Coming Pest Events | Phenologies | Pest Focus | Trap Catches | Insects | Chem News

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Coming Pest Events | Phenologies | Pest Focus | Trap Catches | Insects | Chem News

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Coming Pest Events | Phenologies | Pest Focus | Trap Catches | Insects | Chem News

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Coming Pest Events | Phenologies | Pest Focus | Trap Catches | Insects | Chem News

Geneva: Codling Moth, San Jose Scale, and American Plum Borer 1st
catches on 5/17.

Highland: 1st Plum Curculio oviposition scars observed 5/14.
Insect model development:
25.2 DD base 50F of PC model (40% ovip./340 DD spray cutoff).
339.6 DD base 45F of OFM model (5-10% egg hatch @ 150 DD).
104.1 DD base 50F of CM model (first appl. At 250 DD = 3%.
hatch).

Coming Pest Events | Phenologies | Pest Focus | Trap Catches | Insects | Chem News

ORCHARD RADAR DIGEST

Geneva Predictions:
Roundheaded Appletree Borer
RAB adult emergence begins: May 22; Peak emergence: June 6.
RAB egglaying begins: June 1. Peak egglaying period roughly: June 23 to July 8.

Codling Moth
1st generation, first sustained trap catch biofix date: May 15.
Codling moth development as of May 17: 1st generation adult emergence at 1% and 1st generation egg hatch at 0%. 1st generation 3% CM egg hatch: June 4 (= target date for first spray where multiple sprays needed to control 1st generation CM).
1st generation 20% CM egg hatch: June 12 (= single spray date where one spray needed to control 1st generation codling moth).

Lesser Appleworm
1st LAW flight begins around: May 11; Peak trap catch: May 19.

Mullein Plant Bug
The most accurate time for limb tapping counts, but possibly after MPB damage has occurred, is when 90% of eggs have hatched.
90% egg hatch date: May 17.

Obliquebanded Leafroller
1st generation OBLR flight, first trap catch expected: June 6.

Oriental Fruit Moth
Optimum 1st generation first treatment date, if needed: May 17.
Optimum 1st generation - second treatment date, if needed: May 27.

Plum Curculio
Increased risk of PC damage as McIntosh and culivars with similar development reach fruit set: May 19.

San Jose Scale
First adult SJS caught on trap: May 15.
1st generation SJS crawlers appear: June 15.

Spotted Tentiform Leafminer
1st STLM flight, peak trap catch: May 14.
1st generation sapfeeding mines start showing: May 15.
Optimum sample date is around May 19, when a larger portion of the mines have become detectable.

White Apple Leafhopper
1st generation WALH found on apple foliage: May 13.

Highland Predictions:
Roundheaded Appletree Borer
RAB adult emergence begins: May 17; Peak emergence: May 30
RAB egglaying begins: May 25. Peak egglaying period roughly: June 16 to July 1.

Codling Moth
1st generation, first sustained trap catch biofix date: May 11.
Codling moth development as of May 17: 1st generation adult emergence at 15% and 1st generation egg hatch at 0%. 1st generation 3% CM egg hatch: May 26 (= target date for first spray where multiple sprays needed to control 1st generation CM).
1st generation 20% CM egg hatch: June 4 (= single spray date where one spray needed to control 1st generation codling moth).

Lesser Appleworm
Peak trap catch: May 14.

Mullein Plant Bug
The most accurate time for limb tapping counts, but possibly after MPB damage has occurred, is when 90% of eggs have hatched.
90% egg hatch date: May 13.

Obliquebanded Leafroller
1st generation OBLR flight, first trap catch expected: May 30.

Oriental Fruit Moth
Optimum 1st generation - second treatment date, if needed: May 21.

Plum Curculio
Increased risk of PC damage as McIntosh and culivars with similar development reach fruit set: May 14.

San Jose Scale
1st generation SJS crawlers appear: June 9.

Spotted Tentiform Leafminer
Optimum sample date is around May 14, when a larger portion of the mines have become detectable.

EXAM WEEK
(Art Agnello, Entomology, Geneva)

We've been up, down, hot and cold, but after all the excitement it looks like most of the state has ended up pretty much on schedule for the petal fall period, which started last week in the Hudson Valley and should reach the rest of the state this week. This means most growers should be about ready to consider the imminent petal fall pest management decisions while the pollinating activities are finishing up.

