Willamette Valley Mint Pest Alert Newsletter – Aug 29th
Willamette Valley Mint Pest Alert Newsletter – Aug 7th
Willamette Valley Mint Pest Alert Newsletter – July 24th
Trap counts have begin to taper off, averaging 12/trap in the South Valley and less than 5/trap in Mid Valley. The window for optimal control of VC and MRB with chlorantraniliprole has passed, but adequate control can still be achieved before MRB migrate into stems and VC begin to pupate in the soil.
Willamette Valley Mint Pest Alert Newsletter – July 18th
Trap counts remain high (up to 20/trap on average), and MRB moths can be seen actively flying in the canopy. Looper and cutworm caterpillars are still mid-late instar, and VC are expected to reach peak 5th instar populations by July 28th. If pheromone traps are unavailable, walk through mint fields looking for MRB moths in flight. VC will readily drop from mint when plants are shaken or disturbed and can be found on the ground. Looper caterpillars are smaller and can be found with sweep nets.
Willamette Valley Mint Pest Alert Newsletter – July 11th
Trap counts have picked up in the South Willamette Valley, averaging 20 per trap. Trap sites in the mid valley remain lower (less than 5/trap), but MRB moths have been observed in flight and in sweep samples. Rain and cloudy weather may be responsible for the decreased cutworm and looper activity this week, but caterpillars are likely to on-track with degree day models based on previous field observations. Keep in mind that insecticide applications should never be made based solely on model predictions – knowledge of your fields’ historical MRB infestations and current observations of MRB activity are the only way to determine whether management is currently needed.
Willamette Valley Mint Pest Alert Newsletter – July 5th
Trap counts are slightly higher, averaging 5 per trap. Cutworm and looper caterpillars were found in small numbers at multiple sites, appeared to be in the 1st and 2nd instars.
Willamette Valley Mint Pest Alert Newsletter – June 27th
Pheromone trapping in the Mid and South Willamette Valley have found few adult MRB moths (<5 per trap) and only one looper moth.
Willamette Valley Mint Pest Alert Newsletter – June 19th