AgFax Southeast Cotton 8-24 Defoliation Nears, Bollworms Remain Complicated

A small amount of defoliation may start in Georgia this week. The crop has moved fast. See comments by Phillip Roberts. Open bolls are now being found at least as far north as North Carolina. 

Bollworm infestations continue to roar along in parts of the Atlantic Southeast. Indications are that some degree of slippage has been occurring with the Bt technologies and/or pyrethroids used for oversprays. See comments by South Carolina's Jeremy Greene and Dominic Reisig in North Carolina. 

The western side of our coverage area has mostly been under the same weather pattern that has kept the Midsouth too wet for too long. While rainfall totals haven’t been excessive in most cases, showers are developing in parts of Alabamaand southeast Mississippi every day and limiting opportunities to apply insecticides without the risk of wash-off before materials are fully rainfast. 

Target spot has become more apparent in areas where rain has fallen on a more regular basis.

CROP REPORTS

John Burleson, Consultant, Swan Quarter, North Carolina: "We’re close to being done with insects on 75% to 80% of our cotton acres. We didn’t make any treatments last week, and I doubt if I’ll find anything this week that will warrant any action. Some cotton in the area received an overspray, but nothing I’m checking needed it. 

“I found my first open boll on Monday afternoon (8/22), and it wasn’t in a stressed spot. That was some of our earliest cotton, and the boll was simply ready to open. I think this is a decent crop. READ MORE

Trey Bullock, Bullock's Ag Consulting, Hattiesburg, Mississippi: “Bollworms have been slipping through on all Bt cotton. It’s been worse, by far, in WideStrike fields but we’re finding slippage in Bollgard 2 cotton, as well. More survivors are apparent behind some pyrethroids than anyone wants to see. With WideStrike cotton we had to spray some fields twice, both times with a diamide-type product. The applications went out a little later than we needed, I think, but they still did well. READ MORE

Jeremy Greene, Clemson University Cotton Entomologist, Blackville, South Carolina: “Some cotton is done, while other fields have several weeks left. In places, folks are finishing their final stink bug sprays. We just looked at a trial with various Bt varieties, plus a non-Bt cotton for comparison. Based on the damage the non-Bt is taking, plenty of bollworm pressure is still out there. Those non-Bt plots contain hardly any fruiting structures, and the worms are still eating. READ MORE

Phillip Roberts, Extension Entomologist, Tifton, Georgia: "We’re still spraying a few stink bugs here and there. They’re quite variable. We’ll spray 80% of our crop for stink bugs this year, maybe more, but that’s kind of the routine, and 2 applications in a year is what I would consider normal. Still, though, some fields won’t be treated at all. A few people will feel like it’s necessary to go with a third spray, but that’s just what they’re going to do.  

“When making stink bug sprays – and I can’t emphasize this enough – make sure your approach doesn’t aggravate whitefly or spider mites. 

“Each year we have some bollworm damage in WideStrike, so it certainly needs attention in terms of worms. When we spray Bollgard 2 for stink bugs that mostly covers us on any worm escapes. But this year we are dealing with more pressure in all the technologies, including the Bollgard 2, although it’s still occurring a little more in the WideStrike. READ MORE

More Cotton Commentary ahead... READ MORE