Christian Krupke

101 articles by this author

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Western Bean Cutworm Flight Increases

July 21, 2023 - From Issue:
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The western bean cutworm (WBC) trapping season continues, and after a slow start, moth flights have rapidly increased in many northern Indiana county traps the past two weeks. With warm temperatures, egg development and hatch will happen within about 6-8 days after they are first placed by females. This will give little time for egg scouting. Unfortunately larval scouting is far more difficult, time-consuming and less reliable. In other words, some larvae have hatched and have already infested corn whorls, leaf axils, and/or ears. Control is very difficult at this point and those just looking for egg masses beginning now will likely be underestimating the population.       However, it’s not too late! Although some eggs have hatched, our current period of increased moth activity represents the peak for egg-laying, as the vast majority of WBC eggs will be laid over the next 2 weeks. Use moth trap catches[Read More…]

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Western Bean Cutworm Moth Season Begins!

June 23, 2023 - From Issue:
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Pheromone trapping for western bean cutworm moths began this past week. Though typically not initially impressive (see “Western Bean Cutworm Pheromone Trap Report”) this is just the beginning of an extended moth emergence and flight, with peak activity expected 2-3 weeks from now. Those in high-risk areas, i.e., sandy soils, high moth flight, northern Indiana counties and western bean cutworm history, should be gearing up for field scouting of corn, even those with Bt-traits. Remember that WBC larvae are no longer susceptible to most of the Bt traits in our corn hybrids (including those in SmartStax hybrids) and therefore scouting, followed by timely insecticide sprays are really the only reliable control option for the vast majority of producers in the zone where this insect is common. This is principally the northern tier of counties in Indiana, extending into Michigan and parts of Ohio. Only Bt hybrids expressing the Vip3a toxin[Read More…]

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Black Cutworm Moth Trap Captures Compared: Look at 2023’s Early Start

May 11, 2023 - From Issue:
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Every spring, voluteers throughout the state put forth considerable effort in trapping for the arrival and intensity of black cutworm moths. We are indebted to these faithful bug counters, hoping you also appreciate their efforts as reported in the “Black Cutworm Adult Pheromone Trap Report.” If you recognize a name or two on this list of volunteers, by county, please thank them for their efforts! Heck…buy them a cup of coffee! Not since 2012 have we seen such an early flush of black cutworm moths! As described in a Pest&Crop #3 article, an intense storm causing lives and destruction on April 1, also brought massive numbers of moths from the Southwestern States. In addition, we’ve not had widespread freezes since then. Because of that, we set that date as biofix, and began accumulating heat units for cutworm development, that also tracks very closely to corn development. This is all explained[Read More…]

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