All entries for Friday 23 June 2017
June 23, 2017
AHDB Aphid News
The latest edition of AHDB Aphid News has just been released - for the week ending 18 June.
The weather pattern returned to warm and settled after the wet and windy interlude, with it came a revived flush of aphid flight activity. This might be short lived as the subsequent heatwave may be too hot for some to handle, since many aphid species struggle to fly above 25°C. There are field reports of lots of parasitoids about, but fewer aphid predators at present. Monitoring crops is strongly advised as on the ground aphids will be multiplying.
- The peach–potato aphid (Myzus persicae) numbers increased this week, with highest numbers in the ST (suction traps) across eastern England. Tests continue show that 60-70% of these migrants are carrying Turnip yellows virus. Field reports suggest peach–potato aphids are now leaving maturing OSR to find alternative hosts.
- The mealy cabbage aphid was caught in both ST and YWT (yellow water traps) in low numbers. Field reports indicate numbers are below the threshold of >4% plants infested before petal fall in spring OSR.
- No currant-lettuce aphids (Nasonovia ribisnigri) were caught in the ST this week.
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Numbers of the willow–carrot aphid and the parsnip aphids have gone back up this week.
Pest update from Wellesbourne
Between Tuesday and today we caught:
On 3 sticky traps in each of our carrot plots:
- 3 carrot flies - overwintered carrots
- 5 carrot flies - spring-sown carrots
In 3 water traps in a plot of swedes and 1 trap near oil seed rape.
- 28 male cabbage root flies and 21 females
- 16 bean seed flies
- 2741 pollen beetles
- 20 flea beetles
- 22 cabbage stem weevils
- 1 cabbage seed weevil
- 21 cabbage stem flea beetles
We also recovered 81 cabbage root fly eggs from the soil around 15 cauliflower plants (new plants).
We caught 2 turnip moths and one diamond-back moth (2 traps per species) in our pheromone traps.
No narcissus flies!