A Sorghum (Sugarcane) Aphid Smart Phone App for determining when a threshold level has been reached and an insecticide application should be made was released in 2022. The app was developed by entomologists input from Ok-State, Texas A&M, Kansas State and Louisiana State.  Tom Royer at Ok-State led in the development of the app. 

The app starts by asking the cost of control, the estimated price for grain, and if the hybrid is tolerant or not.  Sampling then begins by examining a lower and upper leaf of three consecutive plants for aphids. If a plant has an infestation of 50 or more aphids, then you simply tap on the plant icon and it is recorded as infested. In the example below, plants 1 and 3 were infested with 50 or more aphids.

Once the three plants have been examined, the app instructs you to move to a different three plants. Once enough samples have been recorded, the app will make the decision to Treat or Don’t Treat. If the answer is Don’t Treat, then the field should be sampled again in 2 to 3 days. 

In using the app, it takes a surprisingly few samples to be examined before a decision regarding treatment is made. I am not a technology wiz and found the app easy to use and straight forward. For more information, watch the short 4.5 minute video at Smart Phone App for Glance-N_Go for Sorghum Aphid on YouTube.

The app can be downloaded to your phone by searching for the sugarcane aphid app at the App Store or Google Play. 

If you have any questions, contact Tom Royer at Ok-State–Email: tom.royer@okstate.edu or cell: 405-780-1346. He will gladly answer any questions.

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