Cutworm Epidemic?

Mary Ann · Post by **Mary Ann** » Jun 24, 2007 1:23 pm

Linda mentioned cutworms being their worst. Is this a seasonally ideal year for cutworms or will they get worse in my garden each year if I don't poison those little devils?

renaldo75 · Post by **renaldo75** » Jun 24, 2007 1:29 pm

I haven't ever been able to do anything with them - yet. I never have the stuff to kill them when I need it & never seem to get out at nite with a flashlight when I could be finding them.

I 1st had damage a couple of years ago on a few hostas, more last year, and a lot more this year. So I'd say you need to get under control or it will get worse. I hate to think what mine will look like next year. But they've never been in the same hostas from year to year in my garden. So you have to be on the lookout to see where they start doing damage. And unlike slugs, they'll tackle the ones with heavy substance. Pizzazz was the 1st one I had damage on this spring & it's a thick, tough one.

malaprop · Post by **malaprop** » Jun 24, 2007 1:31 pm

No, not a lot, but what I did have were hungry. This year I didn't kill them, but threw them. I am having almost no visits by honey bees, just bumbles. I had only one exquisite Monarch Butterfly come thru.

I don't know what the cutworm graduate to, but until I do, I'll just toss them somewhere else.

My pollen is not fluffy this year, only marginal.

Hank Zumach · Post by **Hank Zumach** » Jun 24, 2007 1:52 pm

Hi--I have been using Di-Syston on cutworms and it has been very effective. I just sprinkle a little on the ground around the crown of the plant and work it into the soil a bit to speed up the chemical getting into the plant. If water is handy, I give it a shot of water, again to get the chemical into the plant. In almost all cases the damage is stopped in one day.

renaldo75 · Post by **renaldo75** » Jun 24, 2007 1:54 pm

Hank - do you do this as soon as you see damage on a plant??

baja220 · Post by **baja220** » Jun 24, 2007 4:09 pm

Is Di-Syston a brand or the chemical we look for in the ingrediants? I had them some last year, but it's really bad this year. I'd say over 50% of my hostas are affected. Some have been totally stripped with nothing but a little of the center vein left. I keep thinkin a second flush of leaves will cover it up, but they're comin up with the top half already eated off. I've dug for em and been out with a flashlight and found several, but I'm afraid it'll just keep gettin worse if they're not controlled.

Mal, I have no idea what they graduate to.

Debbie

Hank Zumach · Post by **Hank Zumach** » Jun 24, 2007 4:23 pm

I apply it as son as I notice the damage. I also use it when I notice wht I believe is a borer that enters the petioles and then travels down to the crown. Since it is a systemic (it enters the plant and the critters who eat the plant are then poisoned) it should work on a variety of critters that eat the plant tissue.

The full name on the label is:
Hi-Yield
Di-Syston

the active ingrediant is disolfoton 2.0%

I have had a nursery order it in 3.5 lb. jugs. The cost is $8. I probably use 2-3 ounces per infected plant so my jug lasts for several years.

I believe that a number of other systemic insecticides would be effective.

renaldo75 · Post by **renaldo75** » Jun 24, 2007 4:49 pm

Thanks, Hank. I definitely need to find some so I have it on hand for next year.

baja220 · Post by **baja220** » Jun 24, 2007 5:07 pm

Is it too late to use it this year? I'm still finding them.

renaldo75 · Post by **renaldo75** » Jun 24, 2007 5:20 pm

Debbie - if you're still finding damage, then use it now. I just hadn't noticed any new damage for a couple of weeks. The cutworms only seem to be active for a couple of weeks here & then become whatever they become. If you're having as much damage as you've said then you may have something else in addition to the cutworms eating your hostas. I'd use the product Hank mentioned until you don't see any new damage anymore. Sounds like you need to buy it by the case...

baja220 · Post by **baja220** » Jun 24, 2007 5:34 pm

Reldon, I'm still finding cutworms. I get off work at 4:30AM and look for em with a flash light when I get home. I found three this morning. I've been finding the since mid April.

