From the Cotton Board:
Memphis, TN – Thrips are the most consistent insect pest of cotton production in the southeastern United States and can cause damage that results in leaf curling, delays in plant maturity, loss of apical dominance, and plant death.
A new Focus on Cotton webcast titled “Managing Thrips in Cotton: Research in the Southeast Region” provides cotton consultants, county agents, growers, and other practitioners with research data indicating how different thrips management strategies contribute to improved plant growth, plant health, and overall yield.
This 33-minute talk by Michael Toews, Associate Professor at the University of Georgia, provides information that helps users:
• Improve tillage and cover crop strategies
• Reduce seedling susceptibility to infestations
• Properly time the application of foliar treatments
• Promote root development and plant growth
Also discussed in the webcast is a prediction tool to estimate when thrips populations will emerge each spring, identify optimal planting dates, and learn specific thrips management strategies by region.
This presentation is available at no charge, courtesy of Cotton Incorporated, through the ‘Focus on Cotton’ webcast resource located at the Plant Management Network, http://www.plantmanagementnetwork.org/foco. ‘Focus on Cotton’ contains over 35 webcasts on various aspects of cotton crop management. These talks–freely accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week–cover agronomic practices, crop protection, and ag engineering. This resource also features a new and improved Cotton Extension Search tool, where users can conveniently search for extension resources across all U.S. land-grant universities serving cotton producers.