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Subject: Re: corn stalks
From: wroytucker@webtv.net (wroy)
Organization: WebTV Subscriber
Date: Wed, 05 Jul 00 15:13:59
Message-ID: <MOD$000705.28750@rec.gardens.ecosystems>
References: <MOD$000704.12460@rec.gardens.ecosystems>



Hi Jeff,
"Fer-shure", sounds like you have a leaf miner! Problem-o, at this
juncture, anything you use to kill the little buggers, ain't too healthy
for we, who are going to eat the corn.
There are hundreds of species of leaf miners, and they attack all kinds
of plants. The little culprits are teeny-tiny wasps that lay their eggs
on or,sometimes, inject them into ( with a little stinger-like, egg
layer, called an ova -[egg] positer ). The eggs hatch into little
larvae, which tunnel through the leaves until it 's time to metamorphose
into a wasp,themselves, when they will form a little "blister-like"
nodule and emerge as a full grown insect. Non edible plants are treated
with a systemic insecticide that kills them where they are living, but
of course you can't use that with food plants. If the infestation is
limited to just a few leaves, cut them off and burn the leaves. If the
plants seem to be growing well in spite of them, I wouldn't worry about
it . After the corn is harvested, though, get rid of the old stalks by
burning them. Don't mix them in with compost.

The best treatment is to go after the adult insects before they have a
chance to lay eggs next season. I use a safe spray on the plants up
until about two weeks before they will be harvested. For crops like
spinach, or other leaf veggies, I make a "tent" over the rows, with wire
coat-hangers and cheese-cloth, so the mama bugs can't get to the plant
to lay her eggs.

Check with your local extension service, and look up manufacturers of
pesticides on the NET. You can look in the phone book for your local
experts or check the nearest aggie college on the internet.

Hope I've been of some help. ..............wroy