UGA Prof Says Rotating Chemistries Key To Winning Pigweed War

A University of Georgia professor is advocating that farmers rotate the pesticides they apply to cotton crops in order to prevent another outbreak of the herbicide-resistant weed, Palmer amaranth, reports Clint Thompson of the Tifton Gazette (Tifton, GA).

In 2004, glyphosate-resistant Palmer amaranth was discovered in Macon County. Being resistant to this herbicide allowed Palmer amaranth, commonly known as “pigweed,” to grow into the $100 million-a-year problem it is today for Georgia cotton farmers.

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“One of the key things to know about herbicide resistance is that a weed is resistant to that herbicide before you ever spray it,” said William Vencill, a professor in the crop and soil sciences department of the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, during the Southern Weed Science Society annual meeting held in Savannah, Jan. 26-28. “Once you start spraying that herbicide time and time again without applying other herbicides or other diverse weed management techniques, that one-in-a-billion trait can start to survive and multiply.”

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A herbicide-resistant weed can overtake a field in just two or three years, he said. “Then the pollen spreads and it overtakes the whole area,” Vencill said.

Check out the full story on the Tifton Gazette’s website.

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