Seems like each year about this time we begin to think how unusual this produce season is compared to previous years. Of course, every season is different. That’s the complicated nature of farming and pest management; so many factors (some explained and many unexplained) influence plant growth and insect pest activity and abundance. I thought I’d share some of my recent observations of “unusual” insect activity from research plots at the Yuma Ag Center (YAC), local commercial fields and conversations with PCAs. Whitefly populations were the lightest we’ve seen in years, but have been heavy in a few small areas. Many, like myself, believe this is due to the lower cotton acreage this summer, but there could be other factors as well. Beet armyworm pressure remains steady, but seems much lower than what I usually see this time of the year. Cabbage looper numbers have been considerably lower from what we typically see in lettuce and cole crops in October. There numbers seem to be increasing now. Corn earworm larvae populations appear to be about normal relative to the past 3 or 4 years. So far, I have not had any complaints in regards to controlling these worm pests, and all the standard Lep materials are performing up to par in my efficacy trials. In contrast, diamondback moth larvae are very abundant in my broccoli trials. They showed up earlier and in higher numbers than I typically see this time of the year. Not sure why? Good news is, they remain easy to kill with standard materials. Another interesting pest showing up is the Hawaiian beet webworm. They were very abundant last year and PCAs have been sending me images from this season (see image below). The larvae prefer spinach and beets and can cause damage if left untreated. Again, easy to control. Western flower thrips are on the increase, consistent with the warm weather. Adult and immatures are increasing on my lettuce plots, and several PCAs have mentioned that they are quite abundant. Have also had some reports of cowpea aphids showing up in lettuce. Experience has shown us that cowpea aphid will begin to colonize lettuce about this time of the year, but never seems to amount to much and colonies disappear when it gets colder. If the weather breaks in the next week or so as anticipated, worm and thrips pressure should slow down considerably. However, given our current and predicted El Nino weather pattern, all bets are off. So, have your weather reports handy, and keep your eyes open for the unexpected. Remember: When in Doubt-Scout.
This study was conducted at the Yuma Valley Agricultural Center. The soil was a silty clay loam (7-56-37 sand-silt-clay, pH 7.2, O.M. 0.7%). Variety: Deluxe (HMX2595) was seeded, then sprinkler-irrigated to germinate seed on March 20, 2024on 84 inches between bed centers. All other water was supplied by furrow irrigation or rainfall. Treatments were replicated five times in a randomized complete block design. Each replicate plot consisted of 25 ft of bed. Treatment beds were separated by single nontreated beds. Treatments were applied with a tractor-mounted boom sprayer that delivered 50 gal/acre at 100 psi to flat-fan nozzles spaced 12 in apart.
Spray treatments were done on 05-21-2024, 05-31-2024, 06-07-2024 and 06-14-24. Powdery mildew was first seen on 06-05-24. Please see excel file for additional details.
Disease severity of powdery mildew (caused by Sphaerotheca fuliginea and S. fusca) severity was determined 6-17-2024 by rating 10 plants within each of the four replicate plots per treatment using the following rating system: 0 = no powdery mildew present; 1 = one to two mildew colonies on leaves ;2 = powdery mildew present on one quarter of leaves; 3 = powdery mildew present on half of the leaves; 4 = powdery mildew present on more than half of leaf surface area ; 5 = powdery mildew present on entire leaf. These ratings were transformed to percentage of leaves infected values before being statistically analyzed.
The data in the table illustrate the degree of disease control obtained by application of the various treatments in this trial. Most treatments significantly reduced the final severity of powdery mildew compared to nontreated plants. Quintec, Merivon, Tesaris, Luna Sensation, and V6M-5-14 V gave the best disease control. Phytotoxicity symptoms were not noted for any treatments in this trial.
