Breeder’s Blend: Premium Predatory Mite Food comes in a small clear 1 oz jar with a black lid. It’s a granular diet for generalist predatory mites, suitable for Amblyseius and Neoseiulus species.A dry brush tapped over a deep green leaf, releasing a faint fall of pale yellow powder.A dry brush carrying a light load of pale yellow powder, tapped off over a wooden bench beside an open kraft tub.

Breeder's Blend Food for Predatory Mites

5.0 · 3 reviews

Breeder's Blend is a dry powdered food for generalist predatory mites: cattail (Typha) pollen, decapsulated Artemia cysts and inactive brewer's yeast, sold in 10 g, 25 g and 50 g bags. A light dusting on the nodes and new growth every 10 to 14 days helps keep swirskii, cucumeris, californicus and montdorensis on the plant when pests are scarce. It kills nothing, it is no use to Phytoseiulus persimilis, and the Artemia cysts are a crustacean product.

Good to know
A faint yellow dusting. A barely-visible snow on the nodes and new growth is the right amount. It fades within days, and that's normal. What to expect
When to choose something else

Not for phytoseiulus persimilis, nematodes & springtails, ladybugs & lacewings, wasps, orius, beetles.

$10Free shipping at $30
Size
Frequency

On a schedule: 10% off your first box, 50% off every one after. Cancel anytime.

Shipping details

Shipping

  • Monday to Thursday only. So your order never sits over a weekend.
  • Check your address at checkout. A wrong door costs days.
Ordering with friends? Get group pricing

Everyone picks their own. It ships to you in one box.

Buying for a greenhouse, farm or shop? Ask about wholesale

Right for you?

Your pest, your growing space, how many you need

Or choose instead

When one of these fits your situation better than breeder’s blend.

  • Choose this instead Special Blend Slow-Release Prevention Sachets

    If you have nothing to feed yet.

    $5

  • Choose this instead Neoseiulus californicus

    If spider mites are the worry.

    from $75

  • Choose this instead Amblyseius swirskii

    If pressure is heavy right now.

    from $65

Not sure yet? Ask Toby

He knows this product and can look at your plant. Tap a question or type your own.

Conditions for releasing breeder’s blend

The conditions, one line each.

Applied withA dry brush, dipped and tapped

An artist's brush or a clean makeup brush, and it must be dry. Dust the nodes and new growth, which is where the mites congregate.

How oftenEvery 10 to 14 days

While you want the population held. Pause it during a heavy active thrips outbreak, and resume once that is under control.

Sizing10g / 25g / 50g

10g for a collection under 50 plants — a windowsill or a cabinet. 25g for 50 to 200 plants, a large room or a 4×4 tent. 50g for 200 plants and up, greenhouses and propagation spaces.

On arrivalStraight in the fridge
RefrigerateYes

Refrigerated and sealed it keeps for about 12 months; in the freezer, two years or more. Humidity is what spoils it, so keep the bag closed — and do not leave it sitting in a hot tent or in direct sun.

Releasing

What to do, and what you'll see

What to expect

  • A faint yellow dusting. A barely-visible snow on the nodes and new growth is the right amount. It fades within days, and that's normal.
  • You'll see the food, not the mites. The mites are tiny and do their eating out of sight. That's simply how predatory mites work.
  • Working looks quiet. The sign is what doesn't happen: fewer pests and clean new growth, and no rescue release needed when the next pest turns up.

How to release breeder’s blend

  1. Use a dry brush. An artist's brush or a clean makeup brush. It must be dry.
  2. Dip and tap. Load the brush, then tap off the excess before you go near the plant.
  3. Dust the nodes and new growth. That is where the mites congregate. You want a barely-visible snow of pale yellow dust, not a coating — too much on a leaf can go moldy.
  4. Repeat every 10 to 14 days while you want the population held.
  5. Reseal the bag and put it back in the fridge. Humidity is what spoils it, not heat.
  6. Severe shellfish allergy? The Artemia cysts are a crustacean product — wear gloves, or have someone else apply it.
A dry brush carrying a light load of pale yellow powder, tapped off over a wooden bench beside an open kraft tub.
A dry brush loaded and tapped off before it goes near the plant.

Reviews

What growers say

What people say

5.0 out of 5, from 3 reviews.

  • 5 stars: 3 (100%)
  • 4 stars: 0 (0%)
  • 3 stars: 0 (0%)
  • 2 stars: 0 (0%)
  • 1 star: 0 (0%)
D
Dillon S.
Extra goodies

The Breeder's blend came in a bag instead of a jar (which isn't a problem) just figured I'd give that note. I also recieved 2 Swirski mite sachets for free, thank you! (If that was an accident just lmk I'll pay for them).

Dillon S. review photo

Hi Dillon! They were gifts. We throw something in from time to time. :)

Glad you received everything and are enjoying them!

PS If we did accidentally put something in there, we would NEVER charge you for our error. But honestly, it's usually either extra of what you bought or a few extra sachets.

I
Ike

Pictures are musleadinf as it came in a packet, but that doesnt distract the fact that it works.

