The threats to crop cover thanks to weed seed and the predators who eat it.

The cold winter has prompted farmers to ask what the influence of these temperatures might be on insect and slug populations. Hard winters will knock back some pest species, but it's difficult to generalize, and the influence of cold winter temperatures on the majority of crop pests is not very predictable.

Purdue and University of Illinois researchers have discovered a novel corn mutant whose leaves are highly susceptible to attack by Western corn rootworm beetles, a pest that feeds primarily on corn silks and pollen. While Western corn rootworm beetles were previously thought to avoid corn leaves based on food-source preference, study of the mutant suggests that normal corn plants have an active defense mechanism that deters the beetles from feeding on their foliage.

An Ohio State University expert recommends extra vigilance when scouting fields for soybean pests this summer.

Bags of corn seed that mix genetically modified hybrids with and without Bt toxins that kill insects provide farmers easier compliance with federal regulations but could, over time, hasten insect resistance to Bt, a Purdue University entomologist said.