Luis Cañas

Areas of Expertise

Biological control

IPM for ornamentals and vegetables grown in controlled environments

Biodemographics

Plant-insect interactions

Physical ambient manipulation for insect control

Whitefly management

Research Interests

The long term goals of my lab are to understand the ecology of major insect pest groups of ornamentals and vegetables produced in controlled environments and to develop ecologically based management practices that will reduce our dependence on pesticides and have less adverse effects on the environment. With this in mind, the core objectives of my research program will be (1) to advance our understanding of ecological principles and how they are driving the population trends observed for major insect pest groups of ornamentals and vegetables produced in controlled environments and their natural enemies, (2) apply these ecological principles to develop management practices for insect pests, and (3) develop IPM solutions for ornamental and vegetables that can be applied not only in controlled environments but elsewhere. Current projects examine the effects of physical and cultural controls on life history traits of selected pests of plants grown in controlled environments. In addition, I am exploring the effect of the level of initial insect infestation on overall distribution as well as the relationship between soil health, plant defenses and insect biodemography.