With the produce season essentially finished, it’s time to begin thinking about insect management in melons. Spring melon crops are rapidly growing, and so are insect pest populations. Cabbage loopers and leafminers are becoming evident in some areas, and PCAs should start ramping up their monitoring and sampling. More importantly, whitely populations are quietly becoming abundant on the spring melons of all sizes. Adults can easily be found on recently planted melons located at the Yuma Ag Center, and reports from local PCAs suggest that adult populations are beginning to show up on older plantings. As temperatures increase and crops/weeds mature, avoidance of excessive feeding from whitefly nymphs should be the primary concern on all melon types. Although CYSDV does occur in later spring melons, it is rarely yield limiting. But honeydew and sooty mold contamination on cantaloupes, mixed melons and watermelons can significantly reduce quality and marketability is whiteflies are not adequately controlled.  Our research has shown that to prevent fruit yield and quality losses on spring melons, a foliar insecticide treatment should be applied on threshold; that is, when average adult numbers exceed 2 per leaf when averaged across an entire melon field. At this level of adult abundance, immature populations are beginning to colonize. Timing sprays based on the adult threshold has been shown to significantly reduce the chance of yield / quality losses during spring harvests.  This threshold applies for the use of recommended IGRs (Courier, Knack, Cormoran, and Oberon), foliar applied neonicotinoids (Assail, Venom, Scorpion), neonicotinoid-like compounds (Sivanto prime and Transform), diamides, (Exirel and Minecto Pro) and the feeding disruptors (PQZ and Sefina).  For more information on whitefly management and available insecticides, go to these documents on Insect Management on Spring Melons: Whiteflies and Whitefly Control Chart-Spring Melons -2024. Also, be aware of honey bees and other pollinators in or around melon fields. If bees are present, be sure to carefully read labels and determine bee safety of a product before making an application in a melon field.  If applications are necessary during bloom, only apply a product that is considered bee safe (e.g., PQZ, Sefina, Sivanto, Assail). We also recommend that insecticides only be applied when honeybees are not actively working in the field (e.g. 10:00 pm – 3: 00 am).

Viruses vectored by insects 
 
We are on the final section of virus transmission. Virus transmission by insects is one of the most efficient and economically important transmission in agriculture. When you have insects in your crops, not only you are losing your crops because of feeding/chewing by insects, a lot of insects also act as a vector of plant viruses. 
 
Seven out of 29 orders of insect feeding on living green land plants are vectors of plant viruses. 
Insect transmit viruses in 4 distinct modes: 
 

1. Non persistent transmission: The insects can acquire the virus in a matter if seconds/minutes and they are immediately viruliferous. The virus in retained in the stylet of the insect and are transmitted to the next plant the insect feeds on. The virus is retained in the vector only for few minutes and is lost after insect molting. Most viruses transmitted by aphids are non persistent. So when you see few aphids in your melon field and see cucumber mosaic virus symptoms 1-2 weeks later in your field, don’t be surprised. Aphids are efficient vectors, and since viruses are systemic it takes anywhere from few days to 2-3 weeks for the plants to show symptoms. Thus it is very important to manage insects in the field even if you don’t think the ‘pressure’ is not as high. 

Viruses transmitted in non-persistent manner:
 Papaya ringspot virus 
Zucchini yellow mosaic virus 
Watermelon mosaic virus

1. Semi-persistent transmission: The insects can acquire the virus in minutes/hours and there is no latent (incubation) period in the insect. The virus can stay in the insects foregut for hours and is lost after insect molting. Some species of aphids and whiteflies fall in this category.  Example: Cucurbit yellow stunting disorder virus in melons transmitted by whiteflies. 

1. Persistent circulative: Insects have to feed on virus infected plants for hours/days to acquire the virus and the virus has to incubate for hours/days in the insect. After insect can transmit the virus for weeks. Virus can be present in the vectors hemolymph but there is no multiplication of virus in the insect body. Vectors in this transmission includes: Aphids, leafhopper, whiteflies, treehopper. 

