Tales of Cotton Insects: Monday June 1, 2026

Overall, things have been quiet, but that likely is largely due to the rains. A lot folks are finishing up planting and getting started on replants. Thankfully, the thrips model is still suggesting very low pressure. I would expect our seed treatments to carry us through the thrips window.

We do still have the possibility of some oddballs, like slugs, cutworms or threecornered alfalfa hoppers. Keep scouting and monitoring fields evaluating emergence and stands in this late planted cotton and don’t let anything threaten to reduce them.

June typically means plant bugs in Alabama. We will likely start picking them up in our oldest cotton that is squaring soon. All the rains we have had the last 7 to 10 days may complicate early season plant bug decisions. Daisy fleabane (plant bugs primary spring host) will likely persist for a while longer this month. This sometimes causes a “trickle” effect where adult plant bugs infest cotton over an extended period of time. This may mean that we see lower “subthreshold” numbers for a couple of weeks. At a certain point, we will probably want to pull the trigger if that is the case. While the primary goal of plant bug management is to preserve 80% of the first position pinhead squares, we also want to stop egg deposition and the number of nymphs that will hatch out in the next two weeks.

Adult tarnished plant bugs on a sweep-net.

The best way to detect adult plant bugs is to use the sweep-net. Threshold is an average of 8 adult plant bugs per 100 sweeps. Monitoring pinhead square retention is an excellent way to see what injury is being done in the field. Since a cotton plant puts on a new node every ≈3 days, monitoring the upper 2-3 nodes tells us what has happened since the last time the field was scouted. As mentioned above, threshold is to not allow retention to fall below 80%.

With that in mind, we have a few options for control of adults in pre-bloom cotton:

1.Imidacloprid: Many trade names. Imidacloprid is the most economical option we have for plant bug control. While imidacloprid does not provide 100% control (closer to 60-65%) at the highest labeled rates, it generally provides enough to get populations under threshold and preserves square retention

2.Thiamethoxam: Centric, Hub WDG. Thiamethoxam is another neonicotinoid that provides good control of adult plant bugs. Our general recommendation is 2 oz/A. While a little more costly than imidacloprid, this material provides better control. Another option is Endigo ZCX, which is a premix of Centric (thiamethoxam) and lambda-cy. Endigo ZCX at 3.5 oz/A provides the equivalent rate of Centric (2 oz/A) and lambda-cy (1.5 oz/A). While the added lambda-cy may be more likely to flare mites, this pre-mix may be a little more economical than Centric alone.

3.Sulfoxaflor: Transform (1.5 oz/A) provides the best control of plant bugs of all currently registered materials. For that reason, we like to wait to use it when immature plant bugs are present. Waiting for Transform can help to delay resistance and manage adults more economically.

4.Other options: Acephate (0.5 lb) or pyrethroids (highest labeled rate) are options for adults but are not generally recommended. The reason for this is multi-fold. 1. Resistance management. We prefer to use neonics (imidacloprid or thiamethoxam) on adults and then switch to the “harder” chemicals (Ops/pyrethroids) after bloom when targeting immature plant bugs and/or stink bugs. 2. These classes of chemicals tend to be harsher on beneficials, which could lead to outbreaks of spider mite (however, we can and have flared spider mites with neonics sprayed on 7-day intervals). 3. Aphids, while neonics are generally good on aphids, OPs and pyrethroids are not as reliable.

**Note: Pyrethroid resistance has been documented in NW and SW Alabama in recent years. Pyrethroids should be monitored closely for efficacy if used in all cotton growing regions of Alabama.

The good news is that things are still quiet on the cotton jassid front. To date, no active populations have been observed in “the real world” in 2026. We, along with our colleagues in FL, GA and SC are monitoring the situation closely.

