cropCENTRAL | Field Crop Production Resources

Armyworm Activity Reported in Corn and Wheat

  • May 31, 2013

  • Michael Gray

Producers are encouraged to scout both corn and wheat for armyworms and potential feeding. Kevin Black, Insect and Plant Disease Technical Manager with Growmark Inc., reported that a field of corn (Putnam County) planted into a rye cover crop had received some defoliation by armyworms. Kelli Bassett, a Field Agronomist with DuPont Pioneer, observed (May 30) some armyworm feeding in scattered wheat fields across Macoupin and Montgomery counties.
For more information about the biology, life cycle,…

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Delayed Soybean Planting: Prospects for Insect Injury

  • May 31, 2013

  • Michael Gray

The stormy spring weather across much of the nation’s mid-section continues to cause planting delays. Planting estimates (USDA NASS, May 28, 2013) indicate that approximately 40% of Illinois soybean acres have been planted. Roughly 12% of the soybean crop has emerged across the state. These percentages are well below the five-year averages for Illinois by this date – 53% planted and 28% emerged. As overwintering bean leaf beetles break dormancy and begin to seek out soybean fields,…

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Nitrogen and the 2013 Corn Crop

  • May 31, 2013

  • Emerson Nafziger

The NASS report indicated that corn planting in Illinois was 89% complete by May 26. This leaves more left to plant than we’d like, and it’s still wet in some areas, so we expect a long “tail” to corn planting this year, unless some of the acres intended to corn get switched to soybeans.
The rainfall that delayed planting across Illinois this year is also affecting nitrogen fertilizer management. For many, the rush to get the crop planted meant abandoning or modifying plans to apply N before or after planting or before tillage.…

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Western Corn Rootworm Injury in First-Year Corn: A Diminished Threat?

  • May 29, 2013

  • Michael Gray

The economic impact of the variant western corn rootworm that evolved in the eastern Corn Belt continues to reverberate nearly twenty years later. The overall impact includes yield losses in first-year corn and the additional input costs of Bt seed and/or soil insecticides to rotated corn. In 1995, severe root injury and punishing yield losses occurred in first-year cornfields across east-central Illinois and northern Indiana. These were fields in which the annual rotation of corn and soybeans had rigidly taken place for decades.…

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Mark Your Calendars for the 2013 AGMasters Conference

  • May 29, 2013

  • Michael Gray

The 2013 AGMasters Conference will be held at the i Hotel and Conference Center in Champaign, IL on December 2 and 3. The conference will begin with a morning general program followed with 1 1/2 days of specialized sessions. Participants will be able to pick and choose the sessions of most interest to them. These sessions are designed to encourage interaction between instructors and students and cover a broad range of topics including crop production challenges,…

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Supplemental Information about Soil-Residual Herbicides Applied to Emerged Corn

  • May 20, 2013

  • Aaron Hager

The following table provides supplemental information to an article (“Soil-Residual Herbicides Applied to Emerged Corn”) published last week.  Table 1 summarizes information about postemergence applications of more traditional soil-applied corn herbicides.  Please consult the respective product label for additional information.
 
Table 1.  Maximum Corn Size for Postemergence Applications of Soil-Residual Herbicides

Herbicide
Maximum Corn Size for Broadcast Application

Prequel, Princep, Verdict
Before corn emergence

Balance Flexx, Corvus
2 leaf collars

Bullet, Micro-Tech
5 inches

Bicep Lite II Magnum,…

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Cereal Leaf Beetles and Aphids Present in Southern Illinois Wheat Fields – Overall Activity Low

  • May 20, 2013

  • Michael Gray

Kevin Black, Insect and Plant Disease Technical Manager, Growmark, Inc., recently reported that cereal leaf beetles can be found in low numbers in some wheat fields across southern Illinois. In addition, densities of aphids in these fields were low according to Kevin. He attributed these low pest numbers to the presence of natural enemies hard at work (Figures 1 and 2). Cereal leaf beetles complete one generation per year. The adult is a colorful beetle (3/16 inch long) and has metallic bluish-black wings (elytra) and reddish-orange legs and thorax (Figure 3).…

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Western Corn Rootworm Hatch Expected to Begin over Memorial Day Holiday Weekend for Central Illinois

  • May 20, 2013

  • Michael Gray

Each spring as we approach mid-to-late May, questions begin to surface regarding the timing of the annual corn rootworm larval hatch. In general, this yearly event and the Memorial Day Holiday weekend coincide reasonably well for the latitude that cuts across much of central Illinois. As many of us recall, last year shattered this pattern and western corn rootworm adults and severe root damage were observed during the first week of June in western Illinois. Because hatching of larvae is a heat-driven biological event,…

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Agricultural Pesticide Use Trends and National Interactive Maps Available, 1992 to 2009

  • May 20, 2013

  • Michael Gray

Just recently, the National Water-Quality Assessment Program, United States Geological Survey, released information on the use of agricultural pesticides (459 pesticides) for the period of 1992 to 2009. Provided below are links that can be used to access maps that show pesticide use, methodologies to determine their use, and county level information.
Annual Agricultural Pesticide Use Maps, 1992 to 2009
http://water.usgs.gov/nawqa/pnsp/usage/maps/
Methods Used to Estimate Agricultural Pesticide Usage
http://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/sir20135009
Agricultural Pesticide Use by County
http://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/ds752
Data for the primary corn rootworm insecticides (tefluthrin –…

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Update on Black Cutworm Projected Cutting Dates for Illinois

  • May 17, 2013

  • Michael Gray

Black cutworm moths continue their northward migration into Illinois and other areas of the Corn Belt. Kelly Estes, Cooperative Agricultural Pest Survey Coordinator for the state, shared with me projected cutting dates for the following counties: Fayette – May 27, Pike – May 22, Edgar – May 28, Piatt – May 21, Logan – May 22, Menard – May 22, and Warren – June 6. As corn begins to emerge, producers are encouraged to look for early signs of leaf feeding.…

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