Cotton IPM – Thrips, Aphids and Fleahoppers

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Cotton Maturity ranges from seedlings to 12-14 node squaring cotton. In some cases, these are in the same field. My cotton on the research farm in Port Lavaca has two emergence dates with older plants having 2 leaves and newly emerging plants coming up daily. I have noticed seedling disease being fairly common in some fields. Notice two of the plants in the above picture are dying. This demonstrated the importance of seed applied fungicides and variety choice. Cotton should be scouted for thrips through the 4-5 leaf… Read More →

South Texas Audio Updates

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In effort to get more information to the growers and other interested people, we are providing weekly audio updates or podcasts. These are usually 8-10 minute recordings of the South Texas AgriLife Extension Entomologists.  In the updates, we discuss what we are seeing in the fields with a brief amount of discussion.  Follow the link below to listen to the recordings or to sign up to get a text message when a new post is made. https://www.texasinsects.org/south-texas.html

Corn Leaf Aphids in Corn

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Today, I received a report of corn leaf aphids being found in some corn that is beginning  to tassel. There is little research that has been conducted on management of corn leaf aphid in corn. Often we find the aphid in low numbers pre-tassel and consider them to be beneficial because they serve as a food source for predacious and parasitoid insects. If I had to choose a treatment threshold, I would probably treat a field if more than 30% of the plants had over 50-100 aphids per… Read More →

Aphids in Young Sorghum

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  Young sorghum fields should be inspected for aphids. We typically see two kinds of aphids in young sorghum; the yellow sugarcane aphid and the corn leaf aphid.  This week, I have been finding corn leaf aphids in sorghum fields. Corn leaf aphids are oval and dark bluish-green and have black antennae, cornicles, and legs. There are winged and wingless forms. These aphids are usually found deep in the whorl of preboot sorghum, but they also occur on the underside of leaves, on stems, or in grain heads. … Read More →

Corn Leafhopper Management Suggestions

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The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Entomology Group has produced a bulletin for corn leafhoppers.  I encourage you to read this to learn about the insect, disease, and management suggestions.  The bulletin can be found here:  https://agrilife.org/mid-coast-ipm/files/2024/10/ENTO-PU-229-Corn-Leafhopper-and-the-Red-Stunt-Disease-Complex.pdf  Previous posts about corn leafhoppers can be found here:  https://agrilife.org/mid-coast-ipm/tag/corn-leafhopper/