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Comment by cmrdporcupine | Hacker News Reader

Greenhouses can amplify pest problems as they are a closed system where things can get crazy very quickly with no natural checks and balances. They are some of the biggest consumers of pesticides.

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Growing tomatoes one time under cover had a huge problem with white fly, not an unusual infestation, but a very stubborn one. While using the natural kinds may be better, pesticides are often a necessity in that situation. Your comment was completely on target for many commercial producers.

This may turn out to be a silly question, but how does a pest infest a closed system in the first place? Do they arrive in the soil? Do they fly in the door?

Could there be ways to mitigate or prevent the mechanism of infestation in the first place?

I imagine it boils down to a question of expense.

Pests can probably arrive through:

  - People's boots/clothes.
  - The water.
  - The soil/fertiliser.
  - The air.

Each of those inputs would need to be filtered. And the cost of filtration (or the entry/exit protocols for the workers) would need to be balanced against the cost of losing a crop.

Fungal spores are everywhere. And in hot humid high CO2 environment where there are no other kinds of fungal spores to compete with, and a big giant buffet of the kind of food they like...

Nom nom nom nom.

Same thing goes for insects.

Nature is constant warfare. Farming is like picking a side and arming it.

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