Farm Progress

Insect infestations heating up in Alabama cotton, soybeans, peanuts

• Adult tarnished plant bugs (TPB’s) are being reported at moderate to high levels in some fields statewide.• The second insect I will mention is the tobacco budworm (TBW).• The third insect that is causing widespread concern in cotton at present is the three-cornered alfalfa hopper (3CAH).

June 14, 2012

3 Min Read

Today I would like to discuss three insects that are occurring in cotton at economic levels in certain fields.

Two of these insects are actually impacting other crops, particularly soybeans and peanuts, as well.

Adult tarnished plant bugs (TPB’s) are being reported at moderate to high levels in some fields statewide. More findings are reported each day and there are likely many fields where they are present but have not been observed yet.

At this point, no one has reported high pinhead square loss. This square loss is what we like to base our treatment decisions on. However, based on past experiences, once the adult TPB’s are present it is just a matter of time until some level of square loss is detected.

These are all migratory adults that have moved into cotton from wild hosts.

They will feed on pinhead squares, which cause abortion, and also deposit eggs in the plant stems. These eggs will hatch in two plus weeks into an immature field generation.

The longer the period that adults are allowed to roam in fields, the longer the period of hatching immatures will be in coming weeks. Knowing this, growers can make their own decision as to when controls should be applied.

The second insect I will mention is the tobacco budworm (TBW). An extended flight of budworms has been ongoing in various areas for about two weeks already. This is of no significance to 98 perent of the state’s acreage that is planted to Bollgard II or WideStrike varieties. However, this makes a tricky situation in conventional cotton that may need plant bug sprays during this TBW period.

This TBW flight is also impacting later planted peanuts that have a limited amount of vegetative growth. Budworm moths seem to be attracted to peanuts with a vegetative width of 3-4 inches. Earlier peanuts that have six of more inch vegetative width do not appear to have as many budworms present.

We collected about 250 quarter-inch budworms yesterday at Headland, Ala., on about 600 row feet. This was not what I would consider an economic or treatable level. However, up to four budworms per row foot have been reported in some fields and controls, with the newer chemistry, have been applied.

The third insect that is causing widespread concern in cotton at present is the three-cornered alfalfa hopper (3CAH). Numerous fields in the Tennessee Valley area of northern Alabama have had damaging levels of 3CAH reported. This problem has extended as far south as Talladega County. Treatments have been applied.

Soybeans are also experiencing a problem with this insect, even more so than cotton, and over a much larger geographical area.

3CAH damage is caused by the girdling of the main stem of both cotton and soybeans by both the adult and immature 3CAH. No good thresholds exist from Alabama research.

Usually this problem and damage is greater on field borders, but consultants have reported damage field-wide in both cotton and soybeans.

Treatment thresholds are difficult to develop for 3CAH, just as they are for grasshoppers. Treatments sometimes have to be made based on the risk that certain species present, and not the level of damage observed. Sweep nets are very effective in documenting the number of 3CAH per row foot.

 

 

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