Sugarcane aphid has arrived, fall armyworm flight very large

Small colonies of sugarcane aphids have been found on grain sorghum in Lubbock and Hale counties in the last two days. Greg Cronholm, Independent Crop Consultant in Hale County, texted last night and reported finding a few small colonies. I found some today on blooming sorghum on the Experiment Station in Lubbock. Scouting and management guidelines are here.

Fall armyworm trap captures continue to be very high; more than twice the eight-year average.

 To put the current flight in perspective, the graph below shows what we faced at this time in July over the past few years. The magnitude of the current flight strongly suggests that fields be scouted for larvae and damage.