Thrips Persist in Cotton

General thrips pressure

Thrips persist in area cotton at low to high levels depending on previous management tactics. Seed treatments have held up pretty well but have began to lose effectiveness in many fields and may not protect cotton through the key 5th true leaf stage. The  tell-tale sign that a seed treatment insecticide is wearing off is the presence of immature thrips. Foliar applications of acephate have been effective but don't expect residual activity past 5-7 days. The accepted treatment threshold is 1 thrips/true leaf but if cotton is slow growing the threshold should be reduced to 1/2 thrips/true leaf.