Figure 1. Seasonal ecology of wheat stem maggot (Allen 1933) overlaid on 2017 field issues. Arrows indicate likely source of infestation started with adult movement in the spring.
This article looks at wheat stem maggots in cover crops-to-corn transitions, including their biology, risk for damage to early season corn, and what to look for this spring.
Figure 1. Rye cover crop planted in small sections of field for erosion control. Center photo shows a section of ground where cover crop did not establish with normally developing plants. Damaged corn plants were primarily restricted to areas where cover crop was present.
Wheat stem maggots were an issue for some eastern and southern Nebraska farmers planting corn directly into a growing cover crop, leading to questions about how to best manage this scenario in 2018. Learn why entomologists don't recommend adding an insecticide to the herbicide when terminating the cover crop.
The Handy Bt Trait Table, which lists the types of Bt hybrids present for all commercialized corn, has been updated for 2018. Now in its 15th year, the table has become the standard authoritative reference to Bt toxins in corn.
An article from the Proceedings of the 2018 Nebraska Extension Crop Production Clinics on how integration of cover crops in cropping systems will alter pest and beneficial insect activity.
From the 2018 Crop Production Clinic Proceedings: Corn rootworm continues to be a problem for Nebraska growers who rotate crops infrequently. Additionally, resistance to insecticides and some Bt corn reduces efficacy of these important tools in some fields.
In 2017 large populations of painted lady butterflies were seen across the state, raising concerns about whether the larvae form (thistle caterpillars) of this insect would cause damage to soybean fields. An article from the Proceedings of the 2018 Nebraska Extension Crop Production Clinics.
