Happy Independence Day. Make sure you’re careful with fireworks tonight.
Peanuts: Lessers have been more abundant over the past week. Continue scouting fields for Lessers even in areas that have received rain. As fields begin to lap the row middles, the risk for LCB reaching threshold levels is diminished. Later planting, skippy stands, sandy soil, and dry conditions are favorable for lesser cornstalk borer development; fields with these characteristics should be the focus of scouting efforts. July is usually when we begin to see foliage-feeding caterpillars appear. If a field is at threshold, it should be treated, but spraying sub-threshold caterpillar populations just costs us money. Using a drop cloth, check three feet of row at 10 random locations in each field. The threshold for foliage-feeding caterpillars ranges from 4 per foot if the peanuts are small or stressed, to 8 caterpillars per foot when vines are healthy, rank, and actively growing. Stay on top of your fungicide sprays.
Cotton: June cotton is just coming to square. Remember not to try to “catch up” with high N rates early for the June crop. This can cause problems as it will kick the plant into a vegetative state, and it won’t be able to shift into reproduction mode on time, which will cost yield. June cotton can’t afford a delay in fruiting. If you come up short on N later in the year for May- or June-planted cotton, you can foliar feed, especially anytime between the 3rd and 6th week of bloom. Remember for PGRs that timing is more important than rate. Keep in mind that we can use PGRs on this late-planted cotton to help shorten our season by being a bit more aggressive.
Corn: Protect younger corn from southern rust. No tar spot found yet. We’ve been getting some good rains recently, so manage your water accordingly.
Pecans: It’s time (July 7-Aug 7) to collect leaf samples. This, along with soil samples, is the only way to determine if and where you can save on your fertilizer applications next year, as well as whether you need to add any more for the current year. During July, we will also encounter a couple of pests, including shuckworm and nut curculio. Use a targeted material, such as Intrepid, Intrepid Edge, or Dimilin, for shuckworm control. Pyrethroid applications currently will flare aphids and mites, leading to further sprays for these pests as well.