The battle between herbicide-resistant weeds and soybean technologies that can be sprayed with effective herbicides is an ongoing struggle. In the seed business, it has become a race to install new resistant beans with the capability of being sprayed by herbicides that previously would have damaged the plant. This article will go through some of the new soybean technologies that will give you an advantage over herbicide-resistant weeds on your farm.
The Future of Soybean Technology
Soybeans are moving in the direction of stacking multiple resistant traits. This means that you can use multiple herbicides when spraying these fields. For instance, if a soybean was stacked with glyphosate and glufosinate resistances, then you could spray both Round Up and Liberty herbicides on this soybean field with no ill-effect to the soybeans themselves. With every year, more and more is being done to give farmers the freedom to choose their herbicide plan, and this continues to be the case with multi-stack soybean resistances.
The following three sections will describe some of the new multi-stack options Service and Supply Cooperative will have available for the 2020 season.
Credenz GT 27
The Credenz GT27 is one of BASF’s newest soybeans to hit the market. You may remember these guys from the Liberty-Link Beans, but now they’ve added another layer of protection: glyphosate resistance. This means that you can spray both glufosinate (Liberty) and glyphosate (Round Up) products on your soybeans. Liberty is well known as a solid herbicide to control broadleaves, including the ever stubborn waterhemp. Liberty is more or less a contact killer, meaning that you have to spray the entire weed to kill it. While Liberty is effective, it has its limitations, such as weakness to grasses. This is where glyphosate products can help to fill in the gap. Glyphosate products like Round Up are very effective on the vast majority of weeds, including grasses and most broadleaves. If you are spraying GT27 beans this year, then you are looking at a solid 1-2 punch against some tough weeds next year.
Enlist E3
Enlist E3 soybeans are Corteva’s (Dow-Dupont’s) new soybean trait package that boasts a triple stack herbicide resistance. They are resistant to 2,4-D as well as glyphosate and glufosinate. As mentioned before, the 1-2 punch of glyphosate and glufosinate is a strong one against resistant weeds, but when you add in another mode of action with 2,4-D this combination becomes a very strong option. You will have the advantage of three modes of action with your pass of herbicide over standing beans, which is huge in the fight against herbicide-resistant weeds.
XtendFlex
XtendFlex soybeans are the newest entry from Bayer/Monsanto. This new variety is a step up from the previous Xtend soybean that was glyphosate and dicamba resistant. Now they have added glufosinate resistance to the fold. This gives you a huge range of possibilities when it comes to broadleaf weed control. Xtendimax and other drift-controlled dicamba are excellent against broadleaves such as waterhemp, and now Xtend Flex beans can have the added benefit of glufosinate products like Liberty added as well. Of course, glyphosate products, such as Round Up, are able to be sprayed on these beans as well, which will help with the grasses and non-resistant broadleaves. This soybean variety is expected to be approved for sale in the first quarter of 2020.
Conclusion
Service and Supply will have the Credenz GT27 and Enlist E3 soybean technologies available this year, as well as the Xtend Flex upon approval. Start stacking up your soybeans with resistant traits instead of simply relying on one. Service and Supply has excellent and knowledgeable seed salesman that can help you decide which soybean variety is best for you and your farm. To get in touch with a seed salesman at Service and Supply Cooperative, use one of the contact links below.
