Integrated Pest Management in Hale County

Cotton

Cotton ranges from early bloom to full grown bolls.  Nodes above white flower have ranged from 5.5 to 9.0 in irrigated cotton. Some dryland is now blooming in the top and could use some rain to fill in bolls. Overall, cotton insects have generally been light this past week. Loopers, beet Armyworms and cotton bollworms have been reported, but fruit damage has been minimal.

A few fields with Lygus have been reported, but infestations are not widespread at this time. Cotton fleahopper infestation has reached 40 per 100 plants, but these populations have been found in fields in the third week of bloom, so are no longer a concern. Cotton aphids were not found this past week, but could return after insecticide applications for other pests.

Sorghum

Sorghum generally ranges from boot to early grain fill. Many fields are in the bloom stage. During bloom, scout sorghum daily for infestations of sorghum midge. Populations can vary on a daily basis depending on wind direction and source of earlier infestations. Most fields scouted this past week had no sorghum midge observed. Later blooming sorghum will have a higher potential for economic infestations. No infestations of fall armyworm or corn earworm were found infesting heads last week, although an occasional fall armyworm egg mass was found. Beneficials are good in heads, but not abundant yet. Banks grass mites remained very light to none found this past week, but could increase as we experience more hot, dry weather. 

Yellow sugarcane aphids were found in several sorghum fields this past week, but colonies are small and scattered. No economic infestations were observed.

Corn

Southwestern corn borer trap collections remain very low at Halfway and northern Hale County.  Corn earworm infestations in ear tips are common, but are not a target for control due to the requirement of multiple applications for control. Banks grass mites remain light overall, with beneficials helping to hold populations in check. Continue to monitor this pest over the next few weeks as they can increase rapidly and do well with hot, dry weather conditions.

Sunflowers

Most fields have completed bloom and early planted fields not far from harvest. Late planted fields which have not bloomed yet should be monitored for the sunflower head moth as they enter bloom.

Compost Tea

Compost Tea

                    

It is common knowledge that drinking green tea bestows many health benefits on people. But, it is not generally appreciated that plants derive multiple benefits from compost tea. Compost tea is a time-honored remedy for improving plant health and vigor, speeding seed propagation, and promoting the growth of seedlings.

Compost tea offers immediately available food to the plant and provides a quick pick-me-up for plants in the house and in the garden. Greenhouse operators have long used this method to insure that their crops grow rapidly and produce the greatest profit at market.

Compost tea is simple to make, especially if you already have a compost pile at your garden. If not, you can purchase a variety of commercial composts at your local garden store that can used to make compost tea. Here are two easy ways of producing compost tea.

Fill a pail or other container about ¼ full of compost, then fill the container with water, Stir it several times over the next 24 to 48 hours. Before using, dilute it with water until the color is a light amber color. Pour 1 pint around each plant to speed its growth. Applications can be repeated at 10-14 day intervals as needed.

Smaller volumes can be produced for feeding houseplants or small outdoor areas. Fill a small cotton or burlap bag with finished compost and place it in your watering can. Fill it with water. Agitate the solution or let it sit until the water assumes a light amber color before using it. The compost that remains in the bag can be reused until it no longer produces the amber color. When that happens, it can be mixed into the soil around your plants as mulch.

Start saving old gallon milk jugs and remember to use the tea within 48 hours. Give it a try – you’ll like it as well as your plants will!

Can potting soil be reused?

With warm temperatures on the horizon, many gardening enthusiasts are making plans for their spring and summer gardens.

With consumers facing rising costs in just about every area of their lives, some gardeners may wonder if it is OK to reuse potting soil. Generally there is nothing wrong with reusing potting soil.

It can be expensive to replace the soil every year. However, there are certain considerations to be made when reusing soil. Used soil will require fertilizer applications to replace nutrients that have leached from the soil or have been utilized by plants previously growing in the medium. Incorporating a slow release fertilizer at the proper rate will take care of nutrition needs for several months. If you’re using a slow release fertilizer, liquid fertilizer isn’t necessary.

You need to be cautioned about the buildup of salts in the soil. Excessive levels of salts can be detrimental to plant development. Keep in mind that all water sources are not the same and salts may be a problem in some city water systems but not others. The same holds true for well water and some wells may have a higher concentration than others.

Typically, rainwater, such as water collected in a rain barrel, will have lower levels of salts and is excellent for watering container plants. Gardeners may often see salt accumulation (crystal formation) when you examine your soils and the salts also tend to form a white ring on clay containers. These are good indicators that salt accumulation may be problematic if reusing soil.

Commercial potting soils have agents added to the mix that help the potting soil take up and hold water. These agents break down over time. Likewise, peat and other organic agents mixed into soils for the same purpose of holding water, decompose over time. As such, older soils tend not to hold water as well and often appear compacted. This could be addressed by mixing new and used potting soils together, adding organic matter to the potting soil or adding a water-holding agent.

Another option is to add your used potting soil to your compost pile. A good compost pile has mixture of green material, brown material and soil. Finished compost can then be used to fill your gardening containers. The compost will have the water-holding properties for which you are looking. Composting used potting soil will also help with salt accumulation problems.

If insects, disease or weed seeds are a concern, pasteurize your soil and compost in your oven. It’s particularly important to pasteurize potting soil that will be used to start seeds. Simply bake moistened soil at 180°F for at least 30 minutes.

