Caterpillars Infesting Mississippi Field Corn
There are several caterpillar pests that commonly infest field corn in Mississippi. These include corn earworm, fall armyworm, and southwestern corn borer.
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1. By Crop
Insect Trap Counts, June 13, 2014
Bollworm trap counts were higher in Lowndes county this week, but all other locations were similar to the previous week. Tobacco budworm catches remain at very low levels throughout the state. Southwestern corn borer counts were also very low throughout
Soybean Crop Update and Replant Decisions
According to the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service in Mississippi, 89% of the soybean acreage is planted as of the week ending June 8, 2014. At this time, 82% of the crop is emerged. The remaining acres to be planted
Delta Area “Turn Row Talks” on Water Conservation Announced
On June 9, leaders from the Mississippi Soybean Promotion Board, key personnel from the Mississippi State University Extension Service, and stakeholder organizations a part of the Delta Sustainable Water Resources Task Force formally announced a series of summer irrigation “Turn Row Talks†to be held across the Delta during the month of July for producers to attend local, on-farm demonstrations of water conservation efforts being implemented and utilized by growers in their respective areas.
Delayed Weed Control Options in Cotton
Rainfall throughout the state has delayed weed control applications resulting in weeds that have become larger than desired and more difficult to control. Several calls have come in regarding sequential application options for management of glyphosate-resistant pigweeds and other species.
Green Stink Bugs in Non-Podding Soybeans: What to Do?
I have had numerous calls recently on green stink bugs in beans that are either vegetative or at R1-R2 stage with no pods. Numbers have ranged from 4-5 to 8-12 per 25 sweeps depending on the field. It is not uncommon to have a field or two on occasion to have threshold numbers of stink bugs before soybeans put on pods, but the number of fields this year being reported is certainly unusual.
Tarnished Plant Bug Nymphs Showing Up in Pre-Bloom Cotton
The tarnished plant bug calls have started to come in on small cotton already. In some cases, consultants and growers are finding nymphs on very young cotton with only 1-2 squares. Similarly, some are reporting plant bug flagged terminals in pre-square cotton. We rarely have to spray pre-square cotton for plant bugs, but our threshold is 1 flagged plant per 10 row feet with bugs present. Although tarnished plant bugs are our most important and most consistent pest of cotton in the Delta, we usually don’t start finding nymphs until closer to first flower.
Armyworms Showing up in Grassy Fields Moving to Soybeans
Over the last few days I have started getting calls about fall armyworms showing up in soybeans. We see some of this every year, and it is primarily related to larvae moving off of a grass host after a Roundup application
Trap Counts, June 6, 2014
Bollworm catches were lower in the Delta this week but steady in Northeast MS. Tobacco budworm catches were negligible in all areas (Table 1). Southwestern corn borer counts were also low throughout the state, so early corn that is now
The Tassel Shot: When is the Best Time?
More and more corn growers are applying various management inputs around tassel stage in order to improve efficiency and corn productivity. This article discusses how crop physiology affects the appropriate timing and crop response.
Influence of Rainfall on Insecticide Efficacy
Every year at some point during the season we seem to hit a rainy spell where it seems to rain at some point every day and we have showers widely scattered across the state. It started raining last Wednesday and we have had some rain everyday since then and it is currently raining in Stoneville right now (Monday morning). With that, the questions start about how long you need to spray before a rain to get acceptable control.
Delta Research and Extension Center’s Agronomic Crops Field Day, June 17, 2014
A corn, cotton, peanut, and soybean field day is scheduled for June 17th at the Delta Research and Extension Center in Stoneville, MS. The general theme of the field day will include pertinent information for mid-season row crop issues.
Mixing Thrips Insecticides With Post Herbicides: Yes or No?
We have been getting a lot of questions the last 7 to 10 days about potential injury or problems associated with mixing thrips insecticides with POST herbicides over cotton. This will no doubt be controversial, but we are going to lay it out like we would if you called.
