Corn Pests

The wily western corn rootworm thrives in fields where farmers choose a risky combo of continuous corn and continuous use of the Cry3Bb1 trait found in Monsanto's YieldGard RW and VT Triple products....More

A new study answers a question that has baffled researchers for more than 15 years: How does the western corn rootworm – an insect that thrives on corn but dies on soybeans – persist in fields that alternate between corn and soybeans? The answer, researchers say, has to do with enzyme production in the rootworm gut. Their findings are described in a paper in Ecology and Evolution....More

University of Illinois Professor of Entomology and Crop Sciences Extension Coordinator Mike Gray says that this year it is important to keep a watchful eye out for the two-spotted spider mite, especially as we head into some very hot and dry weather in the near term. “Because we are well ahead of schedule this spring regarding the occurrence of several pests, we should definitely scout for two-spotted spider mites, particularly if we continue to have hot and dry weather,” says Gray. “Let’s hope we don’t have issues with this pest in 2012.”...More

We are receiving numerous reports right now about slugs causing significant feeding injury requiring treatment with baits. These reports are two to four weeks early compared with most years, and is a result of the warmer winter and March. Slugs have attached out earlier than normal and have reached a size that causes noticeable feeding injury much sooner....More