Despite their fearsome reputation, redback spiders (Latrodectus hasselti) are generally timid. They’re nocturnal ground-dwellers which need protection from wind, rain and extreme temperatures.

Broccoli crops are not their usual habitat.

However, since 2016 there have been numerous customer complaints about redback spiders in broccoli, with complaints from customers in all Australian states – suggesting that this is not an issue for a single production area, but one that can occur anywhere that broccoli is grown.

To help the industry manage this issue, a strategic levy investment by Hort Innovation using the Vegetable Fund has supported a project to review information and identify options for preventing and removing redback spiders in broccoli.

This project was delivered by Dr Jenny Ekman and the team at Applied Horticultural Research. By undertaking a thorough and comprehensive review of the available information about redbacks in general and specific instances of their detection in vegetable crops, the team has created useful resources for growers looking to minimise this risk.

While we’ve previously promoted the fact sheet produced by the project that’s full of practical tips for growers, the final report for this project has now been uploaded to the InfoVeg database, showcasing the researchers’ full findings.

You can read the full final report on the InfoVeg database.

This post appeared in the AUSVEG Weekly Update published 13 November 2018. Subscribe to the Update using our online form to receive the latest industry news in your inbox every week!