A novel pre-emergence herbicide for grassweed control, including blackgrass in winter cereals, with no known cross-resistance is expected to be available for use in autumn 2021.

Luximo, from manufacturer BASF, is positioned as a specialist grassweed herbicide, with a unique mode of action that will help maintain the effectiveness of integrated weed control programmes.

Its active ingredient, cinmethylin, will provide pre-emergence residual control against a broad range of grasses, including persistent blackgrass and ryegrass in winter cereals.

 See also: Why one grower went organic to tackle blackgrass problem

The benefits

The group’s cereal herbicide business development manager Stuart Kevis explains what the breakthrough means for growers.

 “It’s been a long time, from a chemical point of view, since we have had a new product to help us with the fight against blackgrass, and I believe Luximo is something which will truly help growers in the blackgrass battle going forward.”

The new product is currently undergoing the approval process, and Mr Kevis hopes it will be available for growers next autumn. It will sit alongside current herbicide programmes to effectively control grassweeds, while enhancing resistance management.

However, Mr Kevis warns growers that herbicide resistance is a natural phenomenon, which occurs as genes in the DNA of weed plants mutate over time.

The new product should, therefore, be used responsibly and sustainably to avoid a build-up of grassweed resistance to the novel active.

“We want to ensure a sustainable product is available for as long as possible in the marketplace, so we don’t want to use the product solely on its own, otherwise this would risk exposing the active to resistance,” he adds.