Cotton Scout Schools kick off this week:

• June 2 - 8 a.m. at the Wiregrass REC in Headland
• June 4 - 8 a.m. at Milstead Gin in Shorter
• June 9 - 8 a.m. the Tennessee Valley REC in Belle Mina
• June 18 - 10 a.m. at Grant Farms in Uriah
• June 25 - 10 a.m. at McCord’s Fire Department Station #1 in Centre

As always, if we can ever be of any help, or if you would like to provide input on the situation in your area, please don’t hesitate to reach out to your local Extension Agent or myself (Scott Graham: 662-809-3368) and Ron Smith (334-332-9501). For more information on thresholds and insecticide recommendations, visit the Alabama Cotton IPM Guide (IPM-0415). To stay up-to-date on the Alabama cotton insect situation, subscribe to the Alabama Cotton Shorts Newsletter, Alabama Crops Report Newsletter and Podcast, and the Syngenta Pest Patrol Hotline.

Tales of Cotton Insects: May 11, 2026

Stand robbers have been the theme of reports from the last few days. The primary culprit has been grasshoppers, but a few cutworms are in the mix as well. I hesitated to put out much information last week due to all the rains and people not being able to get in the field anyway. But after today’s feedback, grasshoppers are still a concern. Many folks in west central Alabama made applications just prior to the storms that blew through Wednesday. Unfortunately, most reports are that those applications didn’t seem to knock populations back much. This was not totally unexpected, especially in the areas that received 3+ inches of rain in that time period. When spraying bare ground, wash off is likely an even bigger problem than in crop and on cotton leaves.

Our recommendation is still to run 0.67 lbs of acephate for knockdown of adult and immature grasshoppers. For any cotton that does not currently have an established stand, I would also consider 2 oz of Dimilin for the residual suppression of still emerging immatures. Grasshoppers will likely continue emerging for a few more weeks.

Dimilin can also help with cutworms which have been identified in a few fields over the last couple weeks. To scout for cutworms, count the number of cut and undamaged plants in 50 feet of row at multiple locations in a field. A pocketknife or something similar can be used to dig up larvae from the soil around damaged or adjacent plants to confirm their presence. Treatment decisions are made based on achieving an acceptable stand. Some say to consider treatment if 5% or more of plants have been freshly cut.  Infestations may be spotty within a field and only require treatment where damage and live cutworms are found.

Both grasshoppers and cutworms are easy to control. The problem is that pyrethroids are great on cutworms but poor on grasshoppers. In most instances, I would choose acephate and live with the level of control I get on cutworms vs a tank-mixture of the two. Dimilin should provide good control of smaller cutworms but may not control larger ones as well.

As always, if we can ever be of any help, or if you would like to provide input on the situation in your area, please don’t hesitate to reach out to your local Extension Agent or myself (Scott Graham: 662-809-3368) and Ron Smith (334-332-9501). For more information on thresholds and insecticide recommendations, visit the Alabama Cotton IPM Guide (IPM-0415). To stay up-to-date on the Alabama cotton insect situation, subscribe to the Alabama Cotton Shorts Newsletter, Alabama Crops Report Newsletter and Podcast, and the Syngenta Pest Patrol Hotline.

Tales of Cotton Insects: April 29, 2026

The northern 2/3rds of Alabama has gotten much needed rain over the past couple of days. Thankfully, in most places rains have been somewhat slow and steady. We needed it to soak in as much as possible. According to James Spann (link), relief for south Alabama is expected tonight and through Friday. In addition to the rain, we have also seen a good couple of weeks run in the markets. December 26 cotton has been trading in the $0.80 range for the last few days. Hopefully this trend continues to go up.

More good news: After the recent rains, the Thrips Model has totally shifted. For the majority of the state, VERY LOW thrips pressure is expected for anything planted from now through basically all of May. This is a complete 180 from our last report (link).

The highlighted area is predicted to have
high pressure through the first few days
of May. Model Run: 4.29.26

North Alabama (highlighted part of map in image) is the only part of the state is still predicted to have high pressure through the first couple days of May, then falling off after about the 7^th. Why the change just for this one area? Great question. We don’t exactly know. Either way, this highlights the importance of running the model consistently to see what the pressure looks like as you begin planting and a few days after planting too.

With the now predicted lower pressure, I would expect seed treatments to give us a good chance at outrunning thrips, assuming nighttime temperatures are high enough to keep the cotton growing. Time will tell how things will change.

