It's been quite a while since we've received any calls concerning Bagrada bugs on local cole crops. In fact, we haven't seen any adults in our cabbage or broccoli plots at the Yuma Agricultural Center since late January. This is not surprising considering the cool weather we have been experiencing. These observations are consistent with our experiences last spring when we didn't find our first Bagrada bug on spring cabbage until mid-April. However, last week we found a large number of Bagrada bug adults and nymphs aggregating within a small planting (0.15 ac) of untreated canola we have at YAC. The canola plants are in past full bloom and filling seed pods. The bugs can be found walking within the canola on the ground and feeding damage can be found on older leaves. We presume this population is a result of adult and nymphs that migrated into the canola in December when an adjacent block of infested broccoli was disked under. This should serve as a warning though, as Bagrada bugs are known to be a major pest of canola and Brassica seed crops in Pakistan and India. PCAs and growers should monitor seed crops closely as the crops begin to mature. Pay particular attention to the cracks and crevices in the soil underneath plants and in the furrow. Not sure they will be an issue on seed crops, but there is still much we don’t know about this new pest in the desert. If you are interested in more information on the Bagrada bugs seasonal activities this year, please visit this document. In addition, a presentation on Bagrada bugs will be made at the 2011 Southwest Ag Summit to be held this week in Yuma - for more information go to http://www.swagsummit.com.

To contact John Palumbo go to: jpalumbo@ag.arizona.edu

For questions or comments on any of the topics please contact Marco Pena at the Yuma Agricultural Center.
College of Agriculture, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ.