“Reflective PE Sheet UV plus” is a pest-repellent sheet that induces flight confusion of micro pests by the diffuse reflection of ultraviolet rays. It reduces the number of times you use pesticides and suppresses the intrusion of microscopic pests into your house. Regarding the effects and usability of “Reflective PE Sheet UV plus”, we asked Kondo Farm which is a strawberry farm in Tokushima Prefecture and has cooperation in the demonstration test of this sheet.

*This article is reprinted from an article published in Mynavi Agriculture in May 2021.

A field in a mountainous area where daikon radish used to be grown. Taking advantage of the cool climate, this area is to produce summer strawberries for over 30 years in Japan.

The climate here is ideal for growing strawberries, with a maximum temperature of about 22°C even in mid-summer, but “because it is a mountainous area, there is a lot of insect damage,” says Mr. Kondo.

Among them, thrips are difficult pests to control because there are few effective pesticides and they grow rapidly. Because of its small body length, it hides behind flowers and leaves to avoid pesticides and eats flowers and fruits. Damaged strawberries suffer from atrophy and browning and lose their commercial value, so there is no end to the producers who are struggling with countermeasures.

Do not rely solely on chemical pesticides

Mr. Kondo also used pesticides to control pests, but in response to growing consumer interest in food safety, he is now working on “Integrated Pest Management (IPM)” that does not rely solely on chemical pesticides.

“We used to use Insect nets to prevent thrips infestation, but the use of fine mesh netting resulted in poor ventilation and high temperatures in the greenhouses. I consulted with Koizumi Seima around 2014,” recalls Kondo.

By improving on the already well-reputed highly reflective sheets for weed control, the pest repellent “Reflective PE Sheet UV plus” was launched in 2018 after four years of development.

Before installation, I was skeptical about its effectiveness.

Mr. Kondo laughed, saying that although he cooperated in the demonstration experiment of the “Reflective PE Sheet UV plus,” he himself was skeptical about its effectiveness.

“I wondered if it would really work, so I put it on the path inside the greenhouses in the mountainous area and around the outside of the greenhouses in the flat area. After installation, the damage caused by thrips changed dramatically. Sometimes they got in through the gaps in the insect repellent net, but because the sheet diffusely reflects the UV rays, the insects fall into flight confusion and seem unable to reach the strawberries,” says Kondo.

What is flight confusion?

It is said that insects can fly parallel to the ground by basking in the sunlight on their backs. “Flight delirium” is to derange the flight of a flying insect by shining ultraviolet light from the ground toward its abdomen.

In this image, a thrips takes off from the left. In the “unmeasured area” in the foreground, the normal flight was confirmed, but as soon as it entered the “Reflective PE Sheet UV plus installation area” on the right side, the thrips lost their balance and fell.

It also helps in increasing yields.

Mr. Kondo feels that the high reflectivity, including that in the ultraviolet range, is useful not only for repelling pests but also for increasing yields. “Because the reflected light hits the underside of the leaves, which is difficult for light to reach, photosynthesis is promoted. The color of the strawberries has improved, and we have been able to harvest more high-quality strawberries in a short period of time.” .

Maintenance is easy, and cleaning with a high-pressure washer restores the reflectance, making it economical as it can be used for a long time.

For those who want to improve the “grass control effect”, it is recommended to lay a black anti-grass sheet under the Reflective PE Sheet UV plus”.

Mr. Kondo says, “I think that any cultivated item can be expected to be effective in repelling pests in greenhouse gardening. At first, I thought it was a little expensive, but now that I’ve actually installed it, I’m convinced that it’s worth more than the price. It can be cut to order from the standard width, so you can use it without waste.”