Thanks for the heads-up about the photos, Ike, and we're glad it's working. We've passed that on.

Z
Zongtzu Y.
Good stuff! Will buy

Good stuff! Will buy more!

Pairs well with

Small things that help them work

  • Add alongside Horiver Professional Sticky Traps

    Most pest problems are found on a card a week or two before they are found on a leaf.

    from $11

  • Add alongside Root Network

    For the roots: mycorrhizae and microbes that help roots take up water and nutrients. Use at repotting, then a monthly drench.

    from $15

More to know

Ways to buy, questions and reading

Ways to buy

Once, on a schedule, with friends, or mixed with other predators.

One time
A single bag, this once. Free shipping on orders of $30 or more, $15 under that.
On a schedule
10% off your first box, 50% off every box after. Skip, move, pause or cancel from your account.
Group order
Friends each pick what they want, and it ships to you in one box.
Mix and match
Buy several predators together and they get cheaper.

For the curious

Everything else we know about them. Tap a topic to open it.

Why feed a predator?

You brought in predatory mites to protect your plants. The question nobody answers is what they eat once the pests are gone — or what they eat if you did the smart thing and released them before the thrips arrived.

Without food a mite population starves or wanders off. That is the quiet reason a preventative release so often looks like it did nothing: the predators were there, briefly, and then they were not.

Breeder's Blend is what keeps them on the plant and breeding. It is built from foods used to support predatory mites in greenhouses, in a bag sized for a houseplant collection: cattail (Typha) pollen, decapsulated Artemia cysts and inactive brewer's yeast. Nothing else, and no filler — no corn grit, no bran. Every gram in the bag is food.

Then: is Breeder's Blend the right answer to it?

Choose this if

Three moments earn it. Before the pests arrive — a preventative release only works if there is something for the mites to eat while they wait. After you have won, when the mites that cleared an infestation have nothing left, and feeding them holds the population instead of buying it again next season. And on a clean collection, where maintaining a standing generalist population costs less than repeated rescue releases. Feeding takes about thirty seconds a plant: nothing to mix, nothing to spray, no residue and no re-entry interval. You dip a dry brush, tap it over the nodes and new growth, and leave a barely-visible snow of yellow dust behind. That is the whole method.

Choose something else if

It is not a substitute for pest control — this feeds predators, it does not kill anything. It is also not food for Phytoseiulus persimilis, which is an obligate spider mite specialist and will not touch pollen or cysts, and it is not made for nematodes, springtails, ladybugs, lacewings, the Aphidius wasps, Orius, Cryptolaemus or rove beetles. And there is one moment to stop: during a heavy, active thrips outbreak, pause the feeding until it is under control. You want the mites hungry enough to hunt the thrips first.

What eats it, and what does not
FeedsAmblyseius swirskiiNeoseiulus cucumerisNeoseiulus californicusAmblyseius montdorensis
Not made forPhytoseiulus persimilisNematodes & springtailsLadybugs & lacewingsWasps, Orius, beetles

The dividing line is pollen. The generalists on the left can live on it when there is nothing to hunt, which is exactly the property that makes a preventative release worth doing — and exactly the property this product feeds. Persimilis cannot, which is why the fastest spider mite predator in the range is also the one that starves out fastest once it has won.

What is in it

Three ingredients, and what each one is doing.

Carbohydrate

Pollen is the calorie source

Cattail pollen is high-energy carbohydrate — the everyday fuel that keeps mites active and on the plant between pests. On its own it is survival rations.

Protein and lipid

Cysts are what drive egg-laying

Decapsulated Artemia cysts carry the complex proteins and lipids that lift fecundity rather than mere survival. This is the fraction that turns a holding population into a growing one, and it is what a varied diet is for.

Micronutrients

Yeast covers the rest

Inactive brewer's yeast supplies B-vitamins and micronutrients, supporting gut health and adult longevity. Three ingredients, all of them food.

Less than you think. Overfeeding is the one way to get this wrong — surplus food sitting on a leaf can go moldy, especially in still, humid air. A very fine dusting you can barely see is the correct amount.

How to feed, and how much
Applied withA dry brush, dipped and tappedAn artist's brush or a clean makeup brush, and it must be dry. Dust the nodes and new growth, which is where the mites congregate.
How oftenEvery 10 to 14 daysWhile you want the population held. Pause it during a heavy active thrips outbreak, and resume once that is under control.
Sizing10g / 25g / 50g10g for a collection under 50 plants — a windowsill or a cabinet. 25g for 50 to 200 plants, a large room or a 4×4 tent. 50g for 200 plants and up, greenhouses and propagation spaces.
On arrivalStraight in the fridge
RefrigerateYesRefrigerated and sealed it keeps for about 12 months; in the freezer, two years or more. Humidity is what spoils it, so keep the bag closed — and do not leave it sitting in a hot tent or in direct sun.
Before you buy

Contains shellfish. The Artemia cysts are a crustacean product, so with a severe shellfish allergy, wear gloves or have someone else apply it. Otherwise the only check is which mites you are running: if the answer is persimilis alone, this is not food for them and there is nothing here to buy.