As always, if we can ever be of any help, or if you would like to provide input on the situation in your area, please don’t hesitate to reach out to your local Extension Agent or myself (Scott Graham: 662-809-3368) and Ron Smith (334-332-9501). For more information on thresholds and insecticide recommendations, visit the Alabama Cotton IPM Guide (IPM-0415). To stay up-to-date on the Alabama cotton insect situation, subscribe to the Alabama Cotton Shorts Newsletter, Alabama Crops Report Newsletter and Podcast, and the Syngenta Pest Patrol Hotline.

Tales of Cotton Insects: April 14, 2026

Cotton planting has begun across the state of Alabama as of this week. Overall, we are SEVERELY limited by moisture, but planters have begun, nonetheless. Currently, the next good chances for rain (according to James Spann) are not until April 24-26. If I felt good about soil moisture, I think I too would start planting cotton as soon as I could. If we consider the disaster most of May was for trying to get seed in the ground. Planting dates are always a gamble, but I would consider planting as soon as you can.

Moving into the current insect situation, things have (thankfully) been quite so far. We have found no cotton jassid activity on sticky card traps or on February – March planted cotton in Headland. We have, however, heard a few reports of grasshoppers in fields that will soon be planted. I suspect the dry weather we have experienced will be favorable for grasshoppers this spring. For developing populations of immature grasshoppers (which do not have wings), Dimilin (2 oz) is a good option that provides residual control. We do not expect any adults (which do have wings) in fields currently. Thus, I would leave out additional “knockdown” insecticides for now.

ThryvOn and Non-ThryvOn cotton planted in the same row.

One pest that the dry weather seems to absolutely be impacting is thrips. According to the Thrips Infestation Predictor Model for Cotton (Thrips Model), we are expecting EXTREMELY high pressure this year. Regardless of location in the state, the model is predicting that the 3 weeks between April 20 and about May 12 will experience the majority of the issues. Keep in mind the model prediction is based on weather, so things can change. Running the model before, during, and (a few days) after planting will give the most up-to-date information.

I suspect that the majority of this cotton will need something to supplement seed treatments this year. Depending on how you are set up, you may or may not be able to us in-furrow applications.

If you are unable to make in-furrow applications, using ThryvOn varieties is an easy way to get excellent thrips control. To date, we have NOT observed thrips damage in cotton that justified an in-furrow or foliar application.

Another option would be to make foliar insecticide applications. Current recommended options include:

Hemi SC (1.5-3.0 oz) This product has a 2ee label to provide early season suppression of thrips in cotton. For heavier infestations, use a higher rate in the rate range. (low risk to flare spider mites)

Acephate (3 oz) is an effective and relatively inexpensive option, however it has the potential to flare secondary pests such as spider mites and is the least rainfast of the recommended options available.

Bidrin (3.2 oz/A) is another option that is effective and less likely to flare spider mites and is more rainfast than acephate, however it is more likely to cause crop injury when tank-mixed with herbicides.

The general goal of thrips management is to get cotton to about the 5^th or 6^th true leaf stage without too much injury from thrips. In most years, many acres do not need foliar applications in addition to at-plant insecticides to reach this goal. However, some fields do. Rarely do fields in Alabama need more than 1 foliar spray for thrips. This year, however, could be a rare year. With the current thrips model predicting such heavy pressure, one application may or may not do it. Much of this will depend on weather factors and how quickly the cotton can get from the cotyledon stage to 5 or 6 true leaves. We will know a lot more on June 1^st about what happened than we do now. But for the time being, I would be prepared to think about the potential of multiple trips for thrips in non-ThryvOn cotton and cotton without AgLogic.

As always, if we can ever be of any help, or if you would like to provide input on the situation in your area, please don’t hesitate to reach out to your local Extension Agent or myself (Scott Graham: 662-809-3368) and Ron Smith (334-332-9501). For more information on thresholds and insecticide recommendations, visit the Alabama Cotton IPM Guide (IPM-0415). To stay up-to-date on the Alabama cotton insect situation, subscribe to the Alabama Cotton Shorts Newsletter, Alabama Crops Report Newsletter and Podcast, and the Syngenta Pest Patrol Hotline.