The blacklight trap counts in Painter were very low this week with virtually no key moth pests caught, except for 1 European corn borer, and 20 brown stink bugs, which was a big drop for stink bug catch from the previous week.

One arthropod pest that has cause some issues lately is spider mites. This pest will often have outbreaks when the weather is hot and dry. Commercial tomato growers are managing this pest with Oberon, Acramite, and Agrimek primarily. Another very good new miticide labeled on vegetables is Portal available from Nichino America.
Relative to vegetables soybeans have very few highly effective miticides. Growers can suppress high populations with Dimethoate, Lorsban, or Warrior. However, repeated sprays of these products can also flare up spider mites because they destroy predatory mites. The following text was taken from the Virginia Tech Pest Management Guide for Field Crops:

Mite outbreaks usually are associated with hot, dry weather, which accelerates reproduction and development. During periods
of high humidity and field moisture, a fungal disease can reduce populations but high temperatures can nullify these effects.
Outbreaks also are associated with the application of certain insecticides that kill natural enemies and/or seem to make the soybean
plant more nutritionally suitable for mites.
Check weekly for mites, starting in early July through August, especially during a hot, dry season. Concentrate on the field
borders and look for the early signs of white stippling at the bases of the leaves. Do not confuse mite damage with dry weather
injury, mineral deficiencies, and herbicide injury. If feeding injury is evident, press the undersides of a few damaged leaves on
white paper to reveal any crushed mites. Determine the extent of the infestation and assess the level of injury by examining 20
to 30 plants in the infested area. Field infestations often show defoliated or injured plants at some localized point, with injury
becoming less evident and extending in a widening arc into the field.
If isolated spots of mite activity are confined to the perimeter of the field, spot-treatment using ground equipment is recommended
to prevent further spread of mites into the field. If the infestation is distributed throughout the interior of the field, treatment
of the entire field is suggested if live mites are numerous (20 to 30 per leaflet) and more than 50 percent of the plants show
stippling, yellowing, or defoliation over more than one-third of the leaves. If rains come, mite development and survival will
decrease but may not drop to economic levels if heavy populations are developing under high temperatures.