Get Ready for Weeds: 4 Videos to Help You Plan Against Herbicide Resistance

Like thieves in the night, one of U.S. soybean farmers’ biggest enemies – herbicide-resistant weeds – will start looking for ways to sneak back into U.S. soybean fields as soon as the ground starts to thaw.

Resistant weeds, such as Palmer amaranth, marestail and waterhemp, pose a major threat to the industry and cost farmers significant time and money. The soy checkoff provides tools to help U.S. soybean farmers manage these species and many others.

One of those tools is called Take Action, a program in which the checkoff collaborates with other farmer organizations, herbicide companies and land-grant universities on a unified strategy against this major production threat. Under this program, the checkoff develops tools to help farmers manage these weeds with a diverse and comprehensive weed-control program. To get your hands on these tools, look for the soy checkoff at future farm shows or ask your extension agent.

The checkoff also partners with the Plant Management Network, which posts web-based video presentations on many common soybean-production issues, including herbicide-resistant weeds. These presentations by university researchers offer solutions farmers can use now. Through the checkoff’s partnership, these presentations are available to U.S. soybean farmers to watch for free.

As you prepare for planting this year, check out these four videos to get a few tips on how to attack your weeds.

1. Refresher course – This presentation outlines how weeds developed herbicide resistance, the weed-management options farmers have now and what the future could hold. By the end, farmers will be ready to formulate a plan to manage their worst weeds.
2. Manage marestail – No silver bullet exists for managing marestail, but this presentation offers five tips to help you take aim at this persistent weed.
3. Proactive control – For tips on proactively managing against herbicide resistance, check out this video. For example, use a pre-emergence residual herbicide to minimize early season weed pressure and allow the crop to form a canopy, which will help hold out weeds all season long.
4. Palmer amaranth – Metribuzin is a viable pre-emergence-herbicide option for controlling Palmer amaranth. However, watch this video to learn about a few factors to consider before applying metribuzin in your fields.