Moths are active early in the spring, laying eggs on alfalfa and other legumes. The second generation can be found in soybeans from May through July. Green cloverworms feed for about 4 weeks and chew holes with ragged edges in the leaves. The green cloverworm larva is slender and light green with three pairs of white stripes running the entire length of the body. There are three pairs of legs near the head, three pairs of fleshy legs near the middle of the body and another pair of fleshy legs at the tail end. Mature larvae enter the soil to pupate and emerge as moths in about 2 weeks. Adults are brown mottled, winged moths.

Damage

    Green cloverworms are probably the most wide spread defoliators of Kentucky soybeans. However. they are generally of minor importance because of the soybean plants ability to compensate for foliage losses.

Recommendations

     Soybeans are attacked by green cloverworm in late July or August. While an earlier and a later generation may occur on plants such as clover or alfalfa.
Fields infested should be treated when populations exceed those computed from Table 1.
Economic thresholds appear in Table 2.

Foliar Treatments for Green Cloverworms

* The Bacillus thuringiensis products and Dimilin are "biological insecticides". Although larval feeding will cease, death may take several days.