Common names: Yellow nutsedge, yellow nutgrass, nut sedge, chufa, earth almond, northern nutgrass Latin names: Cyperus esculentus L. Family: Cyperaceae (Sedge family) General Description Perennial sedges are among the most troublesome weed species globally. Because nutsedges look like grasses (Figure 1), they are often referred to as “nutgrasses”. They can be differentiated from grasses by[Read More…]
Stephen Meyers
Fruit growers, we want to know what topics you would like to learn more about at the 2025 Indiana Hort Conference & Expo. Help us bring you the tools, skills, and information you want to hear about by filling out a very short survey. Planning is in progress, so save the date! January 14-15, 2025[Read More…]
Mesotrione is a Group 27 (HPPD-inhibitor) herbicide. It is registered as a stand-alone active ingredient in products such as Callisto®, Argos®, and Tenacity® among several others. It is also a common ingredient in pre-mix corn herbicides such as Acuron, Calliso® GT, Optero®, Storen® and many others. Mesotrione has both pre-emergence and post-emergence activity on select[Read More…]
Many of the pesticide products Indiana farmers use do not include specialty crops on the container’s label. These uses are often added through 24C Special Local Need (SLN) labels or supplemental labels, which can be difficult to locate. In response to this, the Office of the Indiana State Chemist created a “Pesticide Products- Special State[Read More…]
Honeyvine Milkweed What is it? Honeyvine milkweed (Cynachum laeve) is a perennial, deciduous, vining member of the milkweed family, Asclepiadaceae. It is native to the United States and can serve as a host for monarch butterfly larvae. Honeyvine milkweed tends to be more problematic in production systems with reduced or no tillage, including perennial fruits.[Read More…]
As strawberry harvest winds down, attention turns to strawberry renovation. Renovation consists of mowing existing strawberry foliage (Figure 1) and, in matted row systems, cultivating to reduce row width. When combined with strategic herbicide applications, this can be a great time in the production cycle to catch up on weed management or maintain your level[Read More…]
This time of year, my email inbox and phone text messages are filled with ugly photos of fruit and vegetable crops affected by suspected herbicide exposure. Sometimes the symptomology points toward a clear cause and effect, but most of the time the answer is not so clear-cut. Here are a couple recent examples: Cupping and[Read More…]
What is Optogen®? The active ingredient in Optogen® (Figure 1) is bicyclopyrone. Corn growers may recognize bicyclopyrone as one of the four herbicide ingredients in Acuron® herbicide. Bicyclopyrone is a Group 27 herbicide with both pre-emergence and post-emergence activity on select weed species. Group 27 herbicides inhibit an enzyme known as “HPPD”, resulting in an[Read More…]
Dacthal® flowable herbicide is currently produced by AMVAC Chemical Corporation and registered for use in numerous vegetable crops (Midwest Vegetable Production Guide (mwveguide.org)) and strawberry. It provides pre-emergence control of small-seed broadleaf weeds and grasses. Dacthal herbicide contains the active ingredient DCPA. On April 28, 2022 the United States Environmental Protection Agency issued a notice[Read More…]
Historically Stinger® herbicide application in Indiana strawberries was limited to post-harvest. A new 24(c) Special Local Needs Label now includes a spring application (Figure 1). Why does it matter? A spring application of Stinger® will help to manage certain difficult-to-control broadleaf weeds in the spring. This will reduce reliance on hand-weeding, reduce competition between[Read More…]