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Yield Protection Strategies for Thrips in Virginia Cotton
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ABSTRACT Tobacco thrips, Frankliniella fusca (Hinds), is considered the number one cotton insect pest in Virginia. Estimated losses during the 5-year period from 1997-2001 totaled 5,156 bales. Two hundred and twenty insecticide product/rate/delivery-type treatment combinations have been evaluated over the 5-year period from 1997-2001 to develop a better understanding of the impact of early season thrips injury to cotton seedlings, and to develop management recommendations for growers. Plant mapping showed that compared with insecticide-protected plants, untreated plants grew taller, had more nodes, set fewer fruit, and set fruit later in the season. Insecticide treatments resulted in numerically higher lint yields compared with untreated controls 99 percent of the time, and statistically higher lint yields 78 percent of the time. Over all experiments and years, the average yield increase compared with the untreated controls equaled 339 lb lint per acre. Further summaries are presented. |
©National Cotton Council, Memphis TN |
Document last modified May 20, 2002
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