Layby Directed and Hooded Row Middle Applications of Engenia, FeXapan, and XtendiMax Approved for Use By Georgia Cotton and Soybean Growers. (A.S. Culpepper - UGA and T. Gray - GDA).

A state Section 24(c) Special Local Need Label has been approved by the U.S. EPA and Georgia Department of Agriculture (GDA) allowing directed and hooded applications for Engenia, FeXapan, and XtendiMax.

Label Information:

1. Applicators must have attended (and registered) a 2019 Using Pesticide Wisely training and must be a certified applicator.

2. Each applicator must have the label of the product they decide to use in their possession during the application. Labels can be obtained at the GDA web site: http://agr.georgia.gov/24c.aspx. Once on the website, click “go to dicamba page”; then select the “24C label” for the product of choice. These labels will provide detailed information needed to make a proper application. 

3. Hooded applications: May use any standard spray tip as long as droplets are coarse or larger in size (>341 microns VMD₅₀). Hoods must remain in contact with soil while making the application. A maximum of 6 mph sprayer speed. Tolerant cotton or soybeans must be at least 15 inches in height at time of application.

3. Directed Layby applications:  May use any standard spray tip as long as droplets are coarse or larger in size (>341 microns VMD₅₀). Spray release point must not be more than 10 inches from the soil and the cotton or soybean must be at least 20 inches in height.  Spray tip must be angled downward toward the soil making sure no spray droplets remain in the air. A maximum of 6 mph sprayer speed is required.

4. Engenia, FeXapan, and XtendiMax can be mixed with any other labeled cotton or soybean herbicides approved on the manufactures websites (www.engeniatankmix.com; www.xtendimaxapplicationrequirements.com; https://www.corteva.us/products-and-solutions/crop-protection/fexapan.html).

Do not tank-mix with AMS or glufosinate products (Liberty, etc.)

A few questions and answers:

1. Do hood or layby applications reduce the buffer requirements currently required for topical applications?  NO!

2. Do hood or layby applications increase the application window for these dicamba formulations? Yes. Hooded or directed applications can be made in-crop up until 7 days pre-harvest for cotton and up to beginning bloom in soybean.

Special thanks: The authors would like to thank the U.S. EPA for their willingness to discuss and ultimately support these new labels. The opportunity for Georgia agriculture to further steward pesticides by reducing off-target drift while simultaneously improving weed control through improved spray coverage of weeds is a result of sound science and cooperation.

Peanut Weed Control Update for May 23 (Prostko)

A few things to think about in regards to peanut weed control given the current weather conditions:

1)  Rainfall events on Mother's Day Weekend (May 9-13) caused some Valor related peanut problems in many areas of south Georgia (Figure 1).  Since I have addressed this issue numerous times in other blogs, I feel no need to bloviate any further.  But, this problem should not be a surprise to anyone who has ever used Valor in the past.  Valor injury will almost always happen when rainfall events occur from cracking up until about 2-3 weeks later.  Historically, this injury has been cosmetic only and not resulted in reduced peanut yields. 

Figure 1.  Valor injury at UGA Ponder Farm, May 14, 2019.

2) Cracking/EPOST applications of paraquat mixtures or solo applied Storm or Ultra Blazer should be delayed as late as possible in peanut fields suffering from Valor injury.  I would argue that if Valor injury has occurred, then good weed control has also occurred and a cracking treatment might not really be needed.  Paraquat treatments can safely be applied in peanuts up to 28 days after cracking.

3) Common paraquat mixtures include paraquat + Storm or Basagran + Dual Magnum or Warrant or Zidua.   I have no preference between Dual Magnum, Warrant or Zidua.   There is no need for additional adjuvants with Dual Magnum mixes but a NIS (0.25% v/v) should be used in Warrant or Zidua + paraquat tank-mixes.  FYI, I am not a huge fan of paraquat + Dual Magnum or Warrant or Zidua without any Basagran/Storm due to greater injury potential that might reduce yields (especially under these lava-like weather conditions). Also, paraquat without Basagran/Storm is not very effective on smallflower mg (Figure 2).

  

Figure 2.  Smallflower morninglory

3) With paraquat mixes, I prefer Storm (bentazon + acifluorfen) over Basagran (bentazon) due to the variety of weeds that can occur in any given peanut field in Georgia.  My typical recommended use rate of Storm in EPOST paraquat tank-mixes is 16 oz/A.  If need be, growers can make their own "Georgia" Storm by mixing 16 oz/A of Ultra Blazer 2SL + 8 oz/A of Basagran 4SL (yes, this is a slightly hotter mix than 16 oz/A of Storm). 

4) It is very hot and very dry right now.  Non-irrigated growers who were planning on using paraquat tank-mixes after peanut emergence might want to re-considering their options.  Why?  Rainfall/irrigation is critical in helping peanut plants recover from paraquat injury.  I do not think that irrigated growers need to worry about this issue since they can help the peanut plants recover from paraquat injury with well-timed irrigation events.

