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Overwintering Weeds Can Cause Problems Both Visible and Hidden

November 24, 2021
A common overwintering weed, henbit, seen in a field.

A common overwintering weed, henbit, seen in a field.

Treating tough weeds on the ground now and preventing weeds from spreading in the future are 2 important factors to a successful weed-free season. But even post-harvest, fields aren’t safe. Overwintering weeds that sprout in the fall can drop seed that can remain viable in the ground for many years, enduring cold weather, rain and snow. These overwintering weeds can prove problematic for future growing seasons. Overwintering weed species can also be a host for diseases and pests such as Soybean Cyst Nematode (SCN), which causes an estimated $1.5 billion in yield loss each year.

It’s important to keep a watchful eye out and scout for weed presence at or shortly after harvest.

Overwintering weeds can be problematic for weed management in the following year and seasons to come. One consequence of overwintering weeds includes increased levels of nematode activity. SCN can feed on roots of overwintering weeds and complete several lifecycles before a grower plants soybeans in the following spring. One way to help reduce the severity of overwintering weeds is reducing the weed seed bank, because if weeds get to seed, they can spread across a grower’s land and remain viable in the soil for years. In a weed-infested field, this makes it harder to plant since growers don’t want to plant into weedy fields.

A few common winter weeds that SCN favor for overwintering include, but aren’t limited to:

  • Common chickweed
  • Henbit
  • Purple deadnettle

If SCN is a concern in your area, Saltro® fungicide seed treatment delivers upgraded protection from SCN and Sudden Death Syndrome (SDS) activity without added stress on plants early in the season. Saltro provides above and below-ground vigor, giving plants stronger stand and larger root mass with an average higher yield potential of 4 bushels per acre over other brands, under SDS pressure.1

Using Tavium® Plus VaporGrip® Technology herbicide in the upcoming growing season offers up to 3 weeks longer residual control compared to using dicamba alone. Tavium is the first dicamba premix herbicide approved for use in dicamba-tolerant soybeans.

Start the annual fight against weeds with a lightning-fast fall burndown. Gramoxone® SL 3.0 herbicide delivers results in as little as 48 hours with effective control even in adverse weather conditions. Don’t let weeds steal space for soybeans. With a fall application of Gramoxone SL 3.0 used with Tavium Plus VaporGrip Technology in the spring, weeds won’t stand a chance.

It’s never too late to start preparing your weed management plans for 2022, so get ahead of overwintering weeds and stop them before they can germinate and avoid potential yield loss to your crops.

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1U.S. trials with SDS pressure; 2015-2019. Trial locations: AR, IL, IA, KS, KY, MI, MN, MO, TN, WI. Trials with significantly different disease incidence/severity rating between Check and SDS treatment.

All photos are either the property of Syngenta or are used with permission.

Product performance assumes disease presence.

Performance assessments are based upon results or analysis of public information, field observations and/or internal Syngenta evaluations. Trials reflect treatment rates commonly recommended in the marketplace.

 

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