Wireworms Mole Crickets Cutworms Importance of Using a Soil Applied Insecticide with a Nematicide Wireworms Wireworms, the most damaging soil insect pests of tobacco, are present in the soil at transplanting. They damage tobacco by feeding and tunneling in the below ground portion of roots and stems. Their feeding and tunneling may kill or stunt young plants and open up plants to soil-borne diseases.
Stunted plants result in irregular and uneven stands.
An uneven stand makes it more difficult to manage tops, suckers and insects. Because wireworms overwinter in the soil, they are usually more abundant in fields that follow crops, such as corn, soybeans, small grains, peanuts, sweet potatoes, pasture, and tobacco. There is no easy way to sample fields for wireworms prior to transplanting. Rescue treatments are nonexistent. For best results the insecticides must be incorporated immediately after they are applied.