Managing Thrips Where It Really Matters: Different Options for Early and Late Planted Cotton in Virginia and North Carolina

Field trials were conducted in Virginia and North Carolina to assess efficacy and yield with selected insecticides applied for management of thrips populations in early and late planted cotton.  It was expected that early planted cotton would be subjected to higher levels of thrips pressure, and for a longer period of time, so treatments included higher amounts of active ingredient compared with late-planted cotton.  Thrips populations were assessed by rinsing and counting adults and immatures from seedlings cut from each plot.  Plant injury was assessed visually using a 0-5 plant injury scale.  Nodes above upper-most first position white flower (NAWF) and nodes above upper-most first position cracked boll (NACB) were used to assess plant maturity.  Lint yields were assessed by picking and ginning cotton from treated plot rows.  An additional trial using similar assessment techniques was conducted in each state as part of a coordinated regional effort to assess the value of foliar thrips insecticide treatments applied to seed and in-furrow insecticide treatments.  Result summaries of these trials will be presented.