UGA Extension Entomologist, Dr. Will Hudson has informed me of on-going technical problems with the Pecan Hotline. Dr. Hudson’s update for the hotline on June 15, 2015 follows:
The weather has settled into a pretty normal pattern after a very dry May. In my yard we got less than a quarter inch of rain for the month, and others got none at all. By Jason’s calculation, if you were using the AU-Pecan site to help you schedule your fungicide applications you would have sprayed 3 or 4 times now. If you’ve sprayed more than that, you might want to look into the program and save some money, not to mention reducing the likelihood of developing resistance in your orchards.
Black aphid problems, while still spotty, are cropping up all around the state. The numbers are still pretty low but there are at least a few nymphs present in some orchards. Carbine and Closer are effective, as are chlorpyrifos and imidacloprid. Again, I would suggest avoiding the chlorpyrifos unless you also have shuckworm problems, and I haven’t seen or heard of any of those yet.
Speaking of shuckworms, the second generation of that pest will begin emerging in the next couple of weeks. We don’t have effective traps for shuckworms, so the only way to detect them is to check dropped nuts for the small white spot on the side. Even after the drop we’ve had, many orchards would benefit from some crop thinning, so a few shuckworm damaged nuts isn’t a big deal. Each grower has to judge for himself whether the number is enough to be worth treating.
With all that, the real factor growers should be considering for the next week (week of June 15) is the weather. Predictions are for temperatures in the high 90’s all the way to north GA through the end of the week. There really is little point in spraying for insects or mites with such extreme heat, and fungal growth and development are also reduced. The bottom line is you can hold off on the spraying and save yourself some time and money.
That’s really about all that’s going on now. Have a great week.
—Will Hudson, UGA Extension Entomologist
