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Old July 26, 2016   #3
gorbelly
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Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: Southeastern Pennsylvania
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Quote:
Originally Posted by clkeiper View Post
Spray the spinosad for pity's sake. those worms will destroy the foliage/fruit and you won't get fruit again...
They're not massing on my plants or anything, which I would take care of right away. After their massing stage but while still small, they disperse on the wind so don't build up huge numbers on plants. Damage was slow-progressing last year; they're not hornworms. I have some time to consider what to do. By the time they blow in on plants, Bt is probably not that effective on them any longer. AFAIK, spinosyns will still work, even when they're larger.

Quote:
Even in more southern states, it is not always a pest. It has a very large number of predators, parasitoids, and fungal and viral pathogens. These mortality agents are present in the landscape, so conservation of natural enemies, by limiting insecticides as much as possible, may be the most effective biological control.
http://extension.psu.edu/plants/vege...orm-management
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