Fall Army Worms Onslaught -University of Tennessee

[Chuckie]

Fall Armyworm Onslaught Continues
Author: Scott Stewart, IPM Extension Specialist

Fall armyworms attack a wide range of grasses and other crops. Outbreaks have been reported on soybeans, sorghum, pastures and several other crops for over a month. We are having a biblical year with fall armyworm, especially in pastures and lawns. However, many are also wandering into the edges of soybean fields. My colleague, Dr. Frank Hale, recently sent the following information.



Dr. Scott Stewart, UT Extension Entomology Professor has an excellent article on fall armyworms in pastures on the UT Crops News Blog at:
http://news.utcrops.com/2014/07/fall-armyworms-in-pastures/



For fall armyworm and common armyworm control on home lawns, refer to the Armyworms and Cutworms section of Insect Control for Home Lawns at:
https://ag.tennessee.edu/EPP/Redbook/4 2014InsectControlHomeLawn.pdf



For fall armyworm and common armyworm control, refer your professional turfgrass pest control clients to the Cutworms, Armyworms section of Commercial Turfgrass Insect Control , PB 1342 at: https://utextension.tennessee.edu/publications/Documents/PB1342.pdf



Dr. Rick Brandenburg, turf Entomology Professor at North Carolina State University, stated that "This year is proving to be the worse year on record for fall armyworms." Read more about this turfgrass pest outbreak at: http://turffiles.ncsu.edu/Alerts.aspx#005612



Frank A. Hale, Ph.D.
Professor, Horticultural Crops Entomology
Dept. of Entomology and Plant Pathology
UT Extension
Soil, Plant and Pest Center
http://soilplantandpest.utk.edu

 

[JWBrahman]

Great post Chuckie, thanks for sharing.

I started mowing the pastures to get rid of the dead thatch and it knocked them back everywhere I mowed.

My cousin sprayed Cimarron and Remedy right before they showed up and it turned about 80 acres into the brown frown. Spotless, dead Bermuda grass pastures....

 

[NWMoAngus]

Will be on the sidelines at Rocky Top in November to watch the Tigers. Had a great time down there two years ago.

 

[torogmc81]

They are horrible here. All the moisture we've been having is making the problem worse

 

[BobbyLummus1]

looks like we have them , what should/can be done ?

 

[Chuckie]

This is severe damage to the Durana Clover runners. I believe that it will be OK.
Army worms ate the smaller runners as the ground looked like spaghetti after the took the leaves off first. Then the smallest runners were eaten.
This shows how Durana spreads like bermuda. These runners can be really long and then re-root in the ground as it travels. It is very invasive. :nod:

 

[torogmc81]

Should be ok, the army worms are eating leaves/stems, luckily they do not eat the roots. We are getting good rains, so that's helping speed the recovery from the infestation.

 

[greybeard]

Great post Chuckie, thanks for sharing.

I started mowing the pastures to get rid of the dead thatch and it knocked them back everywhere I mowed.

My cousin sprayed Cimarron and Remedy right before they showed up and it turned about 80 acres into the brown frown. Spotless, dead Bermuda grass pastures....

Are you saying the herbicides killed the bermuda?
I don't know about Cimarron, but I spray Remedy on Bermuda and Bahia every year and have never seen it harm either.

 

[JWBrahman]

[
Are you saying the herbicides killed the bermuda?
I don't know about Cimarron, but I spray Remedy on Bermuda and Bahia every year and have never seen it harm either.

Sorry for the confusion, GB. The army worms love Bermuda but they prefer some of the more annoying weeds like curly dock and spiny amaranthus. If you can live with the weeds till late summer your pasture will survive an army worm infestation better than a pure grass pasture. My cousin sprayed Cimarron (post emergent) and Remedy. Everything looked beautiful. The Bermuda was 8 inches high and nearly ready for making hay when the army worms showed up. When they were finished it looked like stockpiled forage because the tops were all dead. By removing that layer of dead thatch I allowed the sun to hit the runners and get some growth sooner. After you clip the dead stuff the Bermuda runners look just like the clover runners Chuckie posted.

I have been telling everyone for years to wait and spray after the army worms are finished. The Tyson operation finally listened to me and I haven't rented them summer pasture for two years.