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July 24, 2001Spraying to begin in Northern High Plains
(ABILENE) - The eradication effort in the Southern High Plains/Caprock and Northern High Plains Eradication zones will begin a new phase about Sept. 1, Texas Boll Weevil Eradication Foundation officials said.
Cotton fields will be sprayed on a weekly basis to reduce boll weevil numbers before the insects leave fields to overwinter, a process similar to hibernation.
When cotton bolls begin to open, weevils cease to feed and reproduce and begin moving out of the fields to find places to overwinter. These weevils are targeted so fewer weevils will emerge before the next growing season.
In preparation for this phase, foundation employees have been deploying pheromone traps around cotton fields in the zones. The traps, which are light green in color and cone shaped, provide foundation personnel with information on weevil populations and movement.
This year the information gathered will be used to establish a baseline subsequent years can be compared with. In these later years, treatment of fields will be based on the information gathered.
During the 2001 growing season, however, all cotton fields are sprayed weekly. Ultra low volume malathion is applied to fields at the rate of 12 ounces per acre.
The malathion used by the foundation is a much purer form of the insecticide than found in garden centers and retail stores for use in home gardens. This formulation allows the foundation to effectively eliminate weevils using the least possible amount of insecticide.
Most of the applications will be performed by aerial applicators, but near sensitive areas, such as homes, schools, hospitals, nursing homes or environmentally sensitive areas near lakes, rivers or ponds, ground equipment will be used to spray fields.