Controlling Disease and Weeds with Band-Steam – Yuma Trials Show Good Promise
In previous articles (Vol. 11 (13), Vol. 11 (20), Vol. 11(24)), I’ve discussed using band-steam to control plant diseases and weeds. Band-steaming is where steam is used to heat narrow strips of soil to temperature levels sufficient to kill soilborne pathogens and weed seed (>140 °F for > 20 minutes). The concept is showing good promise. This past season, three trials were conducted examining the efficacy of using steam for disease and weed control in Yuma, AZ. In the studies, steam was applied in a 4-inch-wide by 2-inch-deep band of soil centered on the seedline using a prototype band-steam applicator (Fig.1). The band-steam applicator is principally comprised of a 35 BHP steam generator mounted on top of an elongated bed shaper. The apparatus applies steam via shank injection and from cone shaped ports on top of the bed shaper.
Trial results were very encouraging as the prototype applicator was able to raise soil temperatures to target levels (140°F for >20 minutes) at viable travels speeds of 0.75 mph. Steam provided better than 80% weed control and significantly lowered hand weeding time by more than 2 hours per acre (Table 1). Results also showed that Fusarium colony forming units (CFU) were reduced from 2,600 in the control to 155 in the 0.75 mph and 53 in the 0.5 mph treatments, respectively (a more than 15-fold reduction). A significant difference in Fusarium wilt of lettuce disease incidence was not found, however disease infection at the field site was low (< 2%) and differences were not expected. At 0.5 mph, fuel costs were calculated to be $238/acre which was considered reasonable and consistent with the values reported by Fennimore et al. (2014).
An unexpected finding was that plants in steam treated plots appeared to be healthier and more vigorous than untreated plots (Fig. 2). This trial is still in progress and it will be interesting to see if this improved early growth translates into increases in crop yield.
In summary, early trial results are showing good promise for use of band-steam as a non-herbicidal method of pest control. We plan on conducting further trials in this multi-year study. If you are interested in evaluating the device on your farm and being part of the study please contact me. We are particularly interested in fields with a known history of Fusarium wilt of lettuce and/or Sclerotinia lettuce drop that will be planted to iceberg or romaine lettuce.
As always, if you are interested in seeing the machine operate or would like more information, please feel free to contact me.
Acknowledgements
This work is supported by Crop Protection and Pest Management grant no. 2017-70006-27273/project accession no. 1014065 from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, the Arizona Specialty Crop Block Grant Program and the Arizona Iceberg Lettuce Research Council. We greatly appreciate their support. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
A special thank you is extended to Mellon Farms for allowing us to conduct this research on their farm.
References
Fennimore, S.A., Martin, F.N., Miller, T.C., Broome, J.C., Dorn, N. and Greene, I. 2014. Evaluation of a mobile steam applicator for soil disinfestation in California strawberry. HortScience 49(12):1542-1549.
Click link below or picture to see the band-steam and co-product applicator in action!
Carryover of Vegetable Herbicides to Wheat Grown in Rotation
Almost all the herbicides used on lettuce, cole crops and melons have restrictions on how soon wheat can be planted in rotation after they have been used. Experience has demonstrated, however, that safe intervals can vary considerably based upon many factors and are almost always much longer than they need to be. The most important factors are rate applied, irrigation practices and tillage. For example, when Kerb used to be banded at 2 to 4 lbs. per acre after planting and incorporated with furrow irrigation, it was common to see treated strips across wheat fields which followed. This is uncommon now that lower rates are Chemigated. We still see some Balan injury at ends of fields or in overlaps especially when sudan is planted. Wheat it not very sensitive to Prefar and carryover injury is uncommon.
Corn earworm:Moths remain inactive in most areas; average for this point in the season.
Beet armyworm:Moth counts remain very low consistent with seasonal temperatures, but below average for this point in the season.
Cabbage looper: Slight increase in activity, but moth counts remain unusually low for late January.
Whitefly: Dult movement is at seasonal low consistent with temperatures and lack of melons or cotton.
Thrips: Activity remains lower than normal for this point late January. Increased movement noted in Roll/Tacna.
Aphids: Seasonal aphid counts peaked during the past 2 weeks, suggesting movement with recent winter storms and lack of desert vegetation. Counts were particularly high in North Yuma and Gila Valleys, and Bard. Above average for this time of year.
Leafminers: Adult activity remains light in most trap locations. Trap counts increasing slightly in the South Gila Valley.
To contact John Palumbo go to: jpalumbo@ag.Arizona.edu
