A brown marmorated stink bug, or "little sod," as President of Horticulture NZ Julian Raine calls it. Photo / File
A brown marmorated stink bug, or "little sod," as President of Horticulture NZ Julian Raine calls it. Photo / File
The horticulture industry is concerned about a "partying" pest that MPI is also keen for people to keep an eye out for.
The President of Horticulture New Zealand, Julian Raine spoke to The Country today about the brown marmorated stink bug.
The brown marmorated stink bug originally came from Asiaand has infested parts of Europe and the United States. MPI's website says although the bug has not established in New Zealand "it's a sneaky pest that we've caught at the border many times."
Raines says New Zealand already has the green shield stink bug which is a "wee bit of a pest for veggie guys," but this is nothing compared to the brown marmorated stink bug which he describes as "a little bugger," and a "pest for everyone" - including home owners.
"These things love to party...they come together in swarms...they're an absolute pest."
Raine says that if you are unfortunate enough to have a swarm of brown marmorated stink bugs have a "party" at your house, you'd better be prepared to renovate.
"They leave such a smell after you've killed the little sods you've basically got to redecorate the room."
Find out more about the mamorated stink bug on MPI's website
Also in today's interview - Julian Raine talks about the difficult weather conditions for horticulture and gives an overview of how the planets are aligning for prices.
