Corn Earworm Monitoring – Moving Forward

It is likely that blacklight trapping will not be continued in the Rutgers Vegetable IPM Program beginning in 2025, due to the unavailability of the specific bulb that has been the standard for blacklight traps for decades.  Under these circumstances, the IPM Program will rely on pheromone trapping to determine levels of important crop pests such as the corn earworm (CEW).

The 30” Hartstack trap (see photo at right by K. Albright of Purdue Univ.), also called the Texas pheromone trap (TPT), which is used in the Rutgers IPM Program, as well as many insect monitoring programs in other states, is the best tool for determining spray intervals on silking sweet corn to limit CEW injury.  A number of New Jersey sweet corn growers already have one or more TPTs on the farm, but we encourage all growers of this crop to obtain at least one.

 

Deploying Traps

The TPT is mounted on ½” rebar set at a height of approximately 4’.  The trap is baited with one Hercon Luretape Corn Earworm Lure, available from Great Lakes IPM®.  An additional lure is added every two weeks, and the trap should always be deployed directly adjacent to sweet corn expressing fresh silks.  This means that the trap should be moved frequently during the season.

 

Building or Buying Traps

The TPT is relatively simple to manufacture, and the University of Kentucky has posted the plans and parts list for making these traps in the growers’ shops.  The UKy site for trap design is:  https://entomology.ca.uky.edu/ef010

For those who wish to purchase this trap rather than making their own, TPTs are available from Mike “O” Olsowski in Geneva, NY.  Mr. Olsowski has made a number of TPT tops for the Rutgers IPM Program and is willing to make and ship these traps to New Jersey growers.  Contact information for Mike “O” Olsowski :

Mike “O” Olsowski

3510 Sutton Rd.

Geneva, NY  14456

Phone:  315-651-5929

 

Recording Catches

Current silk spray intervals based on corn earworm catches in the 30″ Hartstack trap were developed by the Univ. of Delaware some time ago, and are represented on the following chart, which may be printed and posted in a convenient site on the farm so that growers can record the catch and determine a silk spray schedule.  This trap record also includes spaces for other insects for which commercial pheromones are available, including beet armyworm and fall armyworm.  Contact information for Rutgers Vegetable IPM Program staff (currently, Amanda Quadrel) is also included on the chart.

 

Sweet Corn

Corn earworm (CEW) moth captures from northern and central blacklight and pheromone traps continued to decrease  with an extended period of cooler night temperatures.   Pheromone trap information is available from all northern and central sites, but is limited  from southern New Jersey.  With little information from South Jersey, growers there would be wise to assume numbers at least as high as those represented in the central and northern traps.  Should night time temperatures rebound, we should expect increases in CEW catch from both trap types.  We will use a combination of pheromone and blacklight trap types to derive silk spray schedules by region.  Silking corn is at risk of CEW infestation at this time.  Be sure to access information from this publication in the upcoming weeks to determine how frequently you should treat silking sweet corn to protect it from CEW infestation.

 

The highest nightly blacklight trap catches of CEW for the week ending 9/18/24 are as follows:

Denville    3	Flanders   2	Califon   1	Lawrenceville   1
Blairstown   2	Hackettstown   2	Farmingdale   1	Long Valley   1
Chester   2	Sergeantsville   2	Georgetown   1	Pennington   1

The highest nightly pheromone trap catches of CEW for the week ending 9/18/24 are as follows:

Woodstown   68	Berlin   16	New Egypt   7
Georgetown   20	Bellemeade   10	Chester   6
Snyder Farm (Hunterdon)   19	Green Creek   10	Hackettstown   6
Califon   18	Middle Valley   10	Dayton   5

Thanks to Joe LaForest of Univ. of GA, and the Southern IPM Center for producing maps from our NJ CEW data!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Using our current pheromone- based thresholds (30″ Hartstack trap) developed by the Univ. of Delaware, nightly corn earworm moth catches translate to:

0 moths – 6-7 day spray schedule

1 moth – 5 day spray schedule

2-20 moths – 4 day spray schedule

>20 moths – 3 day spray schedule

Silking Spray Schedules*:
South – 3 days

Central – 3-4 days

North – 3-4 days

*These recommendations are based on regional catches.  Adhere to tighter spray schedules if indicated by local trap catches.  Synthetic pyrethroids alone should NOT be used for corn earworm (CEW) protection on silking corn, or for fall armyworm (FAW) management at any stage.  Control with these materials is very inconsistent.

 

Beet Armyworm

Beet armyworm (BAW) numbers in pheromone traps in the Woodstown area of Salem County have dropped over the past week, but remain relatively high.  Thanks to a grower cooperator in that area, we know that catches range from 31 – 67/night over the past week in local traps.  This pest can cause significant injury on peppers as well as leafy greens like swiss chard, and kale.  Larvae are beginning to appear as far north as Hunterdon County, although it is likely that serious infestations are or will occur in southern NJ now.  Monitor pepper fields weekly for signs of feeding.  BAW larvae (photo at left) feed in the developing foliage in terminal growth of pepper plants.  Initially, leaves are skeletonized, but as larvae grow, they will move onto fruit and damage these as well.   In northern NJ, BAW is an occasional, and typically low level pest of cole crops.  Infestations tend to be very local for unknown reasons.  As with other armyworms, BAW is difficult to control with pyrethroid insecticides.  Effective materials include spinosyns (IRAC 5) and diamides (IRAC 28).

