vegetabl97 - Summary of Losses from Insect Damage and Costs of Control in Georgia 1995

Summary of Losses from Insect Damage and Costs of Control in Georgia - 1997

XXII. Vegetable Insects

D. B. Adams and D. Riley

Georgia has become one of the leading states in production ranking fourth or fifth consistently in the US over the last few years. Cost of production increases each year as new production practices are introduced. Insect management inputs have been reduced in many crops, especially on farms where scouting and as-needed treatments are made. Growers are more aware of the behavior of insect pests and have better resolve for proactive management of potential pest problems. Growers have eagerly incorporated new environmentally friendly pest management components on farm. The results of this new philosophy are reflected in the reduction of both cost of control and damage for several pests that were previously perceived as major pests by growers.

Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) vectored by thrips and mosaic viruses vectored by aphids continue to be the most devastating problems in susceptible vegetable crops.

Cost of control and damage from insect pests totaled $24.5 million in 1997. Most of the reduction from last year was a result of the decreased acreage and a general reduction in the populations of several key pests probably as a result of high rainfall, excellent pest, disease and parasite activity and improved management by the more experienced producers.

Note 1. The 1997 estimated acreage planted, average yield, and average season prices for each commercial crop in Georgia were as follows:

Crop

Planted Acreage

Average Yield

Average Price
Yield-Unit

Cabbage

Cantaloupe

Cucumbers

Leafy greens

Okra

Onions

Peppers

Beans (snap, pole and Lima)

Southern peas

Squash (summer)

Sweet corn

Sweetpotatoes

Tomatoes

Watermelons

9,791

6,938

10,147

19,439

1,563

17,196

5,688

13,209

4,311

15,772

18,033

1,072

5,679

35,622

497 boxes

185 cartons

379 cartons

363 cartons

500 bushels

275 bags

1,200 boxes

135 bushels

125 bushels

460 boxes

300 crates

470 cartons

1,538 boxes

304 cwt

$ 4.15

7.39

8.00

5.00

7.00

11.00

7.10

11.10

10.50

7.50

6.40

9.25

8.40

8.15

Estimates of Losses and Control Costs
Rank	Insect	Cost of Control	Damage	Total
*Squash (Summer)*
1	Aphid (virus)	$1,293,000	$2,612,000	$3,905,000
2	Sweetpotato whitefly (silverleaf)	252,000	400,000	652,000
3	Pickleworm	175,000	318,000	493,000
4	Cucumber beetles	123,000	294,000	417,000
	Subtotal	$1,843,000	$3,624,000	$5,467,000
*Sweet corn*
1	Corn earworm/fall armyworm	$3,035,000	$1,375,000	$4,410,000
2	Stink bugs	88,000	59,000	147,000
	Subtotal	$3,123,000	$1,434,000	$4,557,000
*Leafy greens*
1	Diamondback moth/cabbage looper	$1,143,000	$416,000	$1,559,000
2	Grasshoppers	128,000	889,000	1,017,000
3	Aphids	225,000	254,000	479,000
4	Silverleaf whitefly	17,000	1,000	18,000
5	Yellowmargined leaf beetle	2,000	1,000	3,000
6	False chinch bug/stink bugs	1,000	0	1,000
	Subtotal	$1,516,000	$1,561,000	$3,077,000
*Peppers*
1	Pepper weevil	$201,000	$1,236,000	$1,437,000
2	Thrips	455,000	485,000	940,000
3	Beet armyworm	82,000	82,000	164,000
4	Corn earworm	12,000	68,000	80,000
	Subtotal	$750,000	$1,871,000	$2,621,000
*Tomatoes*
1	Thrips	$284,000	$1,467,000	$1,751,000
2	Fruitworm (corn earworm)	114,000	117,000	231,000
3	Stink bugs	27,000	150,000	177,000
4	Sweetpotato whitefly	57,000	110,000	167,000
5	Leafminer	13,000	7,000	20,000
6	Pinworm	9,000	4,000	13,000
	Subtotal	$504,000	$1,855,000	$2,359,000
*Watermelon*
1	Cucumber beetles	$481,000	$353,000	$834,000
2	Aphids	85,000	71,000	156,000
3	Rindworms (corn earworm/loopers)	68,000	52,000	120,000
	Subtotal	$634,000	$476,000	$1,110,000
*Cabbage*
1	Diamondback moth/cabbage looper	$681,000	$394,000	$1,075,000
2	Seedcorn maggot	2,000	13,000	15,000
3	Silverleaf whitefly	6,000	1,000	7,000
4	Aphids	3,000	1,000	4,000
	Subtotal	$692,000	$409,000	$1,101,000
*Cucumber*
1	Cucumber beetles	$134,000	$600,000	$734,000
2	Pickleworm	128,000	194,000	322,000
	Subtotal	$262,000	$794,000	$1,056,000
*Onions*
1	Seedcorn maggot	$543,000	$82,000	$625,000
2	Thrips	310,000	10,000	320,000
	Subtotal	$853,000	$92,000	$945,000
*Southern peas*
1	Cowpea curculio	$164,000	$453,000	$617,000
2	Thrips	23,000	10,000	33,000
3	Stink bugs	8,000	10,000	18,000
4	Beet armyworm	13,000	1,000	14,000
5	Aphids	3,000	2,000	5,000
	Subtotal	$211,000	$476,000	$687,000
*Beans (snap, poles and Lima)*
1	Thrips	$259,000	$59,000	$318,000
2	Corn earworm	71,000	77,000	148,000
3	Stink bugs	50,000	43,000	93,000
	Subtotal	$380,000	$179,000	$559,000
*Sweet potatoes*
1	Soil insects	$64,000	$466,000	$530,000
2	Beet armyworm/soybean looper	1,000	11,000	12,000
	Subtotal	$65,000	$477,000	$542,000
*Okra*
1	Stink bugs	$25,000	$246,000	$271,000
2	Corn earworm	27,000	74,000	101,000
	Subtotal	$52,000	$320,000	$372,000
*Cantaloupe*
1	Cucumber beetles	$92,000	$56,000	$148,000
2	Pickleworm	5,000	1,000	6,000
	Subtotal	$97,000	$57,000	$154,000
	Grand Total	$10,982 ,000	$13,625,000	$24,607,000

