Volume 12, Issue 23
August 27, 2004
Volume 12, Issue 23
August 27, 2004
Vegetables
Downy Mildew on
Pickling Cucumbers – Ed
Kee, Extension Vegetable Crops Specialist; kee@udel.edu
I
visited
As
one
On-going
trials in
Vegetable Crop Insects -
Cabbage.
Continue to sample
fields for diamondback
(DBM) and cabbage looper (CL) larvae. We can also find fall armyworm larvae
feeding on plants. A treatment should be considered if you find 5% of the
plants infested and before larvae move into the hearts of the plants. If DBM
and CL are both present, Avaunt, a Bt, Proclaim or Spintor will provide
control. If cabbage looper is the predominant species, a pyrethroid, Intrepid,
or Confirm will also provide control.
Lima Beans.
Lima beans will continue to be extremely attractive to corn earworm moths.
Since moth catches continue to be high in black light and pheromone traps, you
may need to spray the latest planted fields at least 2 times for earworms. A
treatment will be needed if you find one corn earworm larvae per 6 ft of row.
Capture, Lannate, Mustang, or Warrior will provide earworm control. The higher
labeled rates will be needed if population levels are high and worms are large
at the time of treatment. Note – Be sure
to always check the label before spraying to determine the pre-harvest interval
(number of days between last application and harvest). The pre-harvest interval
(PHI) for Warrior on beans is listed incorrectly in the Vegetable
Recommendation Guide as a 0 day PHI. The
correct PHI is 7 days.
Peppers.
Be sure to
maintain a 5-7 day spray schedule for corn borer, corn earworm, beet armyworm
and fall armyworm control. Be sure to watch carefully for corn borers and
beet armyworm since we are seeing an increase in egg laying activity.
Snap Beans.
At this time, all fresh market and processing snap
beans will need to be sprayed for corn borer and corn earworm control from the
bud stage through harvest. Remember, Orthene provides poor corn earworm
control. Since trap catches change quickly and corn earworm catches remain
high, be sure to check our website for the most recent trap catches and
information on how to use this information to make a treatment decision in
processing snap beans.
http://www.udel.edu/IPM/traps/latestblt.html
and
http://www.udel.edu/IPM/thresh/snapbeanecbthresh.html).
Note
– Be sure to always check the label before spraying to determine the
pre-harvest interval (number of days between last application and harvest). The
pre-harvest interval (PHI) for Warrior on beans is listed incorrectly in the
Vegetable Recommendation Guide as a 0 day PHI. The correct PHI is 7 days.
Spinach.
Be sure to scout for webworm and beet armyworm as soon as plants emerge.
Controls should be applied when worms are small and
before they have moved deep into the hearts of the plants. Also, remember that
both insects can produce webbing on the plants. Since beet armyworms are more
difficult to control, chemical selection is important. Confirm, Intrepid or Spintor
will be needed for beet armyworm control. If webworms are the predominant
species, permethrin, Confirm (8 oz/acre), or Intrepid (8-10 oz) should be used.
Generally, at least 2 applications are needed to achieve control of webworms
and beet armyworm.
Sweet Corn.
With the
continued high corn earworm catches and heavy fall armyworm pressure, all
fresh market silking sweet corn should be sprayed on a 2 day schedule. A
combination of a pyrethroid and Lannate, Larvin, or Lorsban may be needed if
pressure from both insects remains heavy until the end of the season. Be sure to check trap catches frequently. You
can check trap catches and treatment decision guidelines on our website (http://www.udel.edu/IPM/traps/latestblt.html
and http://www.udel.edu/IPM/thresh/silkspraythresh.html).
Field Crop Insects -
Alfalfa.
With the recent increase in corn earworm trap
catches and the presence of webworms, be sure to check fields for signs of
defoliators. If a field is 2 or more weeks from cutting and 25-30 percent of
the terminals show signs of defoliation or webbing, a treatment is suggested.
Baythroid and Warrior are labeled for control of both insects in alfalfa.
Soybeans.
In most cases, corn earworm numbers are still low.
We can still find a few larvae but numbers are well below threshold. At this
point, the latest planted fields with blossoms and open canopies will be
attractive to egg laying moths. In addition, we are still catching high numbers
of corn earworm moths in black light and pheromone traps. So, if you have not
scouted your fields be sure to look at them during the next 2 week period since
there are always hot spots of activity that can take us by surprise. A
treatment should be considered if you find
3 corn earworms per 25 sweeps in narrow fields and 5 per 25 sweeps in
wide row fields ( 20-inches are greater).
We are still finding a few beet armyworms and just today a field was
found with economic levels of defoliation. We also hear reports of a few fields
being sprayed in
Weed Control in Seedling Alfalfa -
Getting seedling alfalfa off to a good start is
critical for a long-term quality stand.
