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How to Manage Pests
UC Pest Management Guidelines
Sugarbeet
Maggots
Scientific names:
Seedcorn maggot: Delia platura
Sugarbeet root maggot: Tetanops myopaeformis
(Reviewed 11/05,
updated 11/05)
In this Guideline:
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Larva of the seedcorn maggot are small, pale or dirty-colored,
yellowish white, legless maggots with tough skin. Adults are
grayish brown flies and about 0.20 inch long. The sugarbeet root maggot larva
is also a small, legless maggot with no distinct head or eyes. It is white in
color and has two dark mouth hooks at the pointed end that are used for
feeding. The adult fly is about the size of a housefly with a shiny black body
with brownish spots at the base of the wings.
Seedcorn maggots feed on the seed and
may destroy it. Injury is most severe during wet, cold periods. Sugarbeet root
maggots feed on succulent roots and cause plants to wilt and become stunted.
Their feeding scrapes the root surface and may provide entry points for
soilborne pathogens. They may sever taproots of small plants, causing plants to
die.
In California, seedcorn maggot and sugarbeet root maggot are only
occasional pests. They are usually associated with high levels of organic
matter in fields that have recently had a cover crop disked in. No treatment
thresholds are available for sugarbeet root maggot; often problems with this
pest are not apparent until plants begin to die.
| Common name |
Amount/Acre |
| (trade name) |
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| NOTE: The
following chemicals are registered for sugarbeet root maggot only. Currently there are no chemicals registered for the control of seedcorn maggot. |
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| When choosing a pesticide, consider information relating
to water quality and impact on natural enemies and bees.
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| A. |
PHORATE* |
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(Thimet) 20G |
4.5 oz/1000 row ft |
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MODE OF ACTION: An organophosphate (Group 1B)1
insecticide.
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COMMENTS: Apply at planting; do not place granules in direct contact with seed. Do not feed tops to livestock. |
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| B. |
DIAZINON* 14G |
7-14 lb or |
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8 oz/1000 row ft |
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MODE OF ACTION: An organophosphate (Group 1B)1
insecticide.
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COMMENTS: Incorporate 2-3 inches or apply above seed after seed is covered. Do not allow granules to contact seed. |
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| C. |
CHLORPYRIFOS |
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(Lorsban)15G |
8 oz/1000 row ft |
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MODE OF ACTION: An organophosphate (Group 1B)1
insecticide.
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COMMENTS: In-furrow at planting time. T-band or band at planting or postemergence. |
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UC IPM Pest Management Guidelines: Sugarbeet
UC ANR Publication 3469
Insects and Mites
C. G. Summers, Entomology,
Kearney Agricultural Center, Parlier
D. R. Haviland, UC IPM Program, Kern Co.
L. D. Godfrey, Entomology, UC Davis
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