Sept. 25, 2000

Eradication making strides throughout Western High Plains, state

(ABILENE) — In the midst of one of the worst droughts in Texas history, cotton growers in the Western High Plains have at least one thing to celebrate — boll weevil numbers have been drastically reduced.

The reductions mean that one obstacle to producing a profitable crop is well on its way to being eliminated.

The Western High Plains Eradication Zone began its effort to eradicate the No. 1 cotton pest from the area with a diapause program in late summer 1999.

Spring planting for the 2000 growing season initiated the first full-season phase of the eradication program. Foundation personnel placed traps around fields at a greater concentration than the previous fall. The increased numbers of traps allowed employees to monitor weevil activity in fields more precisely and to make treatment decisions based on the information obtained.

An added benefit of the increased number of traps is that they serve to help control weevil numbers.

This change meant only the portions of fields that showed sufficient weevil activity were treated. As a normal part of the program, treatments were reduced in some areas during midseason to aid in preserving beneficial insects that prey on other cotton pests. With the threat of a beet armyworm outbreak, foundation personnel took extra precautions to ensure eradication spraying would not be a major contributor to the problem.

The result was that entering the fall, the zone continues to show a marked reduction of boll weevil numbers compared with last year. Through the end of the second full week in September, weekly trap captures in the zone averaged 1.08 weevils per trap. At the same time last year, the week’s average was slightly more than 12 weevils per trap.

Other zones in the state are enjoying similar success. Four other zones began eradication in 1999, the Northwest Plains, Permian Basin, Northern Rolling Plains and El Paso/Tran Pecos, and all have seen reductions in weevil numbers well in excess of 90 percent.

The Rolling Plains Central zone, to the east of the Permian Basin, has seen greater than a 99.9 percent reduction in weevil counts compared with 1996, and the South Texas/Winter Garden zone has seen a reduction of about 93 percent compared with 1996.

What can growers in the Western High Plains expect in the future?

First, foundation personnel will be aggressive in treating for weevils this fall. Fall insecticide treatments will attempt to reduce the number of weevils that hibernate for the winter, meaning fewer weevils will emerge to be dealt with in the spring.

Next year will be much like this year. Growers will again be encouraged to do all they can to cooperate with the effort, especially in allowing foundation employees to have access to all sides of their fields. This will enable them to make the best decisions for treating fields, which in turn reduces the cost of the program and the amount of insecticide introduced into the environment.