About Breeder's Blend

Supplemental food for generalist predatory mites — a dry powdered diet dusted onto foliage. Not a pesticide, not a live organism, not a fertilizer.

What it isCattail (Typha) pollen, decapsulated Artemia cysts and inactive brewer's yeast, as a fine pale yellow powder. Sold by weight in 10g, 25g and 50g bags.
How long it lastsRefrigerated and sealed, about 12 months. Frozen, two years or more. On the plant it is gone in days, which is why the rhythm is every 10 to 14.
Where it comes fromBuilt from foods used to support predatory mites in greenhouses, scaled down to a size that suits a plant collection.
Is it safeSafe around people, pets and plants — the ingredients are food, and it is compatible with everything else in the catalog because it is not a treatment. The one caution is the allergen: the Artemia cysts are a crustacean product.
What it is notNot a pesticide and not a fertilizer. It kills nothing and feeds no plant — it feeds the predators, and they do the pest control.
New to feeding mites?

Five things that catch almost everyone the first time.

Less than you thinkOverfeeding is the one way to get this wrong. Surplus food sitting on a leaf can go moldy in still, humid air — you want a dusting you can barely see.
You will see the food, not the mitesA faint yellow dust on the nodes for a day or two, then nothing. The mites themselves are half a millimeter and you will not spot them eating it — which is the ordinary condition of every predatory mite on this site.
It is food, not a treatmentFeeding does not undo damage and it does not kill a pest. What it changes is whether the predators are still there in a month, which is a slower and more valuable thing.
Not for persimilisThe spider mite specialist will not touch pollen or cysts. If persimilis is the only predator you run, there is nothing here for you — and that is a limit of the mite, not of the food.
Pause it in an outbreakDuring a heavy, active thrips outbreak, stop feeding until it is under control. Hungry mites hunt harder. At low or early pest pressure, keep going.
What arrives

A sealed foil bag of fine dry powder, pale yellow, sold by weight.

It ships as goods rather than as livestock — no live-arrival window, no cold chain in transit, no clock running when it lands.

Put it straight in the fridge. That is the one thing to do on the day it arrives, and it is what buys you the twelve months.

When it ships, and when it lands

Shipping

This one just ships. No live-arrival window, no cold chain in transit and no dispatch-day rule — it goes out as ordinary goods, which makes it the easiest thing on the site to add to an order you are already placing.

When it lands

Fridge first, then find a brush. A dry artist's or makeup brush is all the equipment there is. Dip it, tap off the excess before you go near the plant, and dust the nodes and new growth until there is a barely-visible snow of pale yellow on them. Repeat every 10 to 14 days. Keep the bag sealed between uses, because humidity is what spoils it.

About what is actually in the bag

Three ingredients, all of them food.

3
Ingredients · all of them food, none of them filler

Cattail pollen, decapsulated Artemia cysts, inactive brewer's yeast. That is the entire list.

No corn grit and no bran. Mite foods are commonly cut with carrier to make the bag look bigger, and a gram of grit feeds nothing.

So a 10g bag is 10g of food, which is worth knowing when you compare it against something twice the size for the same money.

If a bag arrives damaged

Split, damp or clumped solid. Any of those and we replace it — a powder that has taken on moisture is finished, and no amount of drying brings it back.

Humidity is the enemy here, not heat. Which is why it goes in the fridge sealed rather than open.

Why this one is easy

Mites, nematodes, eggs — the rest of the catalog. Not this. A sealed bag of powder either arrived intact and dry or it did not.

A bag that arrives split, damp or clumped is a replacement. Email info@fgmnnursery.com with your order number; there is no diagnostic to run.

Seventy-two hours from delivery, either way, with your order number. Replacement or store credit, your pick.

Questions about breeder’s blend

Will I have bugs flying around my house?

No. They stay on the plants, where their food is.

How much Breeder's Blend do I need?

Count the plants carrying generalist predatory mites, then pick the bag:

  • 10 g: under 50 plants, a windowsill or a cabinet.
  • 25 g: 50 to 200 plants, a large room or a 4x4 tent.
  • 50 g: 200 plants and up, greenhouses and propagation spaces.

Pest pressure doesn't change the size. In a heavy, active thrips outbreak, pause feeding rather than buying more, and start again once it is under control. Dust a barely-visible layer every 10 to 14 days; more is not better, because surplus food on a leaf can go moldy.

Keep reading

Field Notes from the FGMN Nursery team.

Pollen Feeds More Than Your Mites A pollen-fed Amblyseius swirskii kills 34–60% fewer pests than a hungry one. Whitefly control improved anyway, because there… How Long Do Predatory Mites (and Other Beneficials) Work? The lifespan on the label is not what decides how a release goes. What does is whether the… Follow the Pests After Release Follow pest activity and fresh plant damage after a predatory mite release, with consistent observations and clear steps…
All Field Notes ›

Sources

Published guidance from university extension services. The release tips on this page also draw on what we see shipping these every week.