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

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. Furthermore, 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 Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) and non‐Bt corn hybrids.