Plum Curculio
Adults move into orchards from overwintering sites in hedgerows or the edges of woods and adults are active when temperatures exceed 60F. Adult females oviposit in fruit during both day and night but feed mostly at night. Depending on temperature, overwintering adults remain active for two to six weeks after petal fall. Because adults are not highly mobile, orchards near overwintering sites, woodlands, and hedgerows are most susceptible to attack. Fruit damage is usually most common in border rows next to sites where adults overwinter. Although initial post-bloom sprays for plum curculio control should begin at petal fall, growers are often unsure how many additional sprays will be necessary to maintain protective chemical residues to prevent subsequent damage throughout the PC oviposition cycle, which varies according to temperatures and weather patterns after petal fall.

Following from the fact that PC activity and oviposition are greatly affected by temperature, an oviposition model has been developed to determine when control sprays after petal fall are no longer necessary to protect fruit from PC damage. This model is based on the assumption that residues from control sprays after petal fall only need to be maintained on fruit and foliage until PC adults stop immigrating into orchards, which corresponds with when about 40% of the oviposition cycle is complete. This is predicted by the model to occur at 340 DD (base 50F) after petal fall. Probably, this strategy works because, after 40% of PC oviposition is complete, adults usually are not moving into the orchard from outside sources, or moving around within orchards from tree to tree. Therefore, by this time, adults residing in treated trees have already been killed by insecticide residues and are unable to complete the remainder of their normal oviposition cycle.

In order to use this strategy: (1) Treat the entire orchard at petal fall with a broad spectrum insecticide. (2) Start calculating the accumulation of DD after petal fall (base 50F). (3) No additional sprays are necessary whenever the date of accumulation of 340 DD falls within 10-14 days after a previous spray. In cherries and other stone fruits that are already at shuck fall, sprays should start at the first opportunity (i.e., like last week).

European Apple Sawfly
This primitive bee and wasp relative shows a preference for early or long-blooming varieties with a heavy set of fruit. This insect is generally a pest mainly in eastern N.Y., although it has been slowly making its presence known in the more western sites, including even Wayne Co. The adult sawfly emerges about the time apple trees come into bloom and lays eggs in the apple blossoms. Young larvae begin feeding just below the skin of the fruits, creating a spiral path usually around the calyx end. This early larval feeding will persist as a scar that is very visible at harvest. Following this feeding, the larva usually begins tunneling toward the seed cavity of the fruit or an adjacent fruit, which usually causes it to abort. As the larva feeds internally, it enlarges its exit hole, which is made highly conspicuous by a mass of wet, reddish-brown frass. The frass may drip onto adjacent fruits and leaves, giving them an unsightly appearance. The secondary feeding activity of a single sawfly larva can injure all the fruit in a cluster, causing stress on that fruit to abort during the traditional "June drop" period.

Certain insecticides that control these pests also adversely affect bees, which can pose a problem at petal fall because certain apple varieties lose their petals before others. In blocks of trees where petal fall has occurred on one variety but not the others, the variety that has lost its petals is likely to sustain some curculio or sawfly injury until the insecticide is applied. Two recently registered insecticides with activity against both plum curculio and sawfly, Avaunt and Actara, may have a slight advantage in this case. Although highly toxic to bees exposed to direct treatment, they are relatively non-toxic when dried. A brand new registration for Assail (see the "Chem News" section in this issue) gives yet another option for controlling both pests. To minimize the hazard to honey bees, apply any pesticide only after ALL petals have fallen in the block and when no bees are actively foraging on blooming weeds (evening is better than early morning).

Mites
If you elected and were able to get an oil or miticide applied during our very brief prebloom mite control window, you're in good shape. If not, and you are concerned about early buildup in certain problem blocks, Apollo and Savey are just as appropriate to consider at petal fall as is Agri-Mek, which we normally recommend at this time. Because of the (at times) cool temperatures up to this point, nymphal populations are likely to be small enough to be effectively handled by any one of these materials, if they fit into your product rotation schedule (i.e., they weren't used last year).

Obliquebanded Leafroller
Because these insects overwintered as 1st or 2nd stage larvae, they probably haven't had enough warm weather to encourage them to feed and grow as much by this time as they have in recent years, and may be somewhat smaller than they usually are by petal fall. This translates into potentially higher control efficacy with whatever product is used against them, as smaller larvae are generally easier to kill. Among the selective insecticides available, Intrepid is the newly registered replacement for Confirm (see the "Chem News" section in this issue), and B.t. products such as Dipel, Deliver, Agree and Javelin are options, and these can be used while blossoms are still present. Pyrethroids such as Asana, Danitol, or Warrior can also be effective, depending on past use history, but be aware of their broad-spectrum effects, which can work both for and against you, according to how many beneficial mites and insects you can afford to lose.