Corn Earworm Traps – 30″ Hartstack type

Growers wishing to purchase corn earworm pheromone traps to conduct their own on-farm monitoring should contact:

Mike “O” Olsowski

3510 Sutton Rd.

Geneva, NY  14456

Phone:  315-651-5929

Mike O manufactures these 30″ Hartstack traps in his shop.  These traps are the same as the ones we use currently in the IPM Program, and spray thresholds are based on this type.

Lures currently used in the Rutgers Vegetable IPM Program corn earworm pheromone traps are:

Hercon Luretape, available from Great Lakes IPM

Lures are placed in the clip at the base of the large cone, and a new one is added at two week intervals.

Welcome!

The Vegetable IPM Program welcomes Amanda Quadrel as the new Program Coordinator for southern New Jersey!  Amanda received her MS. from our Rutgers Entomology Department, working with spotted wing drosophila.  She has an excellent background in IPM tactics, and is currently meeting with growers and becoming familiar with some of our activities (though very late in the season) in the field.  Welcome, Amanda and good luck!

 

Sweet Corn

Corn earworm (CEW) moth captures from northern and central blacklight and pheromone traps decreased substantially with cooler night temperatures over the past week.   Pheromone trap information is available from all northern and central sites, but is limited  from southern New Jersey.  With little information from South Jersey, growers there would be wise to assume numbers at least as high as those represented in the central and northern traps.  Should night time temperatures rebound, we should expect increases in CEW catch from both trap types.  We will use a combination of pheromone and blacklight trap types to derive silk spray schedules by region.  Silking corn is at risk of CEW infestation at this time.  Be sure to access information from this publication in the upcoming weeks to determine how frequently you should treat silking sweet corn to protect it from CEW infestation.

 

The highest nightly blacklight trap catches of CEW for the week ending 9/11/24 are as follows:

Hackettstown    11	Bellemeade   5	Farmingdale   3	Clinton   2
Denville   7	Blairstown   4	Georgetown   3	New Egypt   2
Allamuchy   6	Chester   3	Morrisotwn   3	Oldwick   2

The highest nightly pheromone trap catches of CEW for the week ending 9/11/24 are as follows:

Woodstown   59	Sparta   36	New Egypt   17
Hackettstown   41	Chester   31	Dayton   10
Green Creek   40	Georgetown   27	Matawan   10
Middle Valley   36	Allamuchy   24	South Branch   9

Thanks to Joe LaForest of Univ. of GA, and the Southern IPM Center for producing maps from our NJ CEW data!

No map will appear in this addition, as data came in to late to generate an image.  We will publish a map separately as soon as possible.

Using our current pheromone- based thresholds (30″ Hartstack trap) developed by the Univ. of Delaware, nightly corn earworm moth catches translate to:

0 moths – 6-7 day spray schedule

1 moth – 5 day spray schedule

2-20 moths – 4 day spray schedule

>20 moths – 3 day spray schedule

Silking Spray Schedules*:
South – 3-4 days

Central – 3 days

North – 3 days

*These recommendations are based on regional catches.  Adhere to tighter spray schedules if indicated by local trap catches.  Synthetic pyrethroids alone should NOT be used for corn earworm (CEW) protection on silking corn, or for fall armyworm (FAW) management at any stage.  Control with these materials is very inconsistent.

 

Beet Armyworm

Beet armyworm (BAW) numbers in pheromone traps in the Woodstown area of Salem County have gotten extremely high over the past week.  Thanks to a grower cooperator in that area, we know that catches range from 43 to 135/night over the past week in local traps.  This pest can cause significant injury on peppers as well as leafy greens like swiss chard, and kale.  Larvae are beginning to appear as far north as Hunterdon County, although it is likely that serious infestations are or will occur in southern NJ now.  Monitor pepper fields weekly for signs of feeding.  BAW larvae (photo at left) feed in the developing foliage in terminal growth of pepper plants.  Initially, leaves are skeletonized, but as larvae grow, they will move onto fruit and damage these as well.   In northern NJ, BAW is an occasional, and typically low level pest of cole crops.  Infestations tend to be very local for unknown reasons.  As with other armyworms, BAW is difficult to control with pyrethroid insecticides.  Effective materials include spinosyns (IRAC 5) and diamides (IRAC 28).

 

Cucurbit Crops

Melon aphids (photo at left) are now appearing in some fields of winter squash and pumpkins.  While not doing much damage to plants overall, these colonies can get quite large, and will deposit their sticky droppings on fruit below. This, in turn, supports the growth of sooty mold, and makes the fruit unsightly.  Further, the sticky droppings attract hornets, which can be an issue for harvesting crews or U-pickers.  Should melon aphid colonies appear in three or more sites in a ten site sample, consider applying an aphid specific material for control.  There are multiple options in the Pumpkin and Winter Squash section of the Commercial Vegetable Recommendations that have low toxicity to bees.

