GENERAL SITUATION: The weather conditions this week were good for crop growth and maturity. Some fields still were too dry and a minor number were too wet due to some very spotty rain early this week. Overall, the crops in the LRGV were making progress, but yield potential for most of the crops still appears to be lower than hoped due to the previous drought conditions. Insect activity was on the increase.

Aphids Populations Very High

Cotton aphids were flaring rapidly in some fields this week. Many fields were showing large areas of "blackened" cotton plants due to the honeydew deposits from aphids. Counts in a few fields had aphids exceeding 300 per leaf. Many plants with downward- cupped leaves made the plants appear to be stunted when compared to lightly infested plants nearby.

Lady beetles were increasing in number along with the aphids, but were not enough to prevent some potential damage to some cotton fields which were entering or actually into blooming stage. Insecticide applications for aphids was on the increase this week.

Beneficials Make Big Showing

Some small number of aphid parasites along with the large number of lady beetles were detected early this week. Many fields had much higher levels of parasites working by the end of this week. Once parasites begin to move into a field of aphids, the aphid populations generally decline quickly. Lady beetle numbers were as high as 7 per plant in a few fields this week. And aphid numbers had declined in some fields this compared to last week. However, each field situation can and usually is different and what may be working in one field, may not work as well or at all in another. So, check the aphids and beneficials in each field and make any insecticide application decisions accordingly.

Boll Weevil Punctures Still Low

Boll weevil punctured squares were again found this week, but the numbers continued to be low and scattered. The current weevil situation is similar to what we normally expect. Boll weevil life cycles usually take about three weeks, give or take a few days, to complete in the LRGV. That means that weevils could increase in fields with historically bad early weevil infestations starting next week. The new cycle will be the second generation since the overwintered weevils laid their eggs, those eggs hatched into the weevils which completed their life cycle and began feeding and laying eggs about 10 days to 2 weeks ago.