Watch Out for these Early Season Pests

With corn and soybean planting slowly underway, insect threats are already lurking in the fields. Entomologists are placing a special alert on early planted fields, no-till and weedy fields where crops are most vulnerable.

Here are just a few suspects to keep an eye out for this spring:

• Black cutworms – migrating from the Southern U.S. and Mexico, entomologists are already reporting above-average numbers in certain states.
• Slugs – these pests need areas with plentiful moisture, so a wave of warmer weather can deter their effects.
• Bean leaf beetles – a threat to emerging soybeans, can also cause damage late in the season when they target the roots.
• Grubs, maggots and wireworms – annual suspects, these target young seedlings and seeds.

Read more on springtime pests.