Homeowner Insect Problems 



Fall webworms are spinning webs around the ends of branches on shade trees- -espe- 

 cially birch, ash, and elm. Pale green or yellow worms with a dark stripe down 

 the back and a yellow stripe along each side skeletonize the foliage inside the 

 web nest. They continue to extend the web to take in fresh foliage. The damaged 

 leaves turn brown, curl, dry up, and eventually die. 



Spraying with 50-percent carbaryl (Sevin) at the rate of 2 tablespoons per gallon 

 of water is effective. 



Picnic beetles are thick in cornfields and around homes. These black beetles 

 with four yellow spots on their back eat decaying material in the galleries of 

 corn borer and feed on the sticky secretions left by aphids on corn. Around the 

 home, they are attracted by cooking odors or to garbage containers, as well as 

 to overripe fruits and vegetables in the garden. They are a real nuisance at 

 cookouts , picnics , and outdoor barbecues . 



For control in home yards, harvest fruits and vegetables before they become over- 

 ripe; dispose of any spoiled produce. To kill the adult beetles, spray with 

 malathion, diazinon, or carbaryl (Sevin). Follow directions on the label for 

 dosages, and observe the specified waiting periods between treatment and harvest. 

 For beetles, a spray-can application of either 0.1-percent pyrethrin or 0.5- 

 percent dichlorvos (DDVP) will give a quick knockdown. Spray the mist lightly 

 beneath tables and chairs and into the air for a few feet around the area. Apply 

 the same mist over the top and around the sides of garbage containers. 



Both the imported and looper cabbage worms are feeding on the outer leaves of 

 cabbage heads, or may be eating their way into the head. These worms are dif- 

 ficult to control when they are more than half grown. Spraying with carbaryl 

 (Sevin) or malathion while the worms are small will give adequate control. Allow 

 7 days between the last application and harvest when using malathion, and 3 days 

 for carbaryl. 



PLANT DISEASES 



Corn 



A few fields of corn have been seen in which a high number of plants have the 

 "crazy top" disease. This fungus disease is soil borne. Infection occurs only 

 in low, wet spots in fields. 



The symptoms are a general stunting of the plant and yellow streaking of the 

 leaves, followed by death of the leaves. As the tassels form, they are often 

 leafy, showing the typical "crazy top" symptom. 



Soybeans 



Bacterial blight is severe on soybean leaves in many fields throughout the northern 

 half of Illinois. It is recognizable by the angular leaf spots, usually sur- 

 rounded by a narrow zone of yellow leaf tissue. The dead spots tend to fall out 

 of the leaves, and severely infected leaves may have a ragged appearance. 



Phytophthora blight is present in low spots in soybean fields planted to suscep- 

 tible varieties. This disease can be identified by the complete killing of plants 

 in low spots. Plants of any size may be killed. 



