical Farming Environments
March 10, 2025 Pest pressures look different in vertical farms than other CEA facilities since they’re contained in small, hyper-controlled spaces. In fact, vertical farmers are often less likely to experience pests since they can create environments less suitable for unwanted insects and monitor their crops more closely.
Rose Labbe
Rose Labbe, a research scientist at Harrow Research and Development Center in Ontario, recently spoke with CEAg World about the pests vertical farmers typically find in their facilities and how to manage them.
“Vertical farms are unique in their integrated pest management (IPM) needs,” Labbe says. “There are a lot of considerations with the increased transmission of pests both in horizontal and vertical farming planes.”
What Pests Can You Find in Vertical Farming Environments?
While vertical farmers may not be prone to finding pests in their facility, they can still encounter gnats, mites, and whiteflies. According to Labbe, particularly small insects can infiltrate even the most pest-proof environments. These include:
- Two-spotted spider mites. You can typically find this brown, black-spotted insect on cucumbers, lettuce, peppers, and tomatoes.
- Shore flies. If you grow CEA herbs, you may encounter these small, black flies in your facility.
- Western flower thrips. These narrow, winged insects are usually attracted to cucumbers, lettuce, and tomatoes.
- Fungus gnats. While they look similar to shore flies, fungus gnats have longer legs. You may encounter this pest if you grow tomato plants and work in a greenhouse environment.
- Sweet potato whiteflies. In addition to potatoes, these small, pale-yellow flies are attracted to cucumbers, lettuce, and tomatoes.
- Greenhouse whiteflies. Vertical farmers who grow cucumbers, tomatoes, and lettuce may find greenhouse whiteflies in their facility. Like the sweet potato whitefly, this pest is a pale-yellow color and has white wings.
- Moth flies. If you find moth flies in your facility, you might have a bigger problem on your hands. These dark, hairy pests are attracted to decaying plants, not healthy crops.
“For vertical farms, I would say the ones that are most likely to show up are the ones that tend to be really microscopic insects,” Labbe says. “They have life stages that are hard to see immediately to the naked eye, so they usually go unnoticed.”
What Factors Affect Pests in Vertical Farming Environments?
Environmental factors can influence whether vertical farmers experience pests. According to Labbe, these include:
- Air circulation
- Light level temperature
- Condensation
- Plant spacing
- Artificial light.
How Can I Mitigate Pests in My Vertical Farm?
Vertical farmers can take several measures to protect their crops from pests right off the bat. Here are a few strategies growers can start implementing in their facility as soon as they have the opportunity:
- Install air filters and air curtains.
- Wear clean and dedicated clothing and footwear.
- Establish standard operating procedures to ensure sterile growing conditions.
“When a worker enters a greenhouse and they came from another facility that might have pests, it’s ideal if they change into dedicated clothing and footwear,” Labbe says. “This mitigates the entry of thrips on footwear and other hitchhikers on clothing.”
What Other Crop Protection Methods Can I Use in My Vertical Farm?
According to Labbe, biocontrol practices are ideal for mitigating pests in vertical farming environments. In addition to using beneficial insects (beneficials) in their facility, vertical farmers can use dynamic lighting to make pests less attracted to their environment. However, it’s important to understand the pests you’re dealing with and why they’re attracted to your crops before adopting an IPM strategy.
“Tailoring IPM for different crop types or different growth levels in a vertical farm is helpful,” she says. “You might have different temperature gradients or humidity gradients. And each of these different levels might have a different requirement in terms of how you mitigate pests in those areas.”