Psyllid captures tick up slightly, but still relatively low

This week we received traps from 49 of the 55 fields that we are monitoring. We captured a total of 44 psyllids across 14 fields. Ten of the fields were in Canyon County; the remaining 4 fields were in Payette, Elmore, and Twin Falls counties.

Total psyllid captures ticked up slightly, at least in the Treasure Valley; however, captures were still relatively low compared to previous years. This is the time of year that we typically see captures increase, so this uptick is not surprising.

All psyllids tested from last week’s captures were negative for Lso, the bacterium associated with zebra chip disease (ZC); results are pending for seven psyllids that were shipped late. Although we saw relatively high prevalence of Lso in early samples, we have not had a positive psyllid since early July.

Nevertheless, we urge growers to have their IPM programs in place. More information on management can be found here: https://www.uidaho.edu/cals/potatoes/news/psyllid-management

To view the weekly data by site in the old spreadsheet format: https://tinyurl.com/potatopsyllid