Last week I encountered my first adult Japanese Beetle of the 2023 season. It was at my home, and I was keeping my fingers crossed that it was just an unlucky stray individual, but hoping I had more time before their devastation would arrive. Well, I was wrong. Over the weekend, I found a few…Read more about Japanese Beetles are Here, and Hungry![Read More]
Laura Ingwell
Entomology
Area(s) of Interest: Vegetable Pest Management, Protected Agriculture, Controlled Environment Agriculture, Urban Agriculture
Area(s) of Interest: Vegetable Pest Management, Protected Agriculture, Controlled Environment Agriculture, Urban Agriculture
This has been a tough, dry year for all of us. I know my early planting of sweet corn at the research farm, seeded on April 27, has been slow and required irrigation (Figure 1). However, those of you that may be at the tassel or silking stage should keep a close eye on the…Read more about Corn Earworm in Early Plantings[Read More]
Are you interested in collaborating with Purdue Entomology on the grant “Improving two-spotted spider mite management in high tunnel cucumber production” funded by North Central SARE, Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (LNC20-438)? The primary objectives of this research are to increase our understanding of two-spotted spider mite dynamics and management in a high tunnel cucumber…Read more about Looking for Collaborators on High Tunnel Spider Mite Project[Read More]
At the Purdue Student Farm, we are in full swing with our Colorado Potato Beetle (CPB; Figure 1) management program. On this small farm, these beetles are a consistent threat to the potato crop. This is in part due to their limited ability to rotate, as the whole farm is smaller than the recommended rotation…Read more about Are You Scouting Your Potatoes? The Beetles Are Here![Read More]
Join eOrganic for 4 webinars on the findings of the biocontrol project in April and May 2023! Register at the links below for the May 18 and May 24 webinars! Recordings will be posted here and on the eOrganic YouTube channel! eOrganic Webinars Date Webinar Presenters April 26, 2023 Marketing Value-added Grains for Local and…Read more about eOrganic Webinars on Predatory Mites and Whitefly[Read More]
Each year we get several reports of seedlings being cut at or near the base of the plant/soil surface. The critter who gets the blame most often is cutworms. And that makes sense because the damage is in the name. However, with closer inspection, it seems that the blame can often be misplaced. There are…Read more about Cut Seedlings and the Potential Culprits[Read More]
Background Pillbugs, roly-polys, and potato bugs are the dominant common names for the isopod genus Armadillidium spp. As the scientific name suggests, these little critters resemble mini armadillos but are, in fact, crustaceans that live on land (Figure 1). Therefore, they are more closely related to lobsters, crabs, and shrimp than insects. Pillbugs are important…Read more about Are Pillbugs Pests? How Can They be Managed?[Read More]
The warm weather of late did not only pull us out of our winter slumber but definitely awoke some of our overwintering pests as well. Cucumber beetles and seedcorn maggots are likely on the hunt for food, and your early-season crops may be exactly what they are looking for. Striped cucumber beetles (Figure 1) are…Read more about Threats to Early Seedlings[Read More]
In your propagation/seeding house, you are setting the stage for the remainder of your growing season, and there are a few key things I would like to remind you about to minimize pest issues at this crucial stage. Cleanliness is key! Make sure you start with clean trays for any transplants you may be generating….Read more about Start Your Season off Right with Pest-free Transplants[Read More]
There are many traps available to help with monitoring insect populations. As you prepare for the 2023 growing season, I would like to review some of them in case you want to implement trapping on your own farm to help improve your pest management programs. Trap Design. Traps come in a variety of shapes, sizes,…Read more about Insects Traps as a Monitoring Tool[Read More]