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Corn leaf aphid impact coming to light
An agronomist with Beck’s Hybrids says the impact of this summer’s corn leaf aphid infestations are coming to light as harvest progresses.
Chad Kalaher, who covers eastern and northeastern Illinois, tells Brownfield…
“This year will probably go down as the year of the corn leaf aphid.” He says, “So far, what we’ve seen, even in fields that got sprayed with insecticide, we are seeing some lower yields with those.”
Central Illinois farmer Jeff Scott says the timing of his infestation post-pollination made a difference.
“We had about 15% of our acres that aphids got in a little bit of.” He says, “They didn’t bother it as much as we thought. And the corn had pretty much pollinated by the time the aphids had came in. That was another plus.”
Kalaher says corn leaf aphids are not typically a concern.
“I think they blew in on the storm that came up from the South in late June or early July, depending upon where you’re at, so in most cases right before pollination time.” He says, “Those aphids really went to work on some of those plants and went to work pretty hard.”
Kalaher says aphids tend to feed on specific hybrids with high sugar content, so growers should consider that when planning for next year’s crop.
AUDIO: Chad Kalaher – Beck’s Hybrids agronomist
AUDIO: Jeff Scott – Illinois farmer
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