Example: Beet curly top virus transmission by beet leafhopper 
 

1. Persistent propagative:  Insects have to feed on virus infected plants for hours/days to acquire the virus and the virus has to incubate for hours/days in the insect. After insect can transmit the virus throughout its lifespan. The virus can multiply in the vector system and often times the virus particles are also passed on to the insect offspring. Tomato spotted wilt virus is transmitted on persistent propagative manner by 9 different species on thrips. 

 

Save the Date : 2024 Plant Pathology Workshop 
When: August 29^th 8AM-12 PM ( breakfast and Lunch provided by Gowan Company and BASF) 
Where: Yuma Ag Center, 6425 W 8^th Street 
What will covered: Plant Pathology program Updates, past season field trial results (we
have some exciting results to share), Q&A to help better Plant pathology program,
Industry panel discussion for all your industry related questions! See you in few weeks! 

Pigweeds are some of the most common summer annual broadleaf weeds in the low deserts. Although they are often lumped together, there are 4 different species of pigweed that are common here and more than 10 species that occur as weeds in California and Arizona. Their growth habits and response to herbicides are similar. It is easy to identify them by physical characteristics but one species of pigweed can hybridize with another and become less distinguishable.

Palmer Amaranth: (Amaranthus palmeri) is probably the most common pigweed species found in this region. It is very aggressive and fast growing and can become 6 feet tall or higher if uncontrolled. It has one thick stem and several lateral branches. The leaves are lance shaped, hairless and have distinctive white veins on the underside. It has flowering tassels that become stiff and spiny. This species has become resistant to Glyphosate in many parts of the county.

Redroot Pigweed: (Amaranthus retroflexus) is probably the second most common pigweed species. It is shorter and the seed heads are smaller, in clusters and have stiff spine-like scales. It has leaf hairs on the margins and the veins are often reddish. The lower stems are often reddish. This species will hybridize with Palmer Amaranth and become less distinguishable.

Tumble Pigweed: (Amaranthus albus) is very different from Palmers or Redroot. It grows lower to the ground and has many branches that turn upright. The leaves are much smaller and narrower. The numerous stems are light green rather than red. The seed heads are small, spiny and at the base of the leaves rather than in long terminal spikes. When mature, the branches are sticky, stiff bristles that break off at the ground and tumble with the wind.

Prostrate Pigweed : (Amaranthus blitoides) is very similar to Tumble Pigweed but the stems are more prostrate, grow close to the ground and form mats. The stems and leaves are smaller and reddis

This question comes up every year. The answer is that it is unlikely. Glyphosate binds strongly to soils, especially those that are fine textured. Glyphosate is a systemic herbicide and it must be absorbed into the plant to work. If it is bound to soil it is no longer active. This is still the case if treated soil is deposited onto the foliage. Dirty water that contains soil particles also reduces the activity of glyphosate. We have conducted trials in the greenhouse where we blew treated soil unto foliage and seen no symptoms. This is not the same for all herbicides. Oxyfluorfen (Goal, Galigan), for instance, does not adhere well to soil and it can “lift off” readily from the soil with water and injure crops it comes in contact with.

Area wide Insect Trapping Network   VegIPM Update, Vol. 13, No. 18, Sep 7, 2022
 
Results of pheromone and sticky trap catches can be viewed here.
 
Corn earworm:            
CEW moth counts decreased in the past 2 weeks, below average for the beginning of the produce season.
 
Beet armyworm:        
Trap counts dropped in all locations, well below average for early September.
 
Cabbage looper:          
Cabbage looper numbers remained low consistent with early September.
 
Diamondback moth:      
DBM moths not active in any trap since June; average for this time of the year.
 
Whitefly:                       
Adult movement increased in the past week, about average for early September. 
 
Thrips:                          
Thrips adults decreasing in most locations, and trending comparable to previous years.
 
Aphids:                        
Aphid movement is absent and consistent with what we typically see during the summer.
 
Leafminers:                  
Adult activity tending downward in most locations, below average for early September.