Blog

The month of June has come roaring in with severe weather affecting crops in many different areas. This blog with briefly discuss some management considerations and resources associated with different types of early-season crop injury.

Wind

Last year, entomologists and field specialists with Iowa State University Extension and Outreach received many questions about effective management of corn rootworms as populations have increased in the past two years and farmers have experienced enhanced root injury during drought conditions. We teamed up with the ISU extension field agronomists to host corn rootworm management field days at 7 ISU Research and Demonstration Farms in 2022.

Cutworms and armyworms, flooding, replant considerations, and weed management/herbicide application considerations were some of the more common questions ISU Extension Field Agronomists received over this last week. Read on for more specifies about what is happening and being seen across the state.

Northwest Iowa

Iowa State University Extension and Outreach and Iowa Learning Farms are offering three field days focused on soil health in grazing systems. In these hands-on field days, attendees will learn how to assess soils on their own properties. Each location will feature a soil pit with discussion of soil physical characteristics and how they impact soil function, and a comparison of soils in both grazed and row-crop systems.

Postemergence herbicide application season is already upon us in much of Iowa, but with the delayed crop planting in some areas, it may extend through much of the month of June. Herbicide application timing should always focus on the sizes of weeds targeted but remember that many products use crop growth stage and calendar date as application restrictions.

Regional Update: May 23 – June 1, 2022   

With planting wrapping up across the state, the attention is focusing to taking the first cutting of alfalfa, herbicide applications, and starting sidedressing nitrogen in corn. Read on to hear what ISU Extension Field Agronomist’s are hearing and seeing across the state.

Northwest Iowa

The trapping season for true armyworm (TAW) and black cutworm (BCW) has come to an end. We appreciate our cooperators for tirelessly checking traps over the last two months and reporting their captures so we can provide the most accurate scouting information for these pests. To recap, we had 44 volunteers participate from 32 counties in Iowa. A total of 46 BCW and 45 TAW traps were placed and monitored during April and May.

Recent surveying suggests that farmers and their advisors are interested in receiving short bursts of information via text messaging. We formed the Iowa Pest Alert Network with the goal of providing short, timely insect pest updates to farmers and advisors through text messages. These updates may include:

This year’s Weed Science Field Day will be held on Thursday, July 14 at the Iowa State University Curtiss Farm, Ames, IA.

Although the 2022 cold and wet spring has significantly delayed corn and soybean planting in Iowa, we are still on track to demonstrate corn and soybean research plots on the Field Day.

Last week, moth flights into Iowa continued to decrease compared to previous weeks. In total, our cooperators captured 38 true armyworm (TAW) moths and 65 black cutworm (BCW) moths during Week 8 (May 15 to May 21).

Weather conditions were quite favorable this past week allowing Iowa farmers 5.4 days for fieldwork across Iowa allowing for significant planting progress across nearly all of Iowa.  With that said, there are still isolated pockets where soils remain too wet to allow for fieldwork.  Frost occurred in NW Iowa on Sunday May 22, with scattered frost in NE Iowa the following day.  Read on to hear what ISU Extension field agronomists are hearing and seeing across the state

It is the time of year when Extension Field Agronomists receive questions from farmers who have been asked if they can apply pesticides for their neighbors. There are a few things you should know before you agree to apply pesticides for your neighbors. 

Last week, moth flights into Iowa were slightly lower than previous weeks. In total, our cooperators captured 55 true armyworm (TAW) moths and 102 black cutworm (BCW) moths during Week 7 (May 8 to May 14).

When a pesticide application moves beyond the application site to a place it’s not wanted – known as pesticide drift – it can cause damage to acreages, gardens, and landscape plants. Pesticide drift can occur virtually anywhere – in rural areas, towns, and cities.

Are You Sure It’s Drift?

Farmers finally caught a break last week and were able to make a lot of planting progress across most of the state. Some areas that did not miss the rains last week had more limited progress made with getting the crop in the ground. The earlier planted crops and even some of the crops put in early last week have started to emerge—now is a great time to get out and do some stand assessments! Read on to hear what ISU Extension field agronomists are hearing and seeing across the state.

Western and northern corn rootworms are serious corn pests in Iowa and the Corn Belt. These pests readily adapt to management tactics, especially in continuous corn production. The larvae consume corn roots, reducing nutrient and water uptake and causing stalk lodging. The adults may also feed on above-ground parts of the plant, including silks and pollen, which may interfere with pollination.

The planting is slow in 2022 – according to last Monday’s USDA Crop Progress Report corn planting was at 14% and soybean planting was at 7% complete. This is nearly two weeks behind normal. This week’s warm temperatures have driven up soil temperatures but wet soil conditions are still the limiting factor for much of Iowa.

Moth flights into Iowa continued to increase last week. In total, our cooperators captured 118 true armyworm (TAW) moths and 183 black cutworm (BCW) moths during Week 6 (May 1 to May 7).

While not much planting progress was made last week (again), the warmer and drier weather this week should provide more favorable conditions for fieldwork and planting. Some of the hot topics over the last week across the state included concerns about cover crop termination, seeding forages yet this spring, and planting progress. Read on to see what ISU Extension and Outreach field agronomists are hearing and seeing across the state.

Northwest Iowa

This spring's weather has resulted in an unusually slow start to the growing season, especially when compared with the past two years. In springs like these, field operations are condensed and there may be temptation to skip some of the field preparation to get acres planted in a timely manner. This article will address considerations for herbicide applications in these situations.