YUCCA
Yucca Agavaceae

Common Names:

Yucca, Adam’s needle, bear’s grass. The yucca is fascinating because of the manner in which it is pollinated and the way that it received its name. The Pronuba yuccasella may be one of the most important moths in our part of the world. The female has the responsibility of pollinating our yuccas. In the evening she gathers pollen from the anthers of the flower and forms a sticky ball a bit larger than her head. She then wedges it under her chin and climbs the pistil of a different flower. She injects her eggs into the pistil and puts the pollen ball on top of the stigma wedging it firmly in place. This is the only way that the flower is pollinated. Soon the flower withers and the moth larvae hatch, eat some of the seeds in the pod and drop to the ground. They then spin a cocoon and will later become moths. The remaining seeds make new plants.

Historically, the yucca was brought to England from the West Indies "by a servant of master
Thomas Edwards, an Apothecary of Exeter" and given to John Gerard. Gerard thought the plant a true "yuca," something Indians use for bread making, called Cassava. Englishman John
Parkinson noted that the yucca dropped its flowers without making seed in England. He also
knew it wasn’t a cassava but didn’t know what else to call it and so the name yucca remained. It was noted in 1728 by William Byrd of Virginia that Indians used the fibers to make cloth "which they wear about their middles, for decency’s sake." The Yucca was not renamed and received a couple of new ones. "Silk grass because the fibers were woven, used for making ropes and baskets by the Indians. The fruits, called "datile," are edible and the roots have saponin that can be made into a soap-like lather. "Adam’s needle" is another name given the yucca because of its spiny leaves. The yucca can be propagated from root cuttings and by seed.

Be sure to take time to enjoy the yucca in our area and perhaps thank a little moth for the plant.

Plains Pest Management News

July 6, 2012

Cotton  Cotton ranges from fields in the five leaf stage to fields in early bloom. Fields in early bloom have had 8 to 9 nodes above white bloom and, if provided sufficient irrigation, should have a very high yield potential. Fields that experienced early hail and wind damage have been slow to recover. Overall, the cotton crop looks much better than two weeks ago, especially in the thin stand locations.

So far, insect activity in cotton has been very light. Cotton fleahoppers are extremely light as are Lygus bugs. Another plant bug has been commonly found in beat sheet and sweep net samples

that looks very similar to Lygus bug adults. The easiest way to separate this bug from a Lygus adult is to look at the last antennae segment. If it comes to a needle like point, it is probably a Lygus,

and if it is slightly expanded at the tip, it is another type plant bug that is not an economic pest.

Isolated infestations of cotton aphid continue to be reported with little damage observed. Beet armyworm leaf feeding can be seen on older leaves in some cotton fields, but no larvae are

being found this week. A few scattered yellow stripped armyworms have been observed in cotton, but pose no threat at this time.

  Corn  Corn is in excellent condition and it appears that growers have matched irrigation output, with acres planted. Corn growth ranges from early whorl (replant) to tassel and silk stage. Early plant fields already have ears with brown silk.  Banks grass mite infestations generally remain very light and are still confined to field margins.  Dr. Pat Porter, Extension Entomologist from Lubbock has reported finding true armyworm larvae in non-Bt corn, but is generally not an ear or stalk pest.

Sorghum Corn leaf aphids are now common in sorghum but usually not considered a pest

during the whorl stage. A few fall armyworms and corn earworms have been found feeding in the whorl. Banks grass mites have been found on the lower leaves of sorghum next to pasture or wheat, but infestations remain scattered and light.

Sunflowers  Continue to scout blooming sunflowers for the presence of sunflower moth. Scout early in the morning or late in the evening for adults present on the head. Once bloom is complete and florets are drying, the field will no longer be attractive for oviposition.

Gardening Tips for July

When the mercury rises, plants struggle to stay hydrated. Providing plants with adequate
moisture ensures more than seasonal good looks — it's a key to long-term health. Try these tips to make the most of your irrigation efforts.
We all should be aware that the best times to water are early morning or early evening. If you water during the heat of the day, you lose more moisture to evaporation, instead of soaking soil. This also allows the lawn or flower bed to retain more water.
Apply organic mulch to your landscape beds to help cool the soil and conserve water. Fine mulches — like ground fir bark — are great for annual beds, vegetable gardens, and perennial borders. Use coarser mulches, like cypress mulch, for landscape beds and around the base of trees. Always leave space between the mulch and the stems and trunks of plants.

Remove spent flower heads on perennials, annuals, and shrubs so the plants can concentrate their energy on growth rather than seed production. July is a good time to prune back June-blooming perennials and shrubs, such as Salvias and Spireas. Mid-season pruning prevents the plants from getting stretched, overgrown, and ‘floppy.’ It also encourages the plants to bloom again for some late summer color.

Annuals planted in container gardens are heavy feeders because they are watered frequently. Keep these plants robust by alternating feedings with granular and liquid fertilizers. Granular fertilizer slowly releases its nutrients while the liquid gives the plants a quick boost. Plants that produce large quantities of flowers—like hibiscus, Mandevilla, and petunias—need to be fed more often than other plants. Fertilize them every 10 days as opposed to every two weeks.
Watch for signs of pests and diseases. Watch for signs of plant and lawn insect damage and fungus diseases. Spray fungicides (as needed) that are diluted by 1/3 to prevent burning the foliage.

Pinch back straggly plants and deadhead spent blooms to maintain a neat appearance.