Caterpillars in blueberries (and other woody perenials)

Redhumped caterpilars (Schizura concinna), Lacy L. Hyche, Auburn University, Bugwood.

As weather really starts feeling like fall, caterpillars are showing up in NC blueberries. Most common and noticeable are redhumped caterpillars and yellownecked caterpillars.

Yellownecked caterpillars (Datana spp.), from Debbie Roos, Growing Small Farms: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/chatham/ag/SustAg/yelneckcpillar.html

I had a phone conversation about these insects with Bill Cline, blueberry and muscadine pathologist, immediately preceeded by an email from Benny Bloodworth, his technician. Both had the same question: what are these caterpillars and what should growers do about them?

Both species of caterpillars can aggregate when feeding and large populations can result in defoliation of the plants they are feeding on. The real question about what to do depends on the grower. Most large, commerical blueberry growers apply fall treatments for sharpnosed leafhoppers at the end of September or the beginning of October. Some pesticides used for leafhoppers will also effect caterpillars. If a large caterpillar infestation is present this time of year, one of these materials should be selected as the leafhopper treatment of choice. See the NC Ag Chem Manual for more information.  A note on pesticide recommendations.

Organic management is more challenging. There are effective organic controls for caterpillars (a lot of them), but there are little to no materials for leafhoppers. As I mentioned when talking to Bill today, organic blueberry growers are going to have to think differently about their production system than conventional growers. It will not be possible to just take a "spray schedule" and translate it into organic pesticides. These growers will need to maximize cultural management (in this case removing infested plants immediately upon noticing infection) and monitor carefully for pests because organic pesticides behave differently than conventional ones and must be carefully timed to be effective. Of course, conventional growers should be monitoring pests and minimizing pressure via cultural control, too! My IPM mantra is minimize, monitor, and manage, which I'll address in more detail in a post over the weekend.

Tis the season for muscadines: upcoming events

A late fall shot from 2007, the last muscadines of the season hanging in there!

It's less than a week until the muscadine field day, and other muscadine events are also on deck this month. The Castle Hayne Research Station will host NCSU's annual Muscadine Field Day on Sept. 16. Morning sessions will be devoted to cultural, disease, and insect management presentations (expect lots of hands on information from me!). Following this talks, we will tour the station's muscadine trials and have the opportunity to taste test selections in the variety trial (always my favorite part).

For those of you that can't wait until next week (or can't make the trek to Castle Hayne), the State Farmer's Market in Raleigh is celebrating Grape Day on Friday, Sept. 11th. Rounding out the month, the NC Muscadine Festival will take place Sept. 26th in Kenansville, NC.

Connie Fisk, NC Extension Associate for muscadine grapes, maintain a great website with this information and more.

BugFest this weekend!

The country's largest insect themed event takes place this Saturday, Sept. 12th at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences. This year's theme is butterflies and moths, and will feature exhibitors from NCSU's Entomology Department, among many, many others. Exhibit information and more can be found at the BugFest website.

NC Entomological Society Membership Drive Underway

The annual North Carolina Entomological Society Membership drive is underway now! This organization brings together entomologists from throughout North Carolina at our annual banquet, November 6, 2009. This year, our plenary speaker will be NCSU's own Rob Dunn, who's recently published book Every Living Thing is a fascinating read for scientists and non scientists alike. We are trying to broaden and invigorate our membership to include entomologists (and amateur insect enthusiasts) from throughout North Carolina, not just those in proximity to Raleigh. You can learn more about the society, our activities, and find membership information at the NC Entomological Society website. (2006 NC Ent Society Best in Show Insect Photo Contest winner, photographer: Bill Fisher)

The changing face of extension

NC Extension is under going major shifts, including the retirement of many of our most experienced and knowledgeable agents. Among them, Karen McAdams, Orange County NCCE agent, who retired at the end August. The Raleigh News & Observer has a great article on her career, linked above.

Karen presented as part of an extension seminar taught by myself and Mark Abney in spring 2009, and her experiences had a real impact on the students. She has been a real asset to NC extension, and will be missed!

Linnaean games practices start Sept 8th!

The NC State Linnaean Games Team after winning the 2009 SEB ESA tournament and earning a spot in the national competition.

After a great organizational meeting last Thursday, regular practices for the NC State Linnaean Games team will begin on Tuesday Sept. 8th at 1pm in Gardner Hall. We will also meet Thursdays at 5pm, also in Garnder. All students are welcome, and encouraged to attend. The National ESA meeting is Dec. 13-16 in Indianapolis, IN, where the Southeastern Branch champs (NCSU) will compete for the national title.

The department Linnaean Games tournament will be Dec. 10th--more details to follow. Wondering what the Linnaean Games are? Check this out.

Late season tobacco pests pop up again

Tobacco flea beetle damage on an upper stalk tobacco leaf, August 20, 2009.

Last summer, several growers (mostly large) reported flea beetle, and to a lesser extent, aphid injury on partially harvested tobacco. This summer, we are again seeing patchy incidences of heavy flea beetle feeding on plants held in the field. This feeding is most prominent on the lowest leaves but has shown up on the entire plant. Because this is often the most valuable portion of the plant, growers are understandably concerned about the yield and quality impacts of flea beetle feeding. We lack good thresholds for late season injury, and I am particularly concerned about additional pesticide use so close to harvest.

Tobacco flea beetles congregated at the top of a tobacco plant, August 20, 2009.

Recently, a PhD student, Richard Reeves, has joined my lab and will be addressing this and other questions pertaining to thresholds for insect injury in tobacco. This work will begin in earnest in 2010.

For the time being, there are treatment options, but they should be used cautiously on a case-by-case basis.