This will likely be my last insect update for cotton this year. Reports are that 80% or more of the fields have reached the point where pest management is no longer needed. Plant bugs are still Continue reading
We don’t give sorghum too much attention in our news updates, but insect pests can be a major problem with this crop. If you have sorghum that is starting to head or has so in the last couple of weeks, you need to be very aware Continue reading
The primary call this week has been about whether to treat for threecornered alfalfa hoppers or not. Reports of 1-3 hoppers per sweep are pretty common. The short answer is Continue reading
As the combines cut corn they are often leaving behind a very green field of Palmer amaranth (Picture right). It is not uncommon to find that areas of fields where the corn died early from drought stress have 3 to 6’ tall Palmer in them just now rolling into flowering. These pigweed need to be destroyed as soon as possible. Continue reading
For those still intending to apply a foliar fungicide to soybean, if you are using a triazole or triazole-containing product please be careful about the additives you include. Some folks are reporting foliar leaf burn very similar in appearance to Sudden Death Syndrome (yellow to brown areas between leaf veins). Injury seems to be the result of adding additional products (crop oil, glyphosate, micronutrients, some insecticides) not required on the fungicide label, to a triazole product. The hot weather we have been experiencing may be making the situation worse. Continue reading
Meet the caterpillar stage of the silver spotted skipper (Epargyreus clarus). It is not uncommon to catch a few of these while sweeping soybean fields for insects. Although the larva is a foliage feeder, it is not really considered a pest because it rarely, if ever, occurs in numbers high enough to cause Continue reading
EARLY CORN HARVEST UNDERWAY ON LIMITED BASIS
Corn for grain harvest has begun and roughly a third of the corn crop is physiologically mature. Except for corn, all crops remain in fair-to-good condition. A few parts of the state, especially West Tennessee still need a soaking rain. Soybeans have begun to drop leaves but most of the crop is blooming and setting pods. Even though dry conditions have persevered in some areas of the state, pastures continued to green-up and rebound. Continue reading
Soybean prices are up, corn and wheat prices are mixed and cotton prices are down for the week. The September U.S. Dollar Index before the close was 82.64 up 0.19 for the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average before the close was 13,173, up 77 points since last Friday. Crude Oil before the close was 93.12 a barrel, up 1.72 a barrel for the week. USDA reported their monthly numbers today and while not containing any major surprises did have a few minor ones. On the whole this report is neutral for corn and wheat, friendly to soybeans and bearish cotton. Continue reading