Corn rootworms larvae stage last approximately a month, it s at this stage in the beetle s life that it does the most intense damage to the roots of the corn. Most chemical insecticide treatments are to coincide with the larvae stage of the insect. The current practices includes crop rotation, the use of a granu lar soil insecticide at planting time and also the use of liquid insecticides that are to be strictly applied to coincide with the larval stage of the beetles life. Although the combination of chemical and biological insect control is still in the early stages and the data suggests minimal impact on most pest species. Continued experimentation may prove that this will be an invaluable tool for the future of a sustainable farm and eliminate costly energy inputs and environmental impacts of chemicals alone.
Beetles survive labeled and reduced soil insecticide applications.
J.T. Shaw, D.E. Kuhlman. Seed delivered rootworm control. Liquid insecticides for rootworms.