Preventative insecticides reduce seedling injury, but do not increase yield in Bt and non-Bt corn grown in the Mid-Atlantic

BACKGROUND: Field corn production systems rely on preventative insect management tactics, including hybrids expressing plant incorporated protectants that are treated with neonicotinoid seed treatments, and sometimes in-furrow pyrethroids. While effective seedling pest control can be crucial because of the cost of replanting, these treatments target many of the same pests and may add unnecessary costs for growers. Further, seedling pests in the Mid-Atlantic tend to be sporadic, and preventative insecticides may negatively impact natural enemies. To better understand the value of common preventative tactics, we evaluated pest pressure and compared a neonicotinoid seed treatment (clothianidin) and an in-furrow pyrethroid (bifenthrin) in Bt and non-Bt corn hybrids.
RESULTS: In Bt hybrids, the in-furrow pyrethroid did not decrease pest injury, increase stand, or increase yield, while the neonicotinoid seed treatment decreased pest injury and increased stand but did not increase yield. In a ..., , , ## Preventative insecticides reduce seedling injury, but do not increase yield in Bt and non-Bt corn grown in the Mid-Atlantic

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.mcvdnck9h](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.mcvdnck9h)

## Description of the data and file structure

These data sets contain the data collected in a three year (2020-2022) field study across three research farms in Maryland, United States. In the study, 2 insecticide treatments (a neonicotinoid seed treatment and an in-furrow pyrethroid treatment) were compared to an untreated control in Bt and non-Bt field corn. The treatments were each replicated three times in each corn hybrid in a Latin-square design. We sampled early-season performance (plant stand, stunted plants, plant height) and insect damage, damage in the mid- (whorl stage/R2) and late-seasons (ear stage), and stand and stunted plants at the end of the season and collected yield data. We also collected data on migratory lepidopteran pests (corn earworm, fall armyworm, an...