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Protect Your Fertilizer Investment with a Strong Corn Herbicide

December 8, 2022
corn emerges in a weed free row

Corn emerges in a clean, weed-free field.

The University of Nebraska recently highlighted that fertilizer prices have elevated to levels not seen since 2008, so it’s no surprise input costs have been at the top of many growers’ minds heading into 2023. Fertilizer nutrients are vital for crop production, and the goal should always be to maximize your fertilizer investment by feeding the crop and not weeds. Otherwise, your return on investment could be wiped out entirely.

When weeds emerge with corn, the weeds often benefit more. Weeds have high photosynthetic rates and relative growth rates, and they vigorously compete with corn for sunlight, water, space and those invaluable fertilizer nutrients. Our studies across 20 locations found that weeds as little as 2-4 inches consumed 13.4 lbs. of (N)itrogen, 0.85 lbs. of (P)hosphorus and 16.8 lbs. of Potassium (K).1 At last year’s pricing, that’s roughly $24 per acre in lost fertilizer nutrients alone if you let weeds compete.

Here are ways you can take action and preserve key nutrients for your corn crop in 2023:

  • Start clean by planting into weed-free fields.
  • Strengthen your residual corn herbicide program. By removing early-season weed competition from the equation, you can maximize your fertilizer inputs and ensure your corn has adequate nutrients available for maximum growth and grain fill.
  • Select corn herbicides with longer residual control, use full labeled rates and time your post-emergence application before weeds start emerging.

The best weed management solution is the one that incorporates sound agronomic principles and makes financial sense. We recommend Acuron® herbicide because it checks all the boxes for agronomic fundamentals of weed management, preserves your fertilizer investment for the corn, not the weeds, and helps deliver more bushels, too.

When applied preemergence at a full labeled rate, Syngenta and university replicated trials show Acuron corn herbicide and its unique mix of powerful weed control, longest-lasting residual and proven crop safety, help unlock corn’s full yield potential, resulting in a 5 to 15 bu/A yield advantage versus competitors.

Want to see what those extra bushels could mean for your revenue potential in 2023? Try our online calculator and find out.

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1 Weed Nutrient Uptake Source: Approximately 20 Syngenta Learning Center Research locations between 2006-2008. Nutrients measured from samples taken from weeds 1-2” and 2-4” in height. Analysis completed by Midwest Labs, Omaha, NE. Period from weed emergence to removal at 1-2” in height was 10 days and 2-4” in height was 20 days. Cost of Weed Uptake Source: https://blogs.worldbank.org/opendata/fertilizer-prices-rise-moderately-2021. Calculations used 28% UAN as the nitrogen source; DAP-(18-46-0) as the phosphorus source and muriate of potash-(0-0-60) as the potash source.

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

Syngenta hereby disclaims any liability for third party websites referenced herein.

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