Information Pertaining to Control of Major Vegetable Insect Pests in Georgia in 1997
Insect	No. Acres Needing Control	No. Acres Treated	No. of Unit Applic.	Avg. Cost Per Unit Treated¹	Yield Loss on Units Treated²	Yield Loss on Units Untreated²
*Squash (Summer)*
Aphid (virus)	11,000	13,000	10.0	$10.00	261,000	87,000
Sweetpotato whitefly (silverleaf)	5,000	5,000	5.0	10.00	10,000	44,000
Pickleworm	5,000	6,000	3.0	10.00	10,000	33,000
Cucumber beetles	11,000	12,000	1.0	10.00	25,000	15,000
*Sweet corn*
Corn earworm/fall armyworm	18,000	18,000	17.0	$10.00	161,000	54,000
Stink bugs	5,000	9,000	1.0	10.00	6,000	3,000
*Leafy greens*
Diamondback moth/cabbage looper	19,000	19,000	6.0	$10.00	69,000	14,000
Grasshoppers	4,000	4,000	3.0	10.00	107,000	71,000
Aphids	4,000	6,000	4.0	10.00	40,000	11,000
Silverleaf whitefly	0	1,000	1.5	10.00	0	0
Yellowmargined leaf beetle	0	0	1.0	10.00	0	0
False chinch bug/stink bugs	0	0	1.0	10.00	0	0
*Peppers*
Pepper weevil	2,000	3,000	6.0	$10.00	133,000	41,000
Thrips	6,000	6,000	8.0	10.00	68,000	0
Beet armyworm	1,000	1,000	4.0	15.00	5,000	7,000
Corn earworm	0	1,000	1.5	10.00	6,000	3,000
*Tomatoes*
Thrips	6,000	6,000	5.0	$10.00	175,000	0
Fruitworm (corn earworm)	5,000	6,000	2.0	10.00	14,000	0
Stink bugs	2,000	3,000	1.0	10.00	5,000	13,000
Sweetpotato whitefly	1,000	1,000	1.0	50.00	13,000	0
Leafminer	0	1,000	1.5	10.00	1,000	0
Pinworm	0	1,000	1.5	10.00	0	0
*Watermelon*
Cucumber beetles	30,000	32,000	1.5	$10.00	43,000	0
Aphids	2,000	9,000	1.0	10.00	4,000	4,000
Rindworms (corn earworm/loopers)	4,000	7,000	1.0	10.00	1,000	5,000
*Cabbage*
Diamondback moth/cabbage looper	9,000	9,000	8.0	$10.00	83,000	12,000
Seedcorn maggot	0	0	1.0	8.00	1,000	2,000
Silverleaf whitefly	0	0	1.5	20.00	0	0
Aphids	0	0	1.0	10.00	0	0
*Cucumber*
Cucumber beetles	9,000	9,000	1.5	$10.00	65,000	10,000
Pickleworm	4,000	4,000	3.0	10.00	18,000	6,000
*Onions*
Seedcorn maggot	3,000	14,000	2.0	$20.00	3,000	5,000
Thrips	2,000	15,000	2.0	10.00	1,000	0
*Southern peas*
Cowpea curculio	4,000	4,000	4.0	$10.00	26,000	18,000
Thrips	2,000	2,000	1.0	10.00	0	1,000
Stink bugs	0	1,000	1.0	10.00	0	1,000
Beet armyworm	0	1,000	2.0	10.00	0	0
Aphids	0	0	1.0	10.00	0	0
*Beans (snap, poles and Lima)*
Thrips	13,000	13,000	2.0	$10.00	3,000	2,000
Corn earworm	3,000	7,000	1.0	10.00	4,000	3,000
Stink bugs	3,000	5,000	1.0	10.00	2,000	2,000
*Sweet potatoes*
Soil insects	1,000	1,000	2.0	$30.00	50,000	0
Beet armyworm/soybean looper	0	0	1.0	10.00	1,000	0
*Okra*
Stink bugs	1,000	1,000	2.0	$10.00	29,000	6,000
Corn earworm	1,000	1,000	2.0	10.00	7,000	4,000
*Cantaloupe*
Cucumber beetles	4,000	6,000	1.5	$10.00	5,000	3,000
Pickleworm	0	0	3.0	10.00	0	0


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