5) When paraquat + Storm/Basagran + Dual/Warrant/Zidua mixtures are applied in peanut, there is no need to be a great ID'er of weeds since these mixes control just about everything (small grasses and small broadleaf weeds).  But, if a non-irrigated grower decides to go with something other than paraquat mixtures (which is fine), such as Ultra Blazer or Strongarm or Cadre or 2,4-DB, they better know what is in the field since these herbicides are not as broad spectrum.  I am not comfortable with very early applications of Cobra unless the peanut plants have reached the 6 true leaf stage.  

6) No matter what I say or do, if it don't rain, it don't matter! (That's a famous quote from former UGA Extension Peanut Specialist, Dr. John Baldwin) 

Tavium Plus VaporGrip Technology (S. Culpepper and E. Prostko - UGA and T. Gray - GDA)

Tavium Plus VaporGrip Technology has just recently received a Georgia registration for use in cotton and soybeans. Tavium is a pre-mixture of dicamba and s-metolachlor (Dual Magnum) making it a restricted use pesticide.

Those individuals who have attended (and registered) at one of the 2019 Using Pesticides Wisely trainings and have a pesticide license or a certified applicators license to apply XtendiMax, Engenia, or FeXapan have fulfilled the legal requirements needed to apply Tavium in 2019 in Georgia.

To view the Tavium label or for more product information visit http://www.syngenta-us.com/herbicides/tavium.  For approved tank-mix partners and spray tips visit http://www.syngenta-us.com/herbicides/tavium-tank-mixes.  As of publication time, Roundup PowerMax® is the only approved glyphosate formulation that can be tank-mixed with Tavium.  Additionally, NO glufosinate (Liberty, etc.) formulation is approved as a tank-mixture.

Also, remember that whenever s-metolachlor is tank-mixed with anything, increased crop injury (leaf burn) is very likely (Figure 1).

Figure 1.  Tavium injury on soybeans, UGA Ponder Research Farm, 2018.

Georgia Department of Agriculture Announces A Final UPW Meeting for 2019! (Culpepper, UGA and Gray, GDA).

A final Using Pesticides Wisely (UPW) meeting will be conducted at the Tifton Campus Conference Center on May 21, 2019 beginning at 1:30 pm.

Similar to previous meetings and immediately after the UPW meeting, Extension agents and GDA will also offer an applicators license training for those individuals who do not have a pesticide license. The applicators license will allow individuals the ability to apply Engenia, XtendiMax or FeXapan in 2019 and 2020 only.

For those wanting to know who has completed the training visit the Department of Ag’s auxin website; scroll down to the bottom of the page and you will see “Applicators with Using Pesticides Wisely Training for 2019” http://agr.georgia.gov/24c.aspx. Click on the location of interest, and names from individuals that filled out the registration (if legible) are entered.

Phone reservations are not needed for this training.

FINAL 2019 Using Pesticides Wisely (UPW) Training
Date, Time	County	Location and Address
May 21, 1:30 pm	Tift	Tifton Campus Conf. Center, 15 RDC Road, Tifton, GA 31793

Valor Mishaps (Prostko)

In the heat of the battle to get crops planted on time, it is not uncommon for some herbicide misapplications to occur.  The unintentional application of higher than labeled rates is a not a good thing because money is wasted, crop injury potential is increased, and rotational crop intervals are jeopardized.  

Over the last few days, I have received several inquires about how peanuts might respond to Valor applied at rates higher than 3.0 oz/A due to sprayer calibration errors.  Keep in mind that when an herbicide is developed, application rates are based upon a ton of data.  The lowest use rate possible that will provide the most consistent weed control over a wide range of environments in carefully selected.  Additionally, most herbicide use rates have a "safety" margin built into the rate just in case of application errors.  

I looked back at some of my older Valor data and can tell you this regarding the response of peanuts to 6 oz/A of Valor:

1) In 6 field trials, there was no significant difference in peanut yield between 3 oz/A and 6 oz/A.

2) In 1 field trial, 6 oz/A of Valor resulted in a 7% yield loss when compared to 3 oz/A (Figure 1).

3) In 1 field trial, 6 oz/A of Valor resulted in a 15% yield loss when compared to a non-treated check.

Figure 1.  Peanut injury caused by Valor SX 51WG @ 6 oz/A which 
resulted in a 7% yield loss, Attapulgus, GA 2018.  

If a grower accidentally applied the wrong rate of Valor at planting, there is a good chance that nothing disastrous will happen.  With any application of Valor and regardless of rate, heavy rainfalls during the period of emergence until about 2-3 weeks after will result in significant visual injury.  I strongly encourage all growers to regularly calibrate their sprayers in order to prevent herbicide application mishaps!  Growers should not put all their faith in last year's sprayer settings or sophisticated on-board computers.  

For the record, both UGA and the current Valor label recommend that ONLY 3 oz/A of Valor be applied within 2 days after peanut planting (I do not want anyone reading this blog to think that its OK to apply 6 oz/A!!!!!!!!!  That is not the purpose of this blog!!!!!!!).