UC Rice Blog

Finally, the armyworm season seems to be over. Moth trapping shows that the numbers are decreasing to the lowest levels of the season. Additionally, most fields are ripening and therefore less susceptible to armyworm injury. Overall, armyworm infestations were not as severe as last year.

The 1st Annual Rice Weed Course will take place: Friday, September 16, 2016 from 8:30AM to 4:15PM (Registration begins at 8:00AM) at the Hamilton Road Field (on West Hamilton Rd. between Hwy. 99 & Riceton Hwy.

Our two year stretch of little to no blast might be over. I visited an M-209 field last week that seemed to be infected with blast. The lesions appeared to me like propanil drift burn; however, the yellow halo around the lesions made the PCA suspicious.

This year, armyworm infestations were not as severe as last year. Populations did not reach the very high numbers of 2015, but they were early. Growers and PCAs were scouting diligently, and were able to recognize infestations when the worms were small.

Whitney Brim-DeForest is the newest addition to the UC Cooperative Extension Farm Advisor rice team. She will be based out of the Sutter-Yuba Office, but will serve Placer and Sacramento counties as well. She holds a Ph.D. in Horticulture and Agronomy and an M.S.