Which direction are herbicides heading? (Hint: Back to the future!)

[OKIsItJustMe]

http://www.aces.uiuc.edu/news/stories/news5974.html

Which direction are herbicides heading?

Published: Oct. 11, 2011

Source: Dean Riechers, [e-mail]

2,4-D is coming back. What many might consider a "dinosaur" may be the best solution for growers fighting weed resistance today, said Dean Riechers, University of Illinois associate professor of weed physiology.

"Farmers can't imagine going back to 2,4-D or other auxin herbicides," Riechers said. "But herbicide resistance is bad enough that companies are willing to bring it back. That illustrates how severe this problem is."

In a recently published article in Weed Science, Riechers and his team of research colleagues suggest that tank-mixing auxinic herbicides with glyphosate may be the best short-term option available to farmers interested in broad-spectrum, postemergence weed control.

"Resistance has become a big problem," Riechers said. "In 1997, researchers predicted that glyphosate resistance would not be a big issue in Round-Up Ready crops. For the most part, they were right. But they underestimated a few weed species and resistance mechanisms."

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[msongs]

1. or learn to live with weeds to some degree? nt

[newfie11]

2. It's not just coming back here

It has been used here in Western NE farms for the last 6 years. I thought it was banned but I guess not out here.