Effects of Various Insecticide Treatments on Nabids, Geocoris Punctipes, and Total Predators in Alabama, 1983

This field test was conducted on peanuts planted in a light clay loam soil at the Wiregrass Substn. at Headland, Ala. Six treatments and an untreated check were replicated three times in a randomized complete block design. Each 0.011 acre plot was four rows wide (36-in. row spacing, each ‘row’ consisting of two 7-in. separated double rows) and 40 ft long. Treatments were applied on 2 Aug. with a tractor-mounted boom sprayer equipped with three TX6 hollow cone nozzles per row operating at 40 lb/in2 and delivering 15 gal/acre. Insect populations were sampled by placing a standard 3-ft beat sheet between the rows and beating the plants on both sides. Nabids, Geocoris punctipes, and other predators were identified and recorded. Nabids and G. punctipes were separated into adults and immatures. Three samples from each plot were taken 3, 6, 13, and 20 days postspray (5, 8, 15, and 22 Aug.)