New herbicides show promise in trials

21 July 2000




New herbicides show promise in trials

SEVERAL pre and post-emergence herbicides have given useful levels of grass weed control on a Beds trial site.

But Banks Agricultures Bob Mills warns that many of the newer products, including Cyanamids ACH 210 and Bayers 657, which had been particularly impressive applied as late as Mar 23, have the same mode of action.

Over-dependence on substituted urea herbicides and more recently fops and dims had soon led to resistant weeds, he notes.

"The new introductions tend to be ALS inhibitors, like Ally and Harmony."

Recent newcomer Lexus (flupyr-sulfuron) also acts in the same way, he says. "So we need to bear that in mind and be careful how we use them, for as sure as eggs are eggs ALS inhibitor resistance will come." Of the existing options, Mr Miles pinpoints the most robust. "Avadex followed by Lexus with Hawk and oil is about as good as you can get when expecting a big population of difficult blackgrass. If that does not work we are in trouble."

ACH210 has a practical advantage over Avadex (tri-allate) granules, he notes. "It is a liquid, so you can spray it yourself. You can use it pre or early post-emergence, but our experience suggests pre-em is better."

Both coded products will tackle brome, UK657 being particularly good and also active against couch in the standing crop, Mr Mills says.

But yet another, unidentified, material has given an even more dramatic result in the dirtiest part of the field, adds colleague Steve Wolff. &#42

New herbicides have given promising results in Banks Agriculture trials, says Bob Mills.

2KWHEATDEMO

&#8226 Pre-drilling clean-up valuable.

&#8226 Encouraging new herbicicdes.

&#8226 Caution over mode of action.


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