High densities of army worm are being found in wheat and barley fields in North Dakota. “It started out two weeks ago in the southeast area of North Dakota in a rye cover crop field. Since then, we’ve had southerly winds, pushing the pests north,” said Jan Knodel, entomologist, NDSU Extension. Many of these army worms are already large, 1.5 to two inches long, which makes them difficult to kill. It could be a little to late to kill the big army worms. “The question is whether or not to spray. They are probably getting ready to pupate, a stage where they quit feeding and prepare to transform into adult,” said Knodel. “If we do spray insecticide now, farmers may only get partial or reduced control.”
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