By Dr. Greg Krawczyk,
At this stage in the season, commercially available traps and lures for brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB) monitoring could provide valuable information to decide if insecticide treatments are needed. Last week (week of Aug 5th), in some traps monitored by our entomology program, we collected over 50 BMSB nymphs and adults per trap. All our BMSB monitoring traps are placed on the edge of commercial fruit orchards.
Stink bug traps and lures from Ag-Bio and Sterling International are available for purchase and the help with effective monitoring of BMSB adults and nymphs in orchards. Although traps by themselves will not control BMSB, by capturing adults and nymphs, traps can be utilized as an effective warning system in orchards. With a constant threat of new summer BMSB adults migrating into the orchard from surrounding vegetation such as woods or field crops, monitoring traps are the most practical tools to detect the presence of this pest. For more information on BMSB monitoring please see Monitoring brown marmorated stink bug still a challenge.
The second generation of codling moth (CM), the third generation Oriental fruit moth and second generations of tufted apple bud moth and obliquebanded leafroller are continuing their flights in most Pennsylvania pome fruit orchards. Only on site monitoring of each individual pest will provide accurate information if and for how long control treatments are necessary. Applications of Altacor®, Belt®, Delegate®, Tourismo® or Voliam Flexi® or Voliam Xpress® should provide excellent control of CM, OFM, TABM and OBLR larvae. Codling moth granulosis virus (Cyd-X®, or Cyd-X HP) provides good control only of CM neonate larvae. Both Voliam products will also provide some control/suppression of brown marmorated stink bug.
Brown marmorated stink bug summer adults and nymphs are very active in areas surrounding orchards. If BMSB nymphs are spotted in any orchard, the control treatment(s) is needed immediately. While adult BMSB can continuously move in and out from any orchard, BMSB nymphs are resident pests and will continue feeding on fruit for the next 4 to 6 weeks. The assortment of effective BMSB insecticide options is very limited and includes pesticides with only a few distinctive modes of action: pyrethroids (IRAC Group 3A): Bifenture® and Brigade® (bifenthrin), Danitol® (fenpropathrin), and Warrior II ® (lambda-cyhalothrin); neonicotinoids (IRAC Group 4A): Actara® (thiametoxam), Assail® (acetamiprid), Belay® (clothianidin), Scorpion® and Venon® (dinotefuran); one carbamate product (IRAC Group 1A), Lannate® (methomyl) and some products including combinations of two different insecticide chemistries such as in Endigo ZC® (thiametoxam and lambda-cyhalothrin) or Leverage 360® (imidacloprid and beta-cyfluthrin). While trying to limit the impact of BMSB on fruit, please remember about seasonal limits for the number of insecticide applications (and total of specific active ingredient) per season.
If wooly apple aphids are observed in the orchard, but BMSB is not a problem, application(s) of Movento®, Closer® or Diazinon® should provide effective control of WAA.
As the season progresses and the trees becomelarger , often the volume of used water per acre should be adjusted (increased). Even the most efficacious pest management products will not work if the spray coverage is not sufficient. During this second half of the season, as with past seasons, some of the commonly used developmental models seem to be overestimating the pace of development for CM and OFM populations in some orchards. Therefore, such models are not very reliable indicators of the actual pest situation. Please use the on-site monitoring as the main indicator in deciding if and when the pesticide application is necessary.