Insect pressure in Georgia’s 2018 peanut crop has been as low as I have seen since 2013. Several calls have come in over the last two weeks with folks asking what they are missing because it all just seems a little too quiet in the peanut patch. As we move through the third week of July there are three cornered alfalfa hoppers in most fields. I have also seen a couple pictures of mild hopper burn caused by the feeding of potato leaf hopper. Folks are finding some foliage feeding caterpillars, but so far it has been a mixed bag and pressure has been light. With that said, now is not the time to get complacent with scouting peanuts. The 2018 crop was planted over a very wide window of time, and we cannot manage all fields the same or assume that what is happening in a field we planted in April is the same as what is happening in a field planted at the end of June. If we are lucky, we will not see any major insect problems arise in the second half of the season. If we are good, we will find potential problems and manage them before losses occur.

For more information about managing insect pests in peanut, contact your local UGA County Extension Agent.

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