Cotton Insect Newsletter Vol. 17, No. 8,  July 30, 1999

Cotton Situation      Cotton has been growing well this week in response to some fairly general shower activity.  It has looked like rain here at the PDREC for several days, but little has fallen.  After my comment last week about flowers on June 21, I received a number of comments about blooms being observed as early as June 15.  Randy Cubbage was the most vociferous about blooms, so I guess Lee County probably had the earliest blooms, or did they?  John Mueller claims to have had blooms in January; albeit in the greenhouse.  Anyway, if you think you had an earlier bloom must contact Randy; I'm sure he would be happy to debate the issue with you.      I heard reports of some cotton that had just come up this week.  The chances of making a decent crop with such late-planted cotton will not be good in conventional rows.  Ultra-narrow row cotton would have a better chance, since plants only need to set 3 or 4 bolls per plant. Boll Weevil Eradication/Containment      It's that time of year when I like to remind everyone how important it is to continue to support the Boll Weevil Containment Program in South Carolina.  We have some new growers that have no memories of the days when weevils could just about destroy a crop, even when you were spraying every 3 or 4 days.  I was checking out the National Cotton Council's website yesterday and found the following information about the program, that seemed to sum it up pretty well: National Boll Weevil Eradication Program Means Lower Production Costs, Cleaner Environment–-As you're drying off with a soft, terry towel or pulling on a T-shirt, you may not give much thought to the cotton fiber that was grown, ginned and transformed into the fabric that keeps you cool and comfortable.      Think about this, though: It is vitally important that one tiny but incredibly destructive insect–-the boll weevil–-be eliminated once and for all.  The reasons: 1) so you can have continued access to affordable cotton products, 2) so maybe your neighbor can keep his or her job, 3) so we all can enjoy a cleaner environment.      The National Boll Weevil Eradication Program ranks not far behind Eli Whitney's invention of the cotton gin as one of the most positive developments in U.S. cotton industry history.  Since the federal government-cotton grower eradication effort was launched on the Virginia-North Carolina border in 1978, it has slowly, but surely, put the squeeze on one of U.S. Agriculture's most destructive pests–-one that has been costing cotton growers about $300 million annually in control costs and crop damage.      Today, the weevil is no longer a dollar-draining pest in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Georgia, California and Arizona.  The eradication program in Alabama is nearing completion and, after programs are carried out in five Mid-South states and Texas and Oklahoma, the U.S. Cotton Belt will be weevil-free for the first time since the insect migrated here from Mexico in the late 1880s.      Couple eradication technologies with genetic engineering technologies and the possibilities are mind boggling.  Three years ago, the industry planted Bt cotton, a transgenic plant that is resistant to the bollworm/budworm complex.  Last year, growers planted a stacked gene transgenic plant that added a Round-up Ready tolerant gene allowing reduced herbicide use.  That's good news for the economy and the environment.      In the areas where the weevil has been eradicated, cotton growers have reduced their overall insecticide use on cotton 40 to 90 percent.  Once the weevil is eliminated, cotton growers, their consultants and entomologists will have the opportunity to redesign insect control strategies–also to the betterment of the environment.  This will complement growers’ environmentally responsible actions.      The economic benefit of eliminating the boll weevil is, perhaps, the greatest success story.  National Cotton Council economists say that for every $1 spent on the eradication program, the industry will receive $12 in benefits.  And, when growers’ production costs are lowered, consumer prices are kept down.      Let's not forget how important it is to prevent the reintroduction of boll weevils to South Carolina.  A little weevil infestation that started in Orangeburg County in 1995 ended up costing close to 1.5 million dollars to correct.  If we stopped the containment program ($5.50 per acre in 1999) the boll weevil would soon be up to its old tricks.  They would cost the average farmer about $80 per acre. Insect Situation      Mike Sullivan said things were pretty quiet yesterday in the Savannah Valley area.  That seems to be true for most of the state.  There have been more reports of false chinch bugs than any other insect pest this week.  There are a few aphid infestations just beginning to show up.  Plant bugs should be moving into cotton, but I have not seen, nor have I heard, of an economic infestation in cotton.  Budworms and bollworms are noticeable in their absence as of today.      Cotton aphids are slow-moving, soft-bodied insects with piercing-sucking mouthparts.  Gloria Steinam would love these insects-–all are female, and they give birth to living young.  As you can readily see in the field, numbers can increase quite rapidly.  When beneficial insects are removed by applying a broad-spectrum insecticide, it is possible to trigger an infestation of aphids.  We don't usually recommend treating aphids unless most of the plants are heavily infested, and lower leaves are covered with honeydew.  In Bt cotton especially, I would caution against applying an insecticide for aphid control, or plant bugs for that matter.  Disruptions of beneficials often result in more severe problems with bollworms, or even armyworms.       False chinch bugs are still causing some concern.  These insects can damage small seedlings, but I have not seen them do any damage to squaring plants.  They congregate in and around squares, and on the undersides of leaves.  Fran Arnette was checking one of our fields this week and noticed false chinch bugs were damaging the leaves on pigweed plants.  There was little doubt that the insects were feeding on the pigweeds, but there were no damage symptoms on cotton plants.      Bollworm and budworm moth numbers were very low in the Pee Dee area on June 28.  The bollworm is our number one concern in July.  For the last several years, we have seen egg laying start between July 8 and July 15 in the Coastal Plain and somewhat later in the Piedmont Counties.   Mitchell Roof Extension Entomologist

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