Data from: Improving mass rearing techniques for <i>Floracarus perrepae</i>, a biological control agent for Old World Climbing Fern (<i>Lygodium microphyllum</i>), for releases

<p dir="ltr">In late 2021, relatively simple adjustments made to plant and agent mass rearing protocols produced exponential increases in <i>F. perrepae</i> colony productivity. This increase is attributed to several key changes in colony maintenance that optimized the host-parasite population ratio. We developed a systematic method involving a weekly plant readiness criterion and a predefined sequence of stages to select plants for release, which ensures galls are correctly aged to maximize mite numbers.</p><p><br></p><p dir="ltr">This project was partially funded by the USDA, through the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP) (USDA agreement 58-6032-1-001) co-directed by the South Florida Water Management District and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and through Southwest Florida Water Management District (USDA agreement 58-6032-3-003).</p><p dir="ltr">Version 2 of dataset updated the title of the dataset, added an additional author, corrected the temporal start and end dates, and added additional data files.</p>