 

 

 

Corn Earworm Traps – 30″ Hartstack type

Growers wishing to purchase corn earworm pheromone traps to conduct their own on-farm monitoring should contact:

Mike “O” Olsowski

3510 Sutton Rd.

Geneva, NY  14456

Phone:  315-651-5929

Mike O manufactures these 30″ Hartstack traps in his shop.  These traps are the same as the ones we use currently in the IPM Program, and spray thresholds are based on this type.

Lures currently used in the Rutgers Vegetable IPM Program corn earworm pheromone traps are:

Hercon Luretape, available from Great Lakes IPM

Lures are placed in the clip at the base of the large cone, and a new one is added at two week intervals.

Welcome!

The Vegetable IPM Program welcomes Amanda Quadrel as the new Program Coordinator for southern New Jersey!  Amanda received her MS. from our Rutgers Entomology Department, working with spotted wing drosophila.  She has an excellent background in IPM tactics, and is currently meeting with growers and becoming familiar with some of our activities (though very late in the season) in the field.  Welcome, Amanda and good luck!

 

Sweet Corn

Fall armyworm (FAW)  infestations have increased again, as per reports from south Jersey.  It seems as though there was an increase in adult numbers with warm weather last week, concurrent with an increase in corn earworm (see below) .  Re-infestations following treatment can and have occurred.    Because FAW moths are highly mobile, it is important to monitor fields at least weekly for signs of infestation.   Whorl, and even seedling stage plants are prime targets for egg laying.  Delays in treating whorl stage infestations can lead to stunted plants and poor ear size.

Newly hatched FAW larvae cause holes and scratches on leaves that are similar to ECB feeding, except that they tend to be more concentrated and always lead down into the whorl  (see photo at upper left).  As the larvae grow, the feeding becomes more destructive, with large ragged holes and obvious droppings deposited in the whorl (see photo at right). 

 

 

We will provide updates on new FAW appearances and severity as reports come in.  FAW are resistant to synthetic pyrethroids.  Effective sprays should include IRAC grp. 5 (spinosyns) or IRAC grp. 28 (diamides).  The carbamate (IRAC grp. 1A) Lannate is also still effective.  Sufficient water should be used in the applications to allow the solution to reach larvae that are partially protected while feeding on the immature tassel (photo at lower left), and to penetrate the layer of droppings that may have formed above the caterpillars.

[Read more…]

Sweet Corn

Fall armyworm (FAW)  infestations continue in most scouted locations in central and northern NJ counties, although numbers are down.  Pockets of heavier pressure remain.  Re-infestations following treatment can and have occurred.    Because FAW moths are highly mobile, it is important to monitor fields at least weekly for signs of infestation.   Whorl, and even seedling stage plants are prime targets for egg laying.  Delays in treating whorl stage infestations can lead to stunted plants and poor ear size.

Newly hatched FAW larvae cause holes and scratches on leaves that are similar to ECB feeding, except that they tend to be more concentrated and always lead down into the whorl  (see photo at upper left).  As the larvae grow, the feeding becomes more destructive, with large ragged holes and obvious droppings deposited in the whorl (see photo at right). 

 

 

We will provide updates on new FAW appearances and severity as reports come in.  FAW are resistant to synthetic pyrethroids.  Effective sprays should include IRAC grp. 5 (spinosyns) or IRAC grp. 28 (diamides).  The carbamate (IRAC grp. 1A) Lannate is also still effective.  Sufficient water should be used in the applications to allow the solution to reach larvae that are partially protected while feeding on the immature tassel (photo at lower left), and to penetrate the layer of droppings that may have formed above the caterpillars.

[Read more…]

Sweet Corn

Fall armyworm (FAW)  infestations continue in most scouted locations in central and northern NJ counties.  There are pockets of heavier pressure, such as on the Burlington/Camden County border area.  Re-infestations following treatment can and have occurred.    Because FAW moths are highly mobile, it is important to monitor fields at least weekly for signs of infestation.   Whorl, and even seedling stage plants are prime targets for egg laying.  Delays in treating whorl stage infestations can lead to stunted plants and poor ear size.

Newly hatched FAW larvae cause holes and scratches on leaves that are similar to ECB feeding, except that they tend to be more concentrated and always lead down into the whorl  (see photo at upper left).  As the larvae grow, the feeding becomes more destructive, with large ragged holes and obvious droppings deposited in the whorl (see photo at right). 

We will provide updates on new FAW appearances and severity as reports come in.  FAW are resistant to synthetic pyrethroids.  Effective sprays should include IRAC grp. 5 (spinosyns) or IRAC grp. 28 (diamides).  The carbamate (IRAC grp. 1A) Lannate is also still effective.  Sufficient water should be used in the applications to allow the solution to reach larvae that are partially protected while feeding on the immature tassel (photo at lower left), and to penetrate the layer of droppings that may have formed above the caterpillars.

[Read more…]