While farmers are now busy preparing for spring seeding, it won't be long before the crops are up and there's insects to worry about.

John Gavloski is an entomologist with Manitoba Agriculture.

He notes cutworms are always a concern for producers.

"The dingy cutworm, it overwinters as a partially grown larva, so it potentially would already be out looking for things to feed on. They will feed on weeds and things like that until the crops are up. There might be a little bit of kill at seeding but probably not a lot....I suggest scouting for them, not just a precautionary spraying. Sometimes you can do more harm than good if you put an insecticide down when it's not needed."

Gavloski says that pest grasshoppers will start to hatch in late May and we'll start to see them sometime in June. He adds that early season grasshoppers will emerge shortly, however these are native species and are not pests.

Flea beetles are always a chronic concern in canola. Gavloski says seed treatments work well, however they may start to wear off after about three or four weeks after seeding.