The following herbicide suggestions are for pure alfalfa stands. Gramoxone or Roundup can be used prior to
planting to kill emerged weeds. Balan or
Eptam can be used pre-plant incorporated for control of small-seeded
broadleaves such as pigweed or lambsquarters and most annual grasses. Residual control of either Balan or Eptam is
only a few weeks. Butyrac, Buctril,
Pursuit, Raptor, and others can only be used after the alfalfa has emerged and
developed trifoliate leaves. Fall
postemergence treatments include Butyrac 200 (
Weed Control for Grass or Mixed Pasture Plantings
-
Weed control options are very limited for
establishing a grass or mixed stand pasture.
There are no products to use pre-plant incorporated or preemergence that
will provide residual control and not injure the crop. Early postemergence options are also very
limited. Ally, Banvel, Overdrive,
Crossbow, or 2,4-D can be used for pure grass seedlings (they will kill clovers
and alfalfa), but grasses need to be well established at time of
application. Ally can injure fescue and
ryegrass. Fescue injury can be reduced
if Ally is tankmixed with 2,4-D.
Options for Harvest Aid Treatments -
A harvest-aid may be a consideration to dry down
vegetation prior to harvesting and to reduce foreign matter in the harvested
grain. For corn, Defol (sodium chlorate)
is labeled for applications 14 days prior to harvest and it can be applied by
air. Defol will dry down plants but it
does not have herbicide activity. Dry
down is slow; expect at least 14 days for dry down. Also, 2,4-D amine is labeled but it must be
applied by ground rig, which provides challenges for getting it where it is
needed. Apply after the hard dough or
dent stage. Air temperatures over 85
can increase the risk of volatility. Glyphosate (Roundup, Touchdown, Glyphomax)
is labeled, but must be used with care do to potential injury to desirable vegetation. Apply glyphosate when grain moisture is 35%
or less and black layer has formed.
Allow 7 days between application and harvest. Gramoxone Max recently received a label for a
broadcast treatment. Application rates
are 0.8 to 1.5 pts/A and must be applied at least 7 days prior to harvest. Be sure to read the label for all
precautions.
Grain Marketing Highlights - Carl German, Extension Crops Marketing Specialist; clgerman@udel.edu
Commodity Markets; A Moving Target
The corn, soybean, and wheat markets have recently turned slightly
bullish from their bearish trends reflected in price bidding at the Chicago
Board of Trade (CBOT) just a couple of weeks ago. Why the change? Markets are a
moving target. As time passes, price direction and outlook change, reshaping
the fundamentals and technical picture. The following reasons are offered by a
reliable source as reasons for the somewhat bullish tone to these markets, at
the present time:
1. The corn, soybean, and wheat markets have all reacted positively to
the mostly negative news contained in the August Crop Report. Each of these
markets is trading near or higher than they were going into the report. This is
somewhat good news. However, the extent of any continued rally depends in large
part to what happens to weather developments prior to mid to the latter part of
September.
2. An assumption is that the grain and oilseed markets have discounted a
10.9 billion bushel corn crop and a 2.9 billion bushel soybean crop. Both crops
will have to get bigger from here to push prices lower. The uncertainty lies
within whether that will happen or not? The answer is not likely to be known
fully until we get these crops into the bin. It will be interesting to see how
prices are bid in the corn and soybean pits today. Parts of the
3. All of these markets are showing technical signs of being in the
early stages of a turnaround. Consider the following:
a. Corn, soybeans, and wheat have broken through major downtrend lines.
b. CBOT wheat and corn futures charted key reversals up on Monday
(8/16).
c. All of these markets are extremely oversold from a technical
perspective.
4. These markets have undergone major moves since late spring. Big bull
markets turn into big bear markets and big bear markets, at some point in time,
run out of steam. With these markets reacting positively to overall negative
news it is time to stay on the sidelines for a while longer. Remember, if
an early frost does materialize then that will present an opportunity for those
needing to get additional pre-harvest sales booked. The 'window' on that
opportunity may be short lived considering that the heart of the
*Selected excerpts taken from "The Brock Report".
The
Delaware Corn Hybrid test is located at the Georgetown Research and Education
Center Farm, near the Chestnut Grove.
Use
UPCOMING Meetings:
UD Corn Hybrid Twilight Field Day
Date:
Time:
Place: UD Corn Research Plots,
Scuse Farms,
Directions:
From Rt. 13, head east on the Smyrna-Leipsic Rd., cross over the Rt. 1 bridge
and look for the signs on the left (about ½ mile).
Dinner: A light dinner will be
provided
All corn producers are invited to attend
our Corn Hybrid Field Day at the
Gordon Johnson, Extension Agriculture
Week of August 19
to
|
|
Rainfall: |
|
0.66
inches: August 21 |
|
|
|
Air Temperature: |
|
Highs
Ranged from 89°F on August 20 to 77°F on August 22. |
|
Lows
Ranged from 73°F on August 20 to 55°F on August 23. |
|
Soil
Temperature: |
|
79°F
average. |
|
(Soil
temperature taken at a 2 inch depth, under sod) |
Web
Address for the U of D Research & Education Center:
http://www.rec.udel.edu
Compiled and
Edited By:
Tracy Wootten
Emmalea Ernest
Extension Associate – Vegetable
Crops