Linda P · Post by **Linda P** » Jun 24, 2007 5:51 pm

Ugh! I hate the blankety-blank things. Good call, Hank. I hadn't thought of using the Di-Syston for cutworms. I do have the Bayer Advance or Ortho systemic stuff around, and the active ingredient in it is disulfoton. I just noticed last week that the nursery around the corner carries the Hi Yield brand, so I'll probably switch to that when the Bayer, etc, is gone.
I haven't noticed any new damage lately, and I've been finding the moths flying up when I disturb the mulch. They seem to have a fairly short lifecycle, but it has been a bit longer than usual that they've been active this year. I've also used BT (bacillus thuringiensis) on them with good success. It's a powder containing and organism that will only kill the caterpillars and not affect anything else. The cutworms turn into a moth, and it's not anything that you want to have around. More moths lay more eggs that turn into more cutworms, though most years they only go through one cycle. I'm thinking the unusual weather may have fooled them into adding a cycle this year for you, Debbie, but that's just a wild guess.
Mary Ann, I do think that you need to try to do something, either handpick them at night with a flashlight (they drop to the ground and curl up when you hit them with the light) or chemical control. You can't find them during the day, unless you dig in the ground around the affected hosta. I've killed literally hundreds of them here, and still had major damage. I'm reluctant to use any kind of chemical controls for anything, but when they start chomping my hostas to ribbons, it's war.
Linda P

JoshS · Post by **JoshS** » Jun 24, 2007 6:48 pm

I was talking with a guy on Friday that said the "bug guy" at Iowa State said that cutworms are worse in the years when we have a lot of southern spring winds. They are often more troublesome a little further south than Iowa, but the wind blows the moths north.

I don't know about the rest of you, but we've had more than our fair share of wind in Iowa this spring!

Mary Ann · Post by **Mary Ann** » Jun 24, 2007 7:02 pm

Hank is right again and helped me put 2 and 2 together. I just checked all the plants I've been treating with miticide (Disulfoton) for nematodes and NONE of them have any cutworm damage.

I would never have made that connection.

So naturally I quickly sprinkled some of that stuff around the holey ones too.

Linda, I've been out twice w/flashlight, only found a couple earwigs. No slugs, no rolypolies, no caterpillars.

Josh, are you saying their population is generated fresh every year? No leftovers from the previous year?

scootersbear · Post by **scootersbear** » Jun 25, 2007 12:20 am

Disulfoton is a systemic organophosphate insecticide and miticide that is especially effective against sucking insects. This ingredient has long been available under the trade name Di-Syston. Disulfoton is very highly toxic to all mammals by all routes of exposure and products formulated at greater than 2% disulfoton are classified as Restricted Use Pesticides. Bayer Systemic Rose & Flower Care is 1% disulfoton. Poisoning will be unlikely if exposure to formulated products is minimized by following label directions: wear rubber gloves, avoid getting in eyes or on skin and avoid breathing dust. Disulfoton is moderately toxic to birds, highly toxic to aquatic organisms, and toxic to bees.

Thats a problem I don't want a part of, rather have the cutworms than kill the bees, were seeing less bees here every year. Using a contact spray with no residual later at night after the bees have gone to bed and spraying the ground around the plants when it comes to cutworms does the job without the risk of killing as many benificial insects

digs57 · Post by **digs57** » Jun 25, 2007 7:35 am

There are liquid formulations, like Sevin or Grub-out, both for watering can and hose-end use, and they work well too.
The only thing is that I find one should avoid spraying the stuff onto the plants - hosta leaves tend to get that "too much sun" burned look - best to spray just the ground around them. Having a second set of hands to lift leaves up (DH in rubber gloves and boots

), can be helpful.

Digs.

wishiwere · Post by **wishiwere** » Jun 25, 2007 9:56 am

All interesting information! Thanks!

JoshS · Post by **JoshS** » Jun 25, 2007 6:48 pm

Mary Ann wrote:Josh, are you saying their population is generated fresh every year? No leftovers from the previous year?

It depends on what type of cutworm, Mary Ann...

This is all geared toward corn, but still some interesting info...some from this year, some years past:

Black cutworms found in Iowa; focus turns to scouting

Black Cutworm Update (these don't winter in Iowa)

Many moths fly in spring - pictures of the moths cutworm turn into

Black cutworm 2007 cutting dates predicted

Hank Zumach · Post by **Hank Zumach** » Jun 25, 2007 8:18 pm

Hi-- I stopped at the nursery that sold me the Hi-Yield Di-Syston in the past. They told me that Hi-Yield lost its license to sell that product. The nursery is now selling another 2% disulfoton but the price has gone from $8 to $20.

baja220 · Post by **baja220** » Jun 26, 2007 2:50 am

I looked at WalMart and Lowe's today and didn't find the right ingrediants. I've got some Bayer that has cutworms listed on it tho.