Pheromone Trap Counts, May 29, 2014
Bollworm trap catches were down in the Delta region this week from last week, while tobacco budworm catches were higher in the Delta (Table 1). There was minimal change for catches of either species in Northeastern MS. This is the
Armyworms in Rice
Similar to most years when we have armyworms in wheat, there is the threat of having armyworms in seedling rice. We know of at least one rice field in Mississippi that was sprayed earlier this week. In general, damage from armyworms will not impact rice yields at this time of year unless they are beginning to reduce plant stand. This is especially true in hybrid rice planted at low seeding rates.
Simultaneous Cotton and Pigweed Emergence Issues
Planting progress on the 2014 cotton crop has certainly been more timely than in 2013; however, we still lag somewhat being a “normal” planting window. An issue that seems to be occurring on numerous farms this year is simultaneous cotton
Should You Ever Treat Thrips in Soybeans?
I have had several folks asking if there is a time when thrips should be treated in soybeans. Ordinarily thrips are not a problem in soybeans. Cotton and soybeans are completely different when it comes to how the plant can tolerate thrips. Soybeans are not nearly as sensitive to thrips as cotton and therefore can tolerate high numbers of thrips without yield loss.
Slugs – A Persistent Problem in Cool Years
I have gotten numerous calls about slugs this year in all crops but lately in cotton and soybean. Slug problems usually start on corn then soybeans then cotton in our area. This is only because we typically plant in this order. We have had isolated problems with slugs since 2004, some years worse than others.
Thrips Management in Cotton
Many of you have heard us talk about the declining efficacy of seed treatments against thrips throughout the winter meeting circuit. We started seeing the first signs of inadequate control about 4 years ago and the problem has seemed to get worse every year. Last year, most of the cotton in Mississippi was sprayed for thrips at least one time and many fields were sprayed multiple times, even behind a seed treatment. Until now, thiamethoxam (Cruiser, Avicta, or Acceleron N) has been impacted more than imidacloprid (Gaucho, Aeris, or Acceleron FI).
Cotton Re-Plant Decisions – Plant Populations
Several calls have come in this week regarding cotton re-plants. Making a call on re-plants is one of the most difficult aspects of crop production. However, several things should be considered when assessing a potential re-plant situation. The number of
Protecting Your Preflood Nitrogen
Maintaining nitrogen applied as a pre-flood application is an important topic for rice farmers. Nitrogen can be lost by at least three different methods, two of which are considered to be bad since the N will become unavailable for plant uptake.
Bollworms Plentiful in Young Soybeans
The soybean crop ranges from still in the bag to around V5 stage on average across Mississippi. Over the last 10 days I have received numerous calls (mostly from Delta region) about bollworms attacking vegetative stage soybeans. Arkansas has also reported high numbers of bollworms in soybeans. In fact, AR has some fields where bollworms are infesting emerging soybeans in the crook stage and eating them to the ground where vegetation was present during planting.
Insecticide Seed Treatments and Rice Water Weevil Management in Rice
A little rice has started to go to flood in Mississippi this week and that means it is time to start thinking about rice water weevil. Overall, the majority of the crop is behind because of all of the rain that we have had across the Delta over the last several weeks. In general, the rice that is currently being flooded was some of the earliest planted. As a result, the early rice has endured a lot of rainfall and adverse conditions.
Armyworms Showing Up In Wheat
Over the last few days I have had several reports of true armyworms showing up in wheat. Most of the calls I have received so far have been numerous worms at the ground level starting to defoliate up the plant but head clipping has been very minimal. Once wheat reaches the dough stage it is very difficult to show any yield benefits from treating armyworms in the absence of head clipping simply from defoliation. However, we have numerous fields that are still in the milk stage and susceptible.
Peanut Emergence and Seed Diseases
At planting time there are never enough hours in the day, or enough days between the last rain and the next rain. Especially when the weather has pushed the last possible planting date for the crop into “next week’. So sometimes we try to get seeds into the ground even when conditions are not right.
