|
|
|
Corn
Volume 62 Number 2 Date 05/04/2017 BLACK CUTWORM - Migrants arrived in high numbers for the fourth consecutive week. Pheromone traps registered a total of 498 moths, with a high count of 68 near Ripon in Fond du Lac County. The cumulative total count as of May 3 is 1,534 moths in 45 traps. The abundance of moths entering the state since mid-April signals that higher-than-normal egg deposition is occurring on winter annuals in weedy cornfields. Localized cutworm problems are a distinct possibility three to four weeks from now, especially considering spring tillage is only 21% complete statewide and less than 5% of the corn crop has been planted. Fields that have not been tilled or planted at the time of black cutworm arrival provide preferred habitat for egg laying and are at greater risk of infestation. The start of the primary corn-cutting period is projected for May 21 in Rock County, May 23 in La Crosse County, and May 25 in Portage County. TRUE ARMYWORM - Counts in black light and pheromone traps have been low as of May 3, though higher numbers of armyworms may have arrived along with the black cutworms over the last several weeks. The first moths of the 2017 season were registered at Janesville on the night of April 4, and 77 more specimens have been collected since then. Environmental conditions that favor black cutworm outbreaks (i.e., cold, damp spring weather) are also generally conducive for armyworm activity and development. -- Krista Hamilton, DATCP Entomologist 
|
|