More than 275 people attended Bayer CropScience’s Respect the Rotation event in Memphis, recently. Ken Smith - Extension Weed Scientist at the University of Arkansas - says the huge response is because everyone in the south realizes the magnitude of the problem - primarily glyphosate resistance…
“I know you guys in the north have not experienced what we have, and I hope you do not. We have confirmed glyphosate resistant Palmer Amaranth, or Pigweed as we call it, or Palmer Amaranth, in every cropping county in our state. Now, the first we discovered was in 2006, or the 2005 growing season and confirmed in 2006. That’s how quickly it’s covered our entire cropping program.”
Josh Messer - Agronomist with Plains, Grain and Agronomy in Enderlin, North Dakota - is part of a panel discussion giving the northern perspective…
“What we’re trying to do, is we‘re trying to prevent what’s happening here in the mid-south. Where the roundup system is essentially no longer useful in some areas, they are not controlling any of the major weeds. What we’re trying to do in North Dakota is be pro-active about this, keep that Roundup system alive, but still utilize new systems, get a rotation out there, and get another mode of action out on these crops.”
Messer says the different mode of action being discussed at the event is Liberty Link corn and soybeans using ignite herbicide…
“Well, we’re suggesting to growers is, use both systems, maybe put a pre-emerge herbicide out there as a different mode of action. We’re still getting the rotation out there, but we’re also preventing the weeds from getting out of hand early in the season.”
Dr. Steven Powles from the University of Western Australia is an international authority on all aspects of herbicide resistance, says not all the solutions will come out of a can…
“Herbicides are just one way to control weeds, trouble is, we rely on them too much. They are fantastic things, but they’re not much good when they don’t work.”
Powles has renamed the U.S. corn and soybean belt the glyphosate belt. His message to farmers is - if you’re getting good weed control - change it.
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