Questions about the best use of Transform have been common this week as plant bug pressure is picking up. You might have seen some of the advertisements about Transform (and probably why I am getting the question). Transform 50WG is a new insecticide from Dow AgroSciences with the active ingredient of sulfoxaflor. It is broadly classified as a neonicotinoid insecticide (Class 4) like Centric, Belay or Admire Pro. However it is in a separate subgroup (4C). So although it has the same mode of action, it has a different site of action. What this means is we expect little cross resistance between Transform and the products mentioned above. It has real value when fighting or trying to prevent insecticide resistance.
Transform has a typical use rate of 1.5 oz/acre. It is a very good at controlling both adult and immature plant bugs. It is also very good at controlling aphids at rates as low as 0.75 oz/acre. It has no activity on bollworm and I would rate it as poor to mediocre on stink bugs. Thus like most insecticides, you should consider the entire pest complex when deciding whether to rotate or tank mix your insecticides. The rumor mill has the price anywhere from $10 – $12.50 an acre for the 1.5 ounce rate.
Pre-flowering, I still prefer products like Centric, Belay and imidacloprid. I’ve made no secret over the years that Centric is a go to treatment for heavy plant bug infestations during this window, and frankly, 1.75 – 2 ounces of Centric is cheaper. For economics and resistance management reasons, I personally would use Transform after bloom when battling the more consistent pressure we typically see during the 2nd – 4th week of flowering. Transform will be a go to treatment for plant bugs in this window.
Some of the advertisements are promoting two applications of Transform on a short interval for control of tarnished plant bug. Two insecticides applications on a 4-5 day interval is the best approach for managing heavy pressure, assuming you are using a good plant bug treatment. It can save you an application in the long run compared with stringing out your treatments on a 7-10 day interval. Transform would be a great but fairly expensive choice if using this approach. But if stink bugs and/or bollworms are also present, you should consider rotating with products that control the entire pest complex. Examples might include acephate (0.5 – 0.67 lb/acre) or Bidrin (4-6 oz/acre) tank mixed with a pyrethroid insecticide. Other potential tank mix partners include Vydate or Dimethoate. Bidrin XPII, a premix of Bidrin and bifenthrin, fits the bill. You can come up with some pretty good alternative treatments for $10 – 12 per acre or less.
Diamond is an insecticide we should get into the mix because of its good activity on plant bugs, relatively long residual and unique mode of action. It is not good at controlling stink bugs. It also does not kill adult insects, and thus, it is not really suited for early squaring window. Most experts agree that Diamond’s best fit is when the first big wave of adult plant bugs and small nymphs are showing up in fields sometime between the third week of squaring and the first couple of weeks of bloom. It may need a tank mix partner to help control adults.
There are no silver bullets for managing plant bugs in cotton. It requires the logical use, mixing and rotation of products to manage the entire pest complex and resistance. With reduced acreage, a wet spring and a late crop, you should expect an active year for plant bugs, and early indications are that stink bug populations will be above average in 2013.