Oriental Fruit Moth
First catch in western NY ranged from 4/30 in Niagara Co. to 5/3 in Wayne Co., and trap numbers are building impressively now in the historically heavy sites. To maximize the efficacy of your 1st brood control, peach growers in western N.Y. at least could probably wait until the end of this week before starting a program such as Asana or Warrior, backed up 10-14 days later. In apples, you can refer to last week's issue for efficacy trials of a number of products, of which Assail is now a labeled alternative. [Erratum: In the table that accompanied that article, Assail was listed as a 25WP formulation; it is in fact a 70WP].

White Apple Leafhopper
WALH nymphs can be numerous in some blocks, especially in the eastern part of the state. Besides Provado, Actara and Avaunt have proven to be effective against this pest, and a petal fall application of any of these materials also gives leafminer control. Furthermore, they will have an added effect on green aphid populations, which might otherwise be more problematic this spring, owing to the plentiful rainfall so far and subsequent availability of succulent green tissue. Rosy apple aphids can similarly be cleaned up with this strategy (using Actara or Provado only), although petal fall is often too late to prevent fruit damage that their feeding may have caused. Growers using Sevin in their thinning sprays will get some WALH control at the 1 lb rate. Alternative choices include Thiodan and Lannate; Agri-Mek or Carzol used for mites now will also do the job, but Carzol will be harmful to predator mites. The damage potential of this first generation should be evaluated carefully before deciding on the need for a specific control of this pest.

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Coming Pest Events | Phenologies | Pest Focus | Trap Catches | Insects | Chem News

Intrepid Labeled
On May 11, the NYS DEC approved the registration of Intrepid 2F insecticide (developed by Rohm & Haas, now a Dow AgroSciences product; EPA Reg. No. 62719-442) for use on pome fruits in New York State. This second generation molting accelerating compound, which has the active ingredient methoxyfenozide, is the slightly more active successor to Confirm (tebufenozide), and has been shown to be effective in controlling obliquebanded and other leafrollers, as well as internal lepidopteran pests including codling moth, oriental fruit moth, and lesser appleworm, with suppressive activity also on spotted tentiform leafminer. Like Confirm, this is an insect growth regulator that must be ingested by the larva and induces a premature lethal molt within hours of ingestion of treated plant tissue. It is a selective material that is safe to honeybees and other beneficial arthropods, including predacious mites. It has a re-entry interval of 4 hours and a PHI of 14 days. Not labeled for use in Nassau or Suffolk Counties.

Assail Labeled
On May 11, the NYS DEC also approved the registration of Assail 70WP insecticide (developed by Nippon Soda and distributed by Cerexagri; EPA Reg. No. 8033-23-4581) for use on pome fruits in New York State. This product contains the active ingredient acetamiprid, which belongs to the neonicotinoid group of insecticides (along with Provado and Actara). It was registered by the US EPA under the reduced risk pesticide policy and is considered a replacement for older OP insecticides. Assail has a spectrum of effectiveness across several insect groups, and is active against pests such as plum curculio, apple maggot, internal leps, aphids, leafhoppers, leafminers, San Jose scale, European apple sawfly and mullein plant bug, plus pear pests such as pear psylla and Comstock mealybug. It has low toxicity to honey bees and most beneficial insects, although some flaring of mites has been reported by researchers. It has a re-entry interval of 12 hours and a PHI of 7 days. Not(!) restricted from use in Nassau or Suffolk Counties.

[Ed. Note: We all complain about the difficulty of obtaining new product registrations in NY -- myself especially -- but whatever your opinion is about the politics of this process, I think the NYS DEC deserves some credit and a vote of appreciation for moving in a timely manner to make these two important products available during the period when they'll be the most useful to the fruit industry. -- AMA]

Scaffolds is published weekly from March to September by Cornell University -- NYS Agricultural Experiment Station (Geneva), and Ithaca -- with the assistance of Cornell Cooperative Extension. New York field reports welcomed. Send submissions by 3 p.m. Monday to:

Scaffolds Fruit Journal
Editors: A. Agnello, D. Kain
Dept. of Entomology, NYSAES
P.O. Box 462
Geneva, NY 14456-0462
Phone: 315-787-2341 FAX: 315-787-2326
E-mail: ama4@cornell.edu

Online at <http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